Word is that Kick 'em Jenny is about to erupt

[malaise]

http://www.barbadostoday.bb/2015/07/23/experts-heighten-alert-level-for-kickem-jenny/
<snip>
Experts at the Seismic Research Center of the University of the West Indies have heightened the alert level for the Kick’em Jenny volcano, which is approximately 8km north of Grenada (12.18 degrees North, 61.38 degrees West).

The alert level is currently at ORANGE, which is a highly elevated level of seismic and/or fumarolic activity or other unusual activity.

At this level an eruption may begin with less than 24 hours notice.

Here is a statement issued by the Center today.

On Thursday, July 23rd from 1:25am to 3:00am local time, a strong continuous signal was observed on instruments monitoring the Kick ‘em Jenny submarine volcano. Signs of elevated seismicity (earthquakes) began on 11th July and continue to present.

For the period since the 11th July a total of more than 200 micro and small earthquakes, of varying magnitudes, have been recorded, with the largest, prior to the strong signal, less than magnitude 3.0.

There have also been observations from divers of degassing occurring off the west coast of Grenada in the Moliniere Sculpture Park area.

Tsunami warnings been announced.

[malaise]

1. More on Kick 'em Jenny

http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/03kickem/welcome.html

[spanone]

2. kick 'em & r....

[malaise]

3. Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah - you're the best

She's going to kick up some water alright.

[spanone]

4. and another kick'em !!!!!!

[malaise]

5. This is breaking news right across the Caribbean

I hope it's a mild eruption
Let me check Barbados radio for updates.

[Baitball Blogger]

6. Is there any precedent for Tsunamis in that area?

[HooptieWagon]

8. In Jamaica,...

...though that's well to the west, and was earthquake caused. A volcanic eruption can cause a tsunami, but I don't know how big. The eruption itself is probably the bigger danger.

[malaise]

9. I think I read about a Virgin Island tsunami back in the 19th Century

as well but the great Port Royal earthquake had a huge tsunami.

The thing about Kick'em Jenny is that she is under water. We don't know what could follow a major eruption.

[Octafish]

7. Caribbean is a geologically active part of the world.

The volcanic eruption in Port Royal in 1692 took out a lot of the leading pirates of the day.

Why doesn't stuff like that happen to Wall Street Banksters and Washington Warmongers?

[malaise]

10. We do wonder

[AtheistCrusader]

11. As long as it doesn't piss off the New Madrid Seismic Zone...

[nadinbrzezinski]

13. Now that is what nightmares are made off

and most people there will be taken by surprise.

[malaise]

16. I know very little about these faults but that doesn't seem

likely

[Octafish]

20. Even Michigan has been having earthquakes lately.

Latest Michigan quake has scientists puzzled

http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2015/06/30/earthquake-battle-creek-union-city-seismic/29531229/

Can you imagine if one drained the Great Lakes?

[malaise]

22. That would be a disaster of epic proportions

Scary thought

[Octafish]

21. Changed the course of the Mississippi.

I wasn't there, but if memory serves, that's what I read.

http://www.new-madrid.mo.us/index.aspx?nid=132

Sheezo!

[malaise]

23. Fascinating read

Thanks

[AtheistCrusader]

25. Not only that, but the land moved so much it ran *backward* for a while.

Earthquake preparedness is virtually nil in that region. 100+ year old unreinforced masonry construction.

I don't live there, but I don't even want to SEE it in my lifetime.

[CottonBear]

12. Yikes! I have good friends in Grenada.

Thanks for the report.

[malaise]

14. Just heard an expert on the suhject saying

it is highly unlikely though not impossible for there to be a huge eruption or tsunami. Hope he's right but he knows way more on the subject than most of us.

[CottonBear]

15. I hope there is not an eruption that causes major damage.

The hurricane that hit a number of years ago caused so much damage.

[starroute]

17. Does this have any connection with the Puerto Rico earthquake swarm?

I know Grenada is at the other end of the island chain from Puerto Rico, but I've been watching that swarm for a while and wondering what it means. Currently usgs.gov shows 22 quakes between 2.6 and 3.8 magnitude just north of Puerto Rico over the last 24 hours. That's a lot.

