A supervolcano in Italy is waking up. Should we be concerned?

A long-dormant “supervolcano” seem to be waking up to life. Currently, Campi Flegrei, also known as the Phlegraean Fields, pose the greatest risk of volcanic eruption in Italy. Those who reside in the town of Pozzuoli, next to Naples, at the foot of this supervolcano, have experienced 1,000 minor earthquakes in the last few months, and are afraid that the volcano may erupt again after over five centuries. Let’s take a closer look. All about Campi Flegrei

Campi Flegrei is one of the world’s 20 supervolcanos. A volcano is called a “supervolcano” if it has erupted more than 240 cubic miles of material at one point.

A 2023 article published in the Communications Earth and Environment journal describes Campi Flegrei’s huge caldera or enormous depression as the largest active caldera in Europe, spanning 12 to 15 kilometres (about 7.5 to nine miles) across. The volcano is located roughly 28 miles from Pompeii, the site of the legendary eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, which is the nation’s most active volcano. The last major eruption of the supervolcano was nearly 500 years ago in 1538, after a previous dormant state of 3,000 years, and it created a new mountain in the bay, according to a 2011 research published in Quaternary Science Reviews. Many of the region’s numerous underwater volcanoes have been active for 39,000 years. According to CNN, the area is home to 800,000 people and is being developed with a hospital. It is filled with villas, small villages, and shopping centres. The “red zone,” which includes 18 towns that are most vulnerable to an eruption, is home to more than 500,000 residents, according to Italy’s civil protection service. According to the civil protection service, an extra three million citizens of Naples live just outside the caldera’s eastern edge. Increased seismic activity The National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) of Italy reports that since December 2022, there has been a rise in seismic activity in the region, raising concerns that the volcano may start reawakening after periods of inactivity. More than 3,450 earthquakes have been reported at Campi Flegrei so far in 2023; 1,118 of them were in August alone. INGV statistics shows that this is more than three times the total from the previous year. October saw more than 500 earthquakes, with the biggest one measuring 4.0 on the Richter scale and producing 12 aftershocks. [caption id=“attachment_13378102” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Volcanologists carry out a survey at the site of the Campi Flegrei (Phlegraean Fields) volcanic region in Pozzuoli, Italy. Reuters[/caption] As per INGV, practically all of the earthquakes occurred with a magnitude of less than 3.0 till the start of May. In September, the former head of the Vesuvius observatory at Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology told Reuters that the earthquake swarms were causing ground uplift in the area, which could lead to structural damage in the port town of Pozzuoli, located roughly 20 miles outside of Naples. Possibility of eruption after generations at rest According to NBC News, Christopher Kilburn, a professor of volcanology and geophysical hazards at University College London and the author of a paper on Campi Flegrei, said that research indicates that recent seismic activity is weakening the Earth’s crust and increasing the likelihood of a rupturing. The Wall Street Journal quoted a local fisherman as saying, “We’re used to it, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t afraid.” According to the report, residents of Campi Flegrei have informed Italian officials that they are planning an escape plan in case of a volcano eruption. However, they are aware that this plan will not be effective due to the narrow streets. Kilburn stated that Campi Flegrei may not erupt despite the regular earthquakes and sulfuric gas releases that are frequent in Pozzuoli these days, according to NBC News. “If there’s a rupture, there is no guarantee that magma is going to erupt. And that’s why with the observatory there, the official releases cover anything from just an increase in seismicity through to a small eruption because we can’t really tell where we are in that just yet,” he told the outlet. Alessandro Iannace, a geology professor at the University of Napes Federico II, told The Wall Street Journal that although the likelihood of a catastrophic eruption is currently low, it is not zero. What happens if it erupts Iannace told The Wall Street Journal that the traffic jam that would result from an evacuation is the primary cause for concern. “The difference is that in Yellowstone, if you think the eruption is coming, you can send the tourists home and close the park for four years. You can’t do that with Campi Flegrei. There are just too many people there,” Iannace told the Journal. To deal with the seismic activity and the potential for an eruption, many experts believe that the local population should be better prepared. The latest plan, released on 5 October by the country’s civil protection agency, calls for the evacuation of 500,000 people over the course of 72 hours on roads that many residents worry won’t be able to handle the volume of traffic. The results of the most recent study conducted on this kind of plan, which took place in 2019, revealed that it was inadequate. With inputs from agencies