How do we detect undersea volcanoes? Have we found them all?
I asked a similar question last time but felt the answers didn't really address what I was asking. Not only that but there was only four responses (with only two being useful). Anyway, if you want to read the contents then here it is:
The talk seemed to focus on CO2 emissions or that we are able to account for volcanoes in the oceans but with no details on the big question....how? Perhaps I missed something in some of the articles I've been reviewing (in the previous question and others I've been looking at) but I don't believe so. Anyway (as stated in my previous question) I have heard over the years how we can barely explore our oceans. If this is the case then how do we know where all undersea volcanoes are?
From what I've read there seems to be alot of uncertainies and estimations with hard facts still being uncovered. Is there lacking data? Are many volcanoes unaccounted for? Do they know where they all are? How? It opens up interesting questions if there is unknowns. Apparently undersea ones don't have much atmospheric affect but IF there are many others that are unknown then the effect they have could possibly be alot more?
Anonymous2010-02-04T02:54:42Z
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They can detect them now by satelite, but since new ones arise constantly there is always a chance they can miss one for a few months.
Seems like you aren't going to get the answer with this question either.
"In 2004, the team discovered the volcano by tracking a large, yellowish plume in the water back to its source. They returned last month, in time to witness a full eruption."
"29 May 09 - Marine scientists have discovered a massive underwater volcano off Indonesia’s western coast"
There may not be a sensor system in place to identify undersea volcanoes. Since no one has mentioned one in either of the questions you asked I think it's safe to say they find them when there is surface evidence leading them to it or if they happen to be doing research in an area of the ocean floor where they find activity.
These volcanoes may not affect the atmosphere directly but I'd be surprised to learn they have no affect on ocean currents and global climate.
As has been said the Gakkel Ridge volcano's in the Artic ocean were only discovered in the early 90s were discovered mostly by accident because of experiments with deep diving submarines in the area. The articles below describe how the discovery took place and to a certain extent why they were previously unknown. The big question currently unanswered are these volcano's responsible for slow or reduced ice formation in the artic ocean. This is basically unknown as nobody is tracking water temps in the region to determine if the massive string of volcano's is causing noticeable warming of the region or not.
Undersea volcanoes are continuous all along the Mid Atlantic ridge from near Antarctica to the Arctic, all across the Indian Ocean, all across the Pacific including the Pacific Rim and the Hawaiian Islands, under the Arctic ice cap, etc... all the Hawaiian Islands are volcanoes, and many of the islands of the Philippians are inactive volcanoes. In the middle of the Atlantic the Azores are all volcanic islands. Think of continental plates like rafts that are floating around and pushing against each other. The reason that the crust floats on the molten core is because the material that the Earth's crust is made of is lighter than the magma and molten metals in the earth's center. Our planet has a radioactive molten metal core. The degrading metals produce tremendous heat much like the sun and this is why the continental plates are constantly moving and volcanoes constantly erupt. Everywhere there is a crack in the earth's crust under the oceans lava is constantly oozing up onto the ocean floors. The red dots on the maps are volcanoes http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Glossary/PlateTectonics/Maps/map_plate_tectonics_world.html http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Plate_tectonics_map.gif http://www.globalchange.umich.edu/globalchange1/current/lectures/evolving_earth/tectonic_map.jpg
Yes. Volcanic activity definitely has an effect on climate. How much? Go figure...
We probably haven't found them all, but we don't need to have an accurate count to know we are still producing most of the increase in CO2.
Carbon comes in many isotopes, the most common are C12, C13, and C14. The increase in CO2 has less C13 than volcanic carbon, a tell-tale marker of life. It is also almost depleted of C14. This means it is very, very old.