Airport service has been stopped, people have been evacuated and officials are warning of a tsunami risk after a series of violent eruptions this week from an Indonesian volcano.
Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 260 million people, is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions due to its location on the Pacific "Ring of Fire.
The 43-consecutive-day's eruptions of Hawaii's Kilauea volcano have rained tiny green gems known as olivines onto the island's streets and beaches.
Scientists believed the hit of an asteroid was the most likely reason as it can result in a series of sudden climate changes such as volcanic eruptions, crustal faults and generate radioactive substances that cause the dinosaurs to die out.
Itsconstant eruptions are usually small and they all seem to happen at the summit, allowing inhabitants to occupy the shore lines of the island.
Japan is one of the world's most seismically active nations but there have been no fatalities from volcanic eruptions