The deadly eruption of Mount Motoshirane in Gunma Prefecture, eastern Japan, the previous day was highly likely a phreatic explosion in which groundwater was vaporized by magma and burst out, the Meteorological Agency said Wednesday.
The deadly eruption of Mount Motoshirane in Gunma Prefecture, eastern Japan, the previous day was highly likely a phreatic explosion in which groundwater was vaporized by magma and burst out, the Meteorological Agency said Wednesday.
About 80 pct of the volcanic ash sampled on Tuesday was rock particles caused by such an explosion, according to analyses by government-affiliated research institutes. “But we can’t deny the possibility that a magma eruption will follow,” Kazuya Kokubo, volcanic activity analyst at the agency, said.
