Phivolcs clarifies Kanlaon ‘radiance’

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) assured the public that the "radiance" observed near the crater area of Kanlaon Volcano is not yet a crater glow.

A photo of the volcano was uploaded on Facebook by John Kimwell Laluma, showing an orange glow in the volcano’s crater.

“The intent was to capture the Milky Way’s galactic core as it rises over Mount Kanlaon. After a few initial exposures, I was surprised to see an orange glow emanating from the crater. I immediately switched to a telephoto lens to capture it and get a closer look,” Laluma said in his post.

Phivolcs Volcano Monitoring and Eruption Prediction Division chief Ma. Antonia Bornas clarified that the observed orange glow is caused by a super-heated plume of ash emission, not a crater glow.

“Cameras are now detecting the super-heated plume of ash emission, which has existed since November. We have been recording it since then because our cameras have infrared capabilities and can detect the heat with the right settings,” Bornas said.