Part II: A major Icelandic volcanic eruption could have a global impact

As I stated in last week's column, one of Iceland's most dangerous volcanoes - the mighty Katla - could erupt at any time sending billions of gallons of melted glacial waters surging through Iceland's east coast into the Atlantic Ocean.

Since early October, there have been more than 800 earthquakes around the caldera of Katla, which suggests that a massive eruption of the volcano may be 'imminent.'

The last major eruption of Katla occurred nearly a century ago in 1918. It caused such a large glacial meltdown that icebergs were swept by huge floods into the ocean.

In 1783, Katla erupted continuously for more than eight months. The combination of thick ash and deadly gases like hydrogen fluoride and sulfur dioxide killed one in five Icelanders and at least half of the country's livestock.

The biggest eruption of Mt. Katla occurred approximately 800 years ago. Simultaneous eruptions in Indonesia, Alaska and South America led to widespread global cooling and the start of the so-called 'Little Ice Age,' which lasted more than 500 years until 1850.

While the eruption of Mt. Katla 800 years ago didn't exactly result in a disastrous 'nuclear winter,' it did cool off the planet for several years causing widespread famine in Europe and elsewhere around the world. Even the 1918 eruption of Katla cooled the earth for 10 to 12 months. Crops in 1919 failed in parts of western Europe.

The last two volcanic eruptions in Iceland - Eyjafjallajokull in 2010 and Grimsvotn in 2011 - were relatively small in size, but the unusual chemistry of the ash and the long duration of the eruptions brought air traffic to a halt across much of Europe.

Farmers in southeastern Iceland are still battling the consequences of the thick layers of caustic ash. The resulting dust still burns eyes and lungs in the region.

Iceland is unique because it straddles two tectonic plates. It is the only place in the world where the 'Mid-Atlantic Rift' is visible above the surface of the ocean.

One can actually see the crust of the earth 'ripping apart' in Iceland. The deep pools of boiling magma are called "the gateway to hell" by Icelanders.

Needless to say, 2012 may prove to be a very interesting year. As I've frequently said, ANYTHING can happen at almost ANYTIME, practically ANYWHERE on this beleaguered planet of ours ... WEATHERWISE or OTHERWISE ... BELIEVE IT!!!

Next Week: Can we go 'GREEN' without 'COSTING TOO MUCH GREEN"?

SPECIAL NOTE

The team of skiers trying to ski to the South Pole was forced to give up this week when they encountered minus-58-degree temperatures, fierce winds and blinding snows. It's supposed to be summer in Antarctica, but not this year. The leader of the team said last Thursday, "it was like trying to ski inside a milk carton."

NORTH IDAHO WEATHER REVIEW AND LONG-RANGE OUTLOOKS

As of this Thursday morning, Dec. 15, we were finally seeing some measurable amounts of snow in town following the driest and most snowless first two weeks of December locally since at least 1895, the inception of Coeur d'Alene weather statistics on a daily basis.

Only .03 inches of liquid precipitation and a scant 0.4 inches of snow were gauged at my weather station in northwestern Coeur d'Alene during the first two weeks of December 2011. The previous driest such period was 1985 when .13 inches of moisture was measured locally along with 1.1 inches of snow.

I should mention that the winter of 1985-86 turned snowy in January and February with above-normal amounts of the white stuff in town, and especially in the nearby mountains.

The least snowfall ever to fall in an entire winter season in Coeur d'Alene was a puny 11.2 inches in 1933-34. Just three winters ago in 2009-10, we gauged only 18.4 inches of snow in town. Our greatest amount of snow in a single season occurred in 2007-08 when a whopping 172.9 inches fell in Coeur d'Alene collapsing many buildings.

Despite the recent lack of snowfall across the Inland Empire, there's still plenty of snow in the mountains for skiers and snowboarders, thanks to a snowier-than-normal month of November that allowed Schweitzer Mountain to open at the earliest date since 1984.

While it's been dry lately, it's likewise been colder than usual, allowing for ski resorts to make snow and the ice fishing season to begin on many area lakes.

With more snow in the forecast for North Idaho and the Inland Empire in the next 10 days as high pressure weakens a bit and begins to 'flatten out,' we should see a WHITE CHRISTMAS as promised in the region. An inch or two of the white stuff should be on the ground on Dec. 25.

Like 1985-86 and other winters since 1895, I'm looking for more snow than usual in the January through March period of 2012 in the area. We could still see between 60 and 80 inches of the white stuff for the season before it ends next June. But, as usual, only time will tell. Stay tuned.

Cliff Harris is a climatologist who writes a weekly column for The Press. His opinions are his own. Email sfharris@roadrunner.com