Stratospheric Sulfur from eruptions is a primary agent of the global impact of eruptions.

Time and Place    LIPS     Caldera    Convection    Sulfur    Ash    Scale   Global   Forecast  Discover

Welcome    Big Ideas    Volcanic Heat    Volcanoes on Planets    Volcanic Roots    Triggers   

Fits and Starts    Bubbles drive eruptions    Granular Flow    Hydrosphere from Volcanoes   

Volcanic Collapse    Time Series    Super Eruptions    Engineering Volcanoes

 

Atmospheric Optical Depth

Bluth et al 1997 J Geology

Pinatubo S releases- S Guo

A Robock: Eruptions/Climate

Pinatubo Stratosphere Optical Depth Animation-Robock

Essential point:  Sulfur released by the volcano to the stratosphere is the best index of how much atmospheric impact an eruption will trigger.

Turrialba, Jan 2011

Sulfur is usually erupted as gaseous SO2 which will either convert quickly (minutes to hours) to sulfate aerosol if it is in a moist troposphere, or it will convert slowly (~a month) in a dry, cold stratosphere. Sulfate aerosol rains out of the troposphere in days but lasts for several years in the stratosphere, where it absorbs sunlight and heats the stratosphere while shielding and cooling the earth’s surface from solar heat.

OMI SO2

More Information about Super-eruptions:

Secondary Issues:

   Geological Record of Supereruptions

    Large Igneous Provinces

    Calderas and Silicic Complexes

    Transport to Troposphere and Stratosphere

    Sulfur and Supereruptions

    Volcanic ash in Super Eruptions

    Scaling Up Eruptions

    Global Environmental Effects

    Forecasting a Super Eruption

Reference Page

A Robock