Bardabunga volcano in Iceland has started erupting in August 2014 accompanied by swarms of earthquakes in the near area. Tremors have continued ever since with up to 500 per day. NASA and other satellites have been monitoring the developments from space.
Researchers at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) have developed a satellite-based prediction tool for volcanic ash distribution. It generates detailed images of areas with both heavy and light ash loads.
Early this week, NASA satellites were first able to capture infrared images from space of the active Bardarbunga volcano in Iceland. Up until now, "satellite imagery has been scarce because of persistent cloud cover and a relatively small number of spacecraft that collect images at high latitudes," as NASA reported.
On 24 May 2014, Japan's Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched their Advanced Land Observing Satellite-2 "Daichi-2" (ALOS-2) from the Tanegashima Space Center.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) is a service institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) that is principally mandated to mitigate disasters that may arise from volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunami and other related geotectonic phenomena.
The Philippines is a country frequently affected by volcanic eruptions and seismic activities as it is located on the circum-Pacific seismic belt. Futuregov.asia now reported that the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) has developed a wide-area disaster
In January 2014, Mount Sinabung on Indonesia's Sumatra island has exploded intensively and repeatedly, forcing thousands of residents to vacate their houses. While eruptions have weakened and are less violent now, the volcanic activity of Mount Sinabung is ongoing.
The International Charter: Space and Major Disasters was activated in Indonesia on 13 February by one of UN-SPIDER's Regional Support Offices, the Asian Disaster Reduction Center, in order to provide satellite-based
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