We now know where the volcanic eruption that altered the climate in 1831 took place.

Jan. 2 () –

The mysterious location of a giant volcanic eruption that has baffled scientists for almost 200 years has finally been solved thanks to researchers from the University of St Andrews.

In 1831, a massive volcanic eruption spewed sulfurous gases into the atmosphere, reflecting sunlight and causing global cooling of about 1°C. This cold weather, well documented around the world, caused widespread crop failures and devastating famines. It has now been determined that that eruption occurred in the Kuril Islandsnorth of the Pacific Ocean.

composer Felix Mendelssohn He even wrote of the catastrophic weather during his summer trip through the Alps in 1831: “Desolate weather, it has rained again all night and all morning, It’s as cold as winter“There is already deep snow in nearby mountains”

The 1831 eruption is Earth’s most recent “mystery eruption”. While scientists knew this was a major event that caused climate change and social unrest, the identity of the volcano responsible remained unknown and fiercely debated until now.

New research, led by Dr Will Hutchison from the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of St Andrews and published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciencesreveals how the team analyzed ice core records from the 1831 Event and identified a “perfect fingerprint match” of the ash deposits.

“Only in recent years have we developed the ability to extract microscopic fragments of ash from polar ice cores and perform detailed chemical analyzes on them. These fragments are incredibly tiny, about one tenth the diameter of a human hair,” explained the Dr. Hutchison in a statement.

KURILE ISLANDS

Dr. Hutchison and his team were able to accurately date and relate the ice core deposits to the Zavaritskii volcano on the remote and uninhabited island of Simushir, part of the Kuril Islands. The islands are disputed territory between Russia and Japan. Currently controlled by Russia, they operate as a strategic military outpost. During the Cold War, in a plot reminiscent of a Bond movie, The Soviets used Simushir as a secret nuclear submarine basedocking ships in a flooded volcanic crater.

“We analyzed the ice chemistry at very high temporal resolution. This allowed us to determine the precise time of the eruption, spring-summer 1831, confirm that it was highly explosive, and then extract the small ash fragments. Finding the match took a long time and required extensive collaboration with colleagues in Japan and Russia, who sent us samples collected from these remote volcanoes decades ago.

“The moment in the laboratory in which we analyzed the two ashes together, one from the volcano and the other from the ice core, It was a real eureka moment.. I couldn’t believe the numbers were identical. “After this, I spent a lot of time researching the age and size of the eruption in the Kuril records to really convince myself that the coincidence was real.”

This work highlights the Kuril Islands as a little studied but extremely productive volcanic region.

The volcano responsible for the 1831 eruption was very remote, but it had a significant global impact on the climate and serious consequences for human populations. Identifying the sources of these mysterious eruptions is crucial, as it allows scientists to map and monitor the regions of Earth most likely to produce climate-altering volcanic events.

Dr Hutchison added: “There are so many volcanoes like this, which highlights how difficult it will be to predict when or where the next major eruption might occur.

“As scientists and as a society, we must consider how to coordinate an international response when the next major eruption, such as that of 1831, occurs.”