Indonesia volcanoes rumbling

This item appears on page 23 of the January 2008 issue.

Indonesia experienced an increase in earthquakes, tremors and volcanic activity late in 2007.

At press time, four volcanoes were under warnings for possible eruptions: Anak Krakatau (“Child of Krakatau”), in the Sunda Strait between Sumatra and Java; the Mount Kelud volcano in eastern Java; Mount Soputan in north Sulawesi, and Mount Karangetan off Sulawesi island. 

Meanwhile, a mud volcano continues to ooze in Sidoarjo, eastern Java, having spewed an estimated one billion cubic feet of mud covering 2.5 square miles. A network of dams is containing the flow, but the effort to plug the mouth with cement balls failed.