Volcanic Gas from Mauna Loa's Eruption Now Reaching the Mainland US

While the world's largest volcano, Mauna Loa, on the Big Island of Hawaii, is erupting with such force that spectacular images and videos of lava fountains and brilliant lava rivers that reach for kilometers are being posted online, something far less obvious is also erupting from the volcano.

When inhaled, sulfur dioxide has an impact on human health. The nose, throat, and airways are irritated, resulting in coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, or tightness in the chest. Sulfur dioxide has immediate effects, and most people would have their worst symptoms 10 to 15 minutes after inhaling it. People with asthma or other diseases are more at risk of experiencing issues if they are exposed to sulfur dioxide. Inhaling sulfur dioxide in high amounts can be fatal. Additional risks can be produced when compounds are mixed; for instance, rain falling over a sulfur dioxide cloud may result in an acidic downpour.

Although sulfur dioxide is invisible to the human eye, it can interact with other gases to create aerosol particles that can lead to haze and, according to NASA, climate cooling in extreme widespread events.

Looking at the Bigger Picture

According to Ward, the atmosphere may oxidize all contaminants when there haven't been large volcanic eruptions for a long time. This causes a thin atmosphere, global cooling, and considerable, protracted drought. Before the 20th century, changes in sulfur dioxide led to temperature rises, followed by increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide. But because of the industrial revolution, since the 20th century, the atmosphere has grown abundant in additional greenhouse gases.

It is still too early to say how the SO2 plume from Mauna Loa will affect the climate globally or whether considerable cooling or even warming may occur.

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