Science Media Centre

In response to queries from worried parents, experts has have issued an explanation of why New Zealanders don’t need to worry about health dangers from ash fall from the Chilean volcano plume. Following a number of quries from media and concerned parents and schools, experts Thomas Wilson (Natural Hazards Research Centre, University of Canterbury) with [...]

Volcanic ash originating from the ongoing eruption of a Chilean volcano is causing disruptions to air traffic across New Zealand. The Civil Aviation Authority has said that local airspace may continue to be affected for up to a week. Access Metservice’s latest volcanic ash advisory here. Last year, during the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull, our colleagues at [...]

Questions and answers about the volcanic ash cloud in Iceland, and its effects An excerpt: (read in full here) “Q. How do we know this cloud is dangerous to airplanes? “A. A NATO F-16 fighter suffered engine damage after flying through the cloud, a Western diplomat said. “Q. Can’t planes just fly above the ash? [...]

Michael Fox writes for Stuff about GNS volcanologist David Johnston, who is stranded in London as a result of the eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano. Johnston and 25 other scientists had been attending a disaster planning meeting when they found they were actually involved in one. An excerpt: (read in full here) “Volcanologists and disaster [...]

Ash means empty skies over Britain Thousands of travellers are feeling the effects of a large volcanic eruption in Iceland, with flights across Europe cancelled as ash floats across Britain and the continent. The impact on travel plans is illustrated well in this graphic that ran in The Guardian. Scientists meanwhile have been analysing every [...]

Ash from the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which began erupting in Iceland on Wednesday, has caused flights across the UK and much of Western Europe to be grounded – something not seen in decades. The grounding is due to the danger posed by volcanic ash – if sucked into airplane engines, it can cause them to fail. [...]