Galunggung
Eruption thunderstorm at Galunggung on December 3, 1982
The Gunung Galunggung ( Indonesian Gunung 'mountain' ) is an active volcano on the Indonesian island of Java. It is located 40 km east-northeast of Papandayan and 16 kilometers northwest of the city with 579 128 inhabitants Tasikmalaya, for it represents a direct threat.
The mountain has only three edges, since his entire southeast side slumped and thus a large calderaartiges pool is formed, the Eruptionsausflüsse channeled naturally. Below the termination region extending in the plane of the so-called Ten Thousand Hills of Tasikmalaya, countless small surveys on the Prairie. They are built for the most part because they offered good protection against enemies in earlier times and are above the rice fields with their rats and mosquitoes. This landscape attracted the early 20th century the interest of Geo and volcanologists. Initially it was thought for a long time, the hills were formed by lahars or Wasserausflüsse from the crater or artificially constructed. After the eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980 and investigations of crashes at Mount Shasta became clear that it also Galunggung to the remnants of a debris avalanche on Gunung - must act - probably just that the southeast slope. A radiocarbon dating of lava showed that the collapse in the last 23,000 years, must have probably 4200 years ago, occurred.
There are only recorded five historic eruptions of the volcano. The first - at the same time also the most intense and devastating -. Dates from the year 1822 starting on October 8 eruption, which is on the Vulkanexplosivitätsindex ( VEI ) with power 5 entered, 4011 people lost their lives. In the course of the eruption destroyed lava flows, lahars, up to ten -kilometer-long pyroclastic flows, pyroclastic flow and a 114 villages. Another outbreak was followed in 1894, 1918 was formed at the summit a large lava dome.
On 5 April 1982, the last time being eruptive phase of Gunung Galunggung, which was listed on the VEI with the strength of 4 began. It lasted nine months and can be divided into three sections. Initially formed to mid May up to six mile-high ash clouds over the summit, while slag flows of up to five kilometers down the slopes flowed. From mid-May to October, then were numerous strong phreatomagmatic explosions that destroyed the lava dome formed in 1918 to 80 percent and up to 24 km high ash column had the effect. Within a radius of 90 kilometers around the mountain ash rain came down. Moreover formed in the southwestern termination on 1090 meters height on average 780 meters wide and 300 meters deep crater.
On June 24, a Boeing 747-200 came from British Airways Flight 9 in an ash cloud. All four engines failed and the plane sank within 16 minutes from 11,300 to 4,100 meters altitude. After gliding the engines started again and you could make an emergency landing in Jakarta. The following months of November to January 8, 1983 were marked by a slight Lavaausfluss from the crater and the formation of a small ash cone inside the crater. The cone reached a height of 75 and a width of 200 meters. The eruption from 1982 to 1983 called for 68 fatalities, but the majority of them did not die directly by the volcanic activity, but as a result of shock, hypothermia, malnutrition and accidents during the evacuation. To this total of 62,000 residents were invited. 22 villages were destroyed or uninhabitable, destroyed 94,000 hectares of agricultural land, the material damage amounted to U.S. $ 15,000,000.
After a year of rest came in 1984 again to activities in the form of a two-week phreatic eruptions.