Saturday, March 14, 2015

Tsunami

Costa Rica has a high chance of having a tsunami because of its location on the Caribbean plate.  The Caribbean plate experiences a large amount of earthquakes regularly which can sometimes trigger large tides.  Earthquakes in surrounding areas could also cause tsunamis depending on the magnitude of the earthquake and the distance between Costa Rica and the earthquake epicenter.





Because of the high tsunami threat the government has established some preventative measures and alerts.  The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center monitors the geographical problems and if there is an issue, the media is then alerted to help spread the message to the public.



Sources:
Tico Times
Costa Rica Wikipedia

Saturday, March 7, 2015

Volcanos

Costa Rica is not only known for their earthquakes, but for their volcanos too.  Costa rica is home to 67 volcanos of which 5 are currently active.

The  IrazĂș volcano is Costa Ricas largest and most active volcano in the country with a height of 11,260ft.  This volcano homes several active craters as well. The largest crater is about 900ft deep.  This volcano last erupted in 1963 but still remains active.  


The Rincon De La Vieja volcano is part of a collection of 9 craters that dot the Rincon De La Vieja national park and is well known for its hot springs.  This collection of volcanos was most active in the late 90's, of these 9 the Von Seebach is currently active by venting stream and micro eruptions occasionally.



The Tenorio volcano is the fourth largest in the country with a height of 6,286ft.  The bookmarks surrounding area is enchanting with its blend of forestry, hot springs, and geysers.

Lastly, the Turrialba volcano is the second tallest in the country with a summit peaking at 10,919ft.  Turrialbas last major explosion was in 1866, but since then smoke keeps being released.


Because Costa Rica has a high volume of volcanos, the country has implemented two early warning systems for eruptions.  One of these systems is using seismographs to monitor volcanic activity.  These seismographs are monitored by Oviscori-Una, which is a seismic monitoring program run by the volcanological and seismological Observatory of Costa Rica.  These seismographs allow researchers to monitor volcanic activity.  The other early warning system is simple human lookout.  Volunteers are sent to monitor various areas and its activity.  In addition there are several institutes helping to monitor volcanic activity as well.




Sources: