Crop failure, famine, and deadly diseases. Scientists predicted a volcanic eruption that humanity is not ready for

Scientists are warning of an impending volcanic eruption that humanity is not ready for. According to them, the chances of this happening this century are one in six, and there is no plan to deal with it.

According to MailOnline, such an event, according to climate science professor Dr. Markus Stoffel, could cause climate chaos. After all, greenhouse gases released over the past century could make the effects of such an eruption even colder.

The earth has already experienced a similar eruption of the Tambora volcano in Indonesia in 1815. It released 24 cubic miles of gases, dust, and rocks into the atmosphere, causing a sharp drop in global temperatures. Crops failed, famine spread, disease increased, and tens of thousands of people died.

Unlike the "year without a summer" that followed the eruption of Tambora, a 21st century megavolcano will add to the devastation already caused by humanity's dependence on fossil fuels.

"The consequences could be even worse than in 1815. The world is more unstable now," explained geologist Dr. Michael Rampino.

Research by volcanologist Dr. Thomas Aubrey shows that a hotter, more turbulent atmosphere will spread sulfur dioxide and the cooling sulfate aerosols it produces more quickly, amplifying the cooling effect. A wider distribution of these compounds in the air that reflect sunlight will make them more effective, reducing the likelihood of collision and sticking together.

"There is a 'happy medium' in terms of the size of these tiny and shiny particles - the 'right' size range where they are very effective at scattering sunlight," explains Cambridge University researcher Dr. Anja Schmidt.

According to a study she conducted with Dr. Aubrey, our future and likely hotter atmosphere will absorb 30% more solar energy under certain "global warming" scenarios that will occur in the near future.

"We estimate that it will increase surface cooling by 15 percent," commented Dr. Aubry.

However, according to Dr. Stoffel, who teaches at the University of Geneva, there are also worrying uncertainties, as scientists are only at the beginning of forming an idea of what might happen.

The scientist explains that they have very poor data on old volcanoes, and this makes it difficult to reconstruct a model of their impact. To compensate for this, climatologists, geologists, and other researchers are piecing together atmospheric data frozen in time in ice cores and embedded in old tree rings. These measurements show that several volcanic eruptions over the past thousands of years have temporarily cooled the planet by about 1-1.5 degrees Celsius.

The epic Tambora eruption of 1815, for example, lowered the average global temperature by about 1 degree Celsius.

Modern satellite data has the ability to record how much sulfur dioxide has been released into the atmosphere. However, even these added sensors and other seismic tools are still not enough for scientists to know the future of the volcano.

"What's next and when is impossible to predict," says Stoffel. He hopes that researching possible worst-case scenarios can help the public and policymakers better prepare for everything from evacuation plans to preparing food aid in case of crop failures around the world.

A 21st century eruption would affect a much more densely populated and interconnected world, where dramatic shocks could have deadly and unexpected consequences.

According to Dr. Aubrey, climate change could even affect the behavior of volcanoes themselves, as melting and disappearing glaciers over the underground magma pool could increase the pressure that holds it in.

He noted that more extreme precipitation, exacerbated by climate change, could also lead to a "steam bomb"-like detonation as moisture seeps deep into cracks near both active and dormant volcanoes.

"We are currently working on creating a map of the volcanoes that are most sensitive to climate change," said Dr. Aubrey.

It is known that approximately 716 volcanoes worldwide, or 58 percent of volcanoes that are active and located above ground, could be triggered by heavier precipitation, increasing the likelihood of a dangerous mini-ice age.

"Therefore, we can expect potentially more eruptions," the scientist added.

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