Deadly Volcano Has Begun Burping Toxic Clouds of Gas 400 Years After Destroying Nearby Cities

New photos from space show that a massive volcano in Nicaragua has just sent out thousands of tons of toxic smoke and gas. The first time that the volcano erupted for the first time in a century was just a few years ago.

In 1902, stereographers surveyed the region and dubbed the stratovolcano with the same “the smoking terror.”

In the past 500 years, Momotombo has had several notable eruptions. Notably, a massive outburst in 1910 triggered a large earthquake that destroyed a nearby Spanish city called León.

The volcano is currently experiencing an active eruptive phase. It has had several major outbursts since November 2015.

Incredible aerial photos from space show that the volcano appears to be spewing a loud cloud of toxic gas from the summit. The cloud contains a mixture of water vapor and toxic gases that smell like hydrogen sulfide.

Another notable sign in the photo taken by NASA’s Earth Observatory is two dark fields of lava at the mountain’s base that become left behind when molten rock flows down lava channels on the mountain’s flanks.

Momotombo is just a small part of the larger Central American Volcanic Arc. It stretches from the continent’s West coast from Mexico to Panama and encompasses several other major volcanoes and geological formations.

Momotombo is a massive structure that can be seen for miles around the city at the volcano’s base. It sits at 4,199 feet above sea level.

Outside of Momotombo, there are dozens of small openings known as fumaroles where volcanic gas and steam rise up through the Earth’s surface.

Right now, experts are not holding their breath on a massive eruption of lava and rock. Several more serious signs that the volcano is ready to blow will be needed before the public needs to be warned of the activity.

Volcanoes don’t generally explode with no warning signs, but they can often turn very quickly.

Another place with extremely high levels of volcanic activity is the Hawaiian Islands.

Momotombo’s eruption in December 2015 shocked many researchers, who wondered why the sleeping giant woke up after 110 years.

Like the other volcanoes in Nicaragua, Momotombo sits in a seismically active spot where the Cocos Plate slips under the Caribbean Plate.

Geoscientists study crystals in lava to gauge how long the cooked rock was at the given temperature. This can provide necessary information as to how long it took the magma to get to the surface after it formed.

Unfortunately, the study can’t predict what is going on with the crust, which is what builds the pressure to a breaking point and snaps to cause an eruption.

Just as there is no way to 100% predict an eruption, there is no clear answer as to why volcanoes go quiet for centuries and erupt again.

On the Reykjanes Peninsula in Iceland, a team of geochemists are studying the many recent eruptions in the area to gain a better understanding of what is causing the eruptions to happen. Similar to Momotombo, the volcanoes in the region were dormant for nearly 800 years until they awoke.

Since Fagradalsfjall’s eruption, the peninsula has entered a period of volcanic activity that no one expected. Each eruption provides a glimpse into what is going on beneath the surface.

The Reykjanes Peninsula is located on plates that tug at an angle, which makes the area a “cool spot,” or a place where active volcanoes are not the norm.

The spike in activity in the peninsula started after an earthquake in 2019. The rumbles continued to plague the peninsula for years, with more than 17,000 recorded in a single week. Soon, researchers began to notice that the ground started to deform—this is a telltale sign that magma was building underground.

After Reykjanes erupted in March 2021, lava-filled a nearby valley during the Meradalir eruption just over a year later. In 2023, Litli-Hrutur, which is located northeast of the other two eruptions, sputtered to life.

The eruptions were short-lived, and builders placed communities far enough away to avoid accidents, but their activity has sparked a conversation about their impact on the Earth.

Clues as to what is happening deep underground could be found in the pattern that emerged during the eruptive period of volcanic activity. Maybe the Earth is just rearranging itself, and we are here to witness and record it for the first time.