That is the question, isn't it? On the one hand, they can be beautiful landscape features found in warm, tropical areas such as Hawaii, but hey, they could also erupt anytime they felt like it, spraying their lava everywhere that could end you with even one drop. I mean, talk about a seriously bad temper.
Intrigued yet? I do hope so; if you watched the videos, you'll see that the first one managed to scare the heart out of my rib cages. Volcano emissions linked to increases in asthma attacksFrom the title, it would seem as if yep, my first instinct was right - volcanoes are really out there to get us. However, before I fill your mind with anymore of my biased opinions, here are a few things you should know about volcanoes and asthma.
Okay, NOW we can get to the details of today's topic. There's this new study about Kilauea, an active volcano on the big island of Hawaii that a bunch of people, especially the little humans, the children, are at a pretty high risk of having serious asthma attacks if they were to continue residing in areas with high levels of volcanic gas sulfur dioxide (SO2) as opposed to moving upwind of volcano. As you can see, I've posted some animations of a volcanic eruption so you'd be able to witness it's intensity and understand why the aftermath is so damaging. The images above consist of Kilauea and a molecular model of SO2. ![]() Unfortunately, emitting SO2 isn't enough for these volcanoes; numerous other chemicals are also released into the atmosphere. Sulfur dioxide is infamously known as a major trigger for asthma attacks since it could cause stuff like:
![]() After investigating and conversing with the locals around the Kilauea area, nurse epidemiologist Bernadette Mae Longo (on the left) began to suspect whether volcanic sulfurous air pollution "vog" was the thing to blame for all the recent human health issues. Nevertheless, the true mystery is if all volcanic air causes humans to fall ill or whether we're making false accusations before gathering enough evidence. Who knows? Only time within the next few minutes will tell. Additionally, the fact that different amounts of SO2 are required to trigger asthma attacks among different people also makes the study even more challenging. Obviously, people who were lucky enough to originally not have respiratory issues are capable to breath in a relatively larger amount before finally realizing that hey, the acids have been planning a crash party in their lungs for quite some time now.
However, despite everything I just told you, here comes a very interesting turn in events. Longo also realized that all these asthma attacks couldn't have possibly been only the work of one volcano - something else far more powerful must be the true cause trying to frame nature's creation. See, in-town SO2 concentrations from human activities was the true criminal . . . well, technically it would be our own fault that we're killing ourselves but evidently, nobody wants to be held accountable for the consequences of our own actions so we'd never really admit to it. Furthermore, it's actually communities residing near the vents that should technically be more prone to developing asthmatic symptoms, not the downwind areas. Here, I present to you Kilauea's volcanic vent; an opening exposed on the earth's surface where lava (and other materials) is emitted. Hmm . . . things starting to smell fishy now, don't they? Drum roll please, and make way for the glorious evidence of how this all came to be. During the earlier stages of the study, Kilauea was consistently erupting, but only on a small scale. But then, DUN-DUN-DUUUNNN, another factor may have influenced the results of the study. In 2008, the Halemaumau Crater of Kilauea explosively erupted, thus provoking an sky rocketing in the increase of SO2 emissions. All right, now we know that it was the crater's eruption that resulted in downwind regions to have been exposed to so vigorously to SO2 emissions. That's a picture of the crater and underneath it, I've placed a labelled diagram to show that the crater and vent of a volcano is not the same thing Though ultimately, regardless of the derivation of vog, the most important thing to know is that with every asthma attack, a patient's lungs could be damaged even more extensively than it already is. Longo proposed that in order to protect and prevent even more of these terrible events, geologists, public health care workers and clinicians should all collaborate in writing guidelines to help care for affected patients. In the meantime, scientists must continue researching the diabolical intentions of vog pollution on our health (which includes gases even more dangerous that SO2, sadly). Okay, so, admitedly, I have no actual idea what is my final verdict on Kilauea. I mean, is it good, bad, misunderstood, going through a difficult time in its life? I don't know; but I do know that the unpredictability of its eruptions would make the volcano rather hazardous and if they were to become more frequent, I'm certain more and more complex health issues will arise. Nevertheless, between you and me, I personally still think that volcanoes are way more relatable to that first video I posted. They are a great, admirable force of nature in ONE SMALL WORLDbeyond our control, which makes me wonder how many other incredible forces that are also beyond us in this ONE BIG UNIVERSE
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