Ash Plume From Soufreire Hills Volcano

Two weeks after its initial explosive eruption on March 3, 2004. Ash plume from Soufriere Hills Volcano continues to emit a plume of ash. While the ash has not been reported to have caused significant damage on the island, Montserrat, it can be a potential danger to airplanes. The ash can clog and even stall aircraft engines. Since becoming active in 1995, the Soufriere Hills Volcano has frequently coated Montserrat and other nearby Caribbean islands with a light dusting of ash.
This Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) image was taken on March 17, 2004 by the Aqua satellite. The large image provided above is at MODIS maximum resolution of 250 meters per pixel. The image is also available at 500 meters per pixel. Ash Plume From Soufreire Hills Volcano caused a lot of damage.

The Soufrière Hills volcano is an active, complex stratovolcano with many lava domes forming its summit on the Caribbean island of Montserrat. Many volcanoes in the Caribbean are named Soufrière (French: “sulphur outlet”). These include La Soufrière or Soufrière Saint Vincent on the island of Saint Vincent and La Grande Soufrière on Guadeloupe. After a long period of dormancy, the Soufrière Hills volcano became active in 1995.

Also has continued to erupt ever since. Its eruptions have rendered more than half of Montserrat uninhabitable, destroying the capital city, Plymouth, and causing widespread evacuations: about two thirds of the population have left the island.

Credit: Image courtesy Jeff Schmaltz, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC