NATURAL EVENTS

The first 2023 eruption of the Piton de la Fournaise volcano

On Sunday, 2 July, the Piton de la Fournaise volcano, located on Reunion Island, recorded its first eruption of 2023.

Starting at 8.50 a.m., lava reached the surface of the eastern flank, at the height of the Grandes Pentes, after a fissure opened at an altitude of 2000 metres. The eruption was visible from the Routes des laves between Saint-Rose and Saint-Philippe.

The seismic crisis had already started more than an hour earlier and around 600 earthquakes were recorded during this phase. Not far from the eruptive fissure that has now opened, another eruption had already occurred in 2020.

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The eruption of the Piton de la Fournaise volcano.
On Sunday 2 July, the Piton de la Fournaise volcano, located on Reunion Island, recorded its first eruption in 2023.
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The crack that opened at 2,000 meters.
Starting at 8.50 a.m., lava reached the surface of the eastern flank, at the height of the Grandes Pentes, after a fissure opened at an altitude of 2000 metres. The eruption was visible from the Routes des laves between Saint-Rose and Saint-Philippe.
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The recorded seismic crisis
The seismic crisis had already started more than an hour earlier, and during this phase around 600 earthquakes were recorded. Not far from the eruptive fissure that has now opened, another eruption had already occurred in 2020.
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The monitoring of the activity
Monitoring the volcano's activity is the staff of the Piton de la Fournaise Volcanological Observatory, which had detected the volcanic tremor and also predicted the arrival of magma on the surface. The intercepted lava fountains appear to be of relatively low height.
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A short eruption
The eruption was considered brief. On the same day of 2 July, around 12 noon, the lava flow had already rapidly diminished, becoming almost imperceptible.
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