Alone on the volcano

Santorini (Thira) is an island in the Mediterranean and possible location of ancient Atlantis. The island is strangely crescent shaped. Its inner edge is high and steep while the outer edge is low.

Santorini resembles a mountain which somehow lost its highest central part. That may sound like a fantasy but that’s exactly what geologist believe happened to the island some 3600 years ago. It was a result of an enormous volcanic eruption which produced more than 60 cubic kilometers of volcanic material. Partially emptied magma chamber collapsed (Wikipedia says that its top was blown off but this is just a popular misunderstanding of a caldera forming process) and the central part of the volcano vanished below the waves.

This volcanic eruption devastated the settlement of Akrotiri in Southern Santorini. This settlement is believed by many to be the location of Atlantis. It is, actually, the most probable location if you ask it from geologists. It makes absolutely no sense to place it in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean as it is often done. It simply can not be there.

Satellite photo of Santorini. Nea Kameni is the dark-colored island in the middle of the caldera. Photo: NASA.

The formation of the caldera 3600 years ago was not the first one there and it will not be the last one either. Santorini is volcanically active (last eruption in 1950) although the current volcanic activity is not concentrated in the main island. There is a small island named Nea Kameni (New Rock) in the middle of the caldera where the volcano is rebuilding itself once again.

I visited Santorini and Nea Kameni in the early spring of 2011. It was off-season. The number of tourists was small but I like it that way. If possible I’d like to visit geologically interesting areas without large crowds. Besides it is far too hot during the summer months. But such somewhat arrogant attitude has its drawbacks also. I really wanted to visit the volcano (Nea Kameni) but there were no boat trips available. We asked (I was there with my wife and 8 months old son) from several places but it seemed to be hopeless. It was really frustrating. That damn island was almost within reach if looked from the caldera rim but still so inaccessible. We still didn’t gave up and one man in the harbour agreed to take us there with his boat. It wasn’t cheap but I think it was worth it. There were only three of us and the volcano.