On edit: There's some technical discussion of the underlying geography here:
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/pr15204002#general_summary

"Moving east and south, the plate boundary curves around Puerto Rico and the northern Lesser Antilles where the plate motion vector of the Caribbean plate relative to the North and South America plates is less oblique, resulting in active island-arc tectonics. Here, the North and South America plates subduct towards the west beneath the Caribbean plate along the Lesser Antilles Trench at rates of approximately 20 mm/yr. As a result of this subduction, there exists both intermediate focus earthquakes within the subducted plates and a chain of active volcanoes along the island arc. Although the Lesser Antilles is considered one of the most seismically active regions in the Caribbean, few of these events have been greater than M7.0 over the past century. The island of Guadeloupe was the site of one of the largest megathrust earthquakes to occur in this region on February 8, 1843, with a suggested magnitude greater than 8.0. The largest recent intermediate-depth earthquake to occur along the Lesser Antilles arc was the November 29, 2007 M7.4 Martinique earthquake northwest of Fort-De-France."

[malaise]

18. There was a 6.4 quake in the Atlantic off Barbados last week

and Guyana,Venezuela. T&T and Bim got a good shake - there were a few aftershocks as well - don't know that any were connected to this undersea volcano.

[CTyankee]

19. I was in Sicily in 2005 and went up Mt. Etna, which we had heard was an "active

volcano, one that blew off steam regularly and wasn't due to to do any Mt. Vesuvius activity. I felt kinda relieved....If Kick 'em Jenny is in the category of Vesuvius, it's bad news....

[malaise]

24. Well nothing she's done to date suggests

that she's in Vesuvius' league.

[CajunBlazer]

26. Kick'em Jenny eruption not likely to be a big deal

According to Wikipedia, Kick'em Jenny is the only active underseas volcano in the Caribbean and there have been numerous eruptions of that undersea volcano since 1939. It's peak is approximate 180k (591 ft.) under the surface. You can judge for yourself the possible consequences of an eruption based on the narratives of past eruptions. Even the largest eruption cause tsunamis only about 6 feet high on Grenada which is about 8 km (5 miles) to the South. The exclusion zone around the volcano was recently increased to 5 km. Grenada is not a low lying island; it is mountainous since it's origins are also volcanic. In addition its port and largest city, St George's, is on the opposite side of the island.

From Wikipedia: "The first record of the volcano was in 1939,[3] although it must have erupted many times before that date. On 23–24 July 1939 an eruption broke the sea surface, sending a cloud of steam and debris 275 m (902 ft) into the air and generating a series of tsunamis around two metres high when they reached the coastlines of northern Grenada and the southern Grenadines. A small tsunami also reached the West coast of nearby Barbados, where 'a sea-wave' suddenly washed over a coastal road.

The volcano has erupted on at least twelve occasions between 1939 and 2001 (the last being on December 4, 2001), although none of the eruptions have been as large as the 1939 one, and most were only detected by seismographs. The larger eruptions have also been heard underwater or on land close to the volcano as a deep rumbling sound."

[malaise]

27. That's oh so wrong

Soufriere in Montserrat has been active since 1995

http://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2013/05/soufriere-hills-volcano/100509/

I've been there twice since 2006

[CajunBlazer]

30. You make it sound like the entire premise of my post is wrong - and it is not

Your right of course - I should have written "the only active underseas volcano in the Caribbean". I have corrected my original post.

[malaise]

31. It is Wikipedia that is wrong

According to Wikipedia, Kick'em Jenny is the only active volcano in the Caribbean.

That was the first line and it is incorrect.
There's nothing wrong about your general comments on Kick 'em Jenny.

[CajunBlazer]

33. Thanks for clearing that up. n/t

[greytdemocrat]

28. Wow...

I've never heard of this volcano.

[malaise]

29. Last eruption was 2001

I always loved her name

[CajunBlazer]

35. Did you know...

---- that the crater of an extinct volcano called Kick'em Jack is right next door to Kick'em Jenny

[CajunBlazer]

32. That's because....

....except for sending up a lot gas bubbles, it's most recent eruptions were only visible on seismographs.

[dembotoz]

34. so how much damage does there have to be before some minister blames it on the gays