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Geology News
Indonesia Current Events

Tree-cutting is being blamed for a large landslide in Indonesia that claimed the lives of about 45 people.

In addition to the large amount of natural gas being produced from shale there are at least three huge LNG (liquefied natural gas) projects expected to ship their first gas in 2014 and 2016.

A world map on the New York Times website shows the location of high-population cities in earthquake-prone areas where a large number of people live in poorly constructed buildings. Although the analysis predates the 2010 Haiti earthquake it still contains important information.

In 2006, the now-infamous “Lusi” mud volcano in Indonesia began erupting mud and causing big problems for locals. The eruption could have been facilitated by a gas prospecting operation there – or, the company argues, the Yogyakarta earthquake that occurred in the region. More signs point to drilling as the culprit.

As man evolved, his brain size increased. However, not all primates have developed bigger brains through history; the gorilla, for instance, has grown more in body mass. Researchers at the Universities of Cambridge and Durham are studying brain and body development in primates to help unravel the enigma of the Homo floresiensis, or the “hobbit” fossil, which has a small brain in comparison to modern-day humans.

Yesterday was the fifth anniversary of the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami that killed about 250,000 people around the rim of the Indian Ocean. An article and videos on the CNN website illustrate some of the observances.

Related: What causes a tsunami?

When a tsunami threatens an urban area, evacuation can be hampered by the resulting traffic congestion of everyone trying to leave at once. In this situation, a more effective solution would involve people seeking shelter in tall, sturdy buildings.

Related article: What Causes a Tsunami?

Since a major eruption in 1994 forced the complete evacuation of nearby communities, Rabaul Volcano on the island of New Britain has remained intermittently active. Rabaul is a large caldera volcano whose eastern rim has been breached and flooded by the sea. Numerous vents and cones occur around the rim, including Tavurvur Cone, which was erupting when this image was captured.

When most people think of greenhouse gas emissions, images in their mind go straight to “industry”. However, Indonesia ranks third in the world for its emission of greenhouse gases – mostly caused by deforestation. CNN has a photo gallery.

Researchers have evidence that the eruption of Toba Supervolcano, on the island of Sumatra about 73,000 years ago had numerous impacts which include: deforestation of central India (about 3000 miles away), ejection of 800 cubic meters of ash into the atmosphere, an instant ice age, the near-extinction of humans, vegetation changes, climate changes and the creation of the world’s largest volcanic lake.

More than two months after a blowout at a newly-drilled oil well, crude oil and gas condensate continued to leak into the Timor Sea, between northwest Australia and Indonesia. According to news reports, the company responsible for the leaking well has tried to cap it three times without success.

“On October 8, 2009 about 03:00 Greenwich time, an atmospheric fireball blast was observed and recorded over an island region of Indonesia. The blast is thought to be due to the atmospheric entry of a small asteroid about 10 meters in diameter that, due to atmospheric pressure, detonated in the atmosphere with an energy of about 50 kilotons (the equivalent of 100,000 pounds of TNT explosives).” Quoted from the NASA press release. Fortunately the asteroid exploded in the atmosphere and did not cause any injury or damage.

Learn more about near-earth asteroids and how they are found.

People in Asia, Africa and Australia are preparing for tsunamis by practicing a drill, called Exercise Indian Ocean Wave 09. The test was aimed to determine if warning systems are functioning adequately. This article includes a short video.

Dave Petley reports on landslides in Indonesia that were triggered by the recent earthquake.

“It is interesting to note that in all three of the large earthquakes upon which I have worked (1999 Taiwan, 2005 Pakistan, 2008 China), the media has tended to initially focus their coverage upon urban areas, whilst the real story has actually been in the rural hinterland.”

An Associated Press article summarizes the known impact and shares photos of the recent 7.6 magnitude earthquake that struck Indonesia on Thursday morning local time.

A strong earthquake struck offshore Indonesia at about 5:16 PM local time. News articles report that many buildings have collapsed trapping hundreds of people inside.

On April 10, 1815, Tambora Volcano produced the largest volcanic eruption in recorded history. A NASA image provides a look at the summit caldera from June, 2009.

Here is a gallery of ten spectacular images of lakes at various worldwide locations. In addition to the impressive photos, each lake has at least one unusual attribute. You have probably not heard of most of these.

A strong earthquake occurred offshore of the island of Java, Indonesia on Wednesday, September 2 at 2:55 PM local time. An early news report from BBC says that many buildings have collapsed and many people have been killed or injured.

A 7.6 Magnitude earthquake occurred in the Andaman Islands, located in the Indian Ocean south of Myanmar and about 700 miles east of India. A tsunami watch was issued for countries surrounding the Indian Ocean (India, Myanmar, Indonesia, Thailand and Bangladesh) but it was cancelled. The earthquake was felt in all of the countries surrounding the Indian Ocean but no major damage or deaths were reported.

If you appreciate volcano photos you will not find many better than this site, taken of recent eruptive activity at Krakatoa volcano in Indonesia. The photos are excellent and are accompanied by an historical description.

One of NASA’s most famous images is known as the “Satellite Photo of Earth at Night.” It really isn’t a photo, instead it is a compiled image that maps the location of permanent lights on Earth’s surface. It is not a map of population, instead it is more a map of electricity use.

Shown at right is heavily illuminated Europe in contrast with the less illuminated Africa.

Manam Volcano, just off the coast of mainland Papua New Guinea, released a faint plume on June 28, 2009. Manam is one of Papua New Guinea’s most active volcanoes, and it has occasionally caused casualties, including 13 deaths from a pyroclastic flow in December 1996, and four deaths from a mudflow in March 2007.

Earth Observatory has a nice image of Indonesia’s Anak Krakatau Volcano releasing a small steam plume on July 7, 2009. “Anak Krakatau formed in the caldera of Krakatau Island, which erupted spectacularly in 1883, completely destroying nearby Danan and Perbuwatan Volcanoes, spawning tsunamis, and claiming more than 36,000 lives.” Quoted from the Earth Observatory release.

Reuters reports that ExxonMobil is close to a deal to sell over four million tons of liquefied natural gas per year to Asian buyers from its LNG project in Papua New Guinea. ExxonMobil is one of several companies in Indonesia capable of producing significant amounts of new LNG.