Increasing Earthquake and Volcanic Activity on Vanuatu Starts A Chain Reaction

A map of Australia and the island countries around it

The Island Country of Vanuatu East of Australia

The Republic of Vanuatu is an island country in the South Pacific. The island chain consists of approximately 82 relatively small islands of which 65 are inhabited. This island paradise sits on top of an underwater volcanic chain east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji,  and southeast of the Solomon Islands.  Vanuatu also sits alongside the very active Ring of Fire. 

Vanuatu has relatively frequent earthquakes, and seven earthquakes, all of which were at least a 6.0 magnitude, were recorded in 2011. The Earth has remained active ever since.

Raising the Alert for Vanuatu’s Volcanoes

An increase in explosive activity at Yasur volcano on Tanner Island has been increasing since April 2, 2013. On April 8, 2013, volcanic bombs were ejected into the parking area below the summit cone, and on a scale of 1-4, the activity status was raised from 1 to 2. If activity remains elevated, alerts will be further raised to 3. The people living near the volcano have been warned to take precautions as the volcanic activity increases.

The Earth’s Umbilical Cord

Look at the patterns in the USGS records: when Vanuatu experiences a major earthquake, the rest of the world responds with more earthquake activity – it’s as if Vanuatu is connected to the crust like the Earth’s umbilical cord.

The Pacific Ocean is one of the oldest parts of the Earth’s crust, and as newer crust forms along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge in the Atlantic Ocean, the Atlantic slowly expands and, hence, pushes the Pacific Ocean on all sides and it slowly shrinks in size. Because the Pacific Ocean is the older and much denser of the two oceanic crusts, Vanuatu can claim tenure over many of the Earth’s islands, such as the Caribbean Islands. Also due to its age and position on the Earth, when Vanuatu shifts, it sets off a “vibration” around the globe, and this resonates with more global earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

So, keep an eye on the activity around Vanuatu – when Vanuatu “moves”, it starts a global chain reaction.