A long-inactive volcano in northern Ethiopia unexpectedly erupted on Sunday, sending up plumes of volcanic ash and dust, which have since spread across continents and disrupted flights in India and the United Arab Emirates.
No casualties were reported in Ethiopia following the eruption, but local government officials told reporters they are concerned about the impact of the eruption on local communities and their livestock in the Afar region, where the volcano is located.
Ethiopia has 50 known volcanoes, according to the Smithsonian, several of which have been dormant for thousands of years.
The Ethiopian Rift Valley, where many of the volcanoes are located, extends from Afar southwards through neighbouring countries. It was formed by shifting tectonic plates, which pulled apart to form the land masses of Africa and Arabia, and is one of the most important geological sites in the world.
What happened?
Hayli Gubbi, which forms part of the Erta Ale volcano range in the northern Afar Region of Ethiopia, erupted at approximately 11:30am local time (08:30 GMT) according to an advisory issued by the Toulouse Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) in France.
Following the eruption, residents told reporters they had noticed faint smoke from the volcano about three days before. However, there were no reported scientific forecasts for the eruption.
The volcano has not previously erupted in the current Holocene Era, which began about 12,000 years ago at the end of the Ice Age, according to the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program.
Satellite imagery shared on social media channels shows the eruption as viewed from space, with a mass of billowing ash shooting up and visibly spreading east towards the Red Sea. Footage captured from the ground also showed huge mountains of ash rising into the skies above the mountain range, blanketing the horizon.
VAAC reported that the massive waves of volcanic ash plumes emitted rose to about 45,000 metres (148,000 feet) in height at the time of the eruption, and that the ash moved primarily in a northwesterly direction.
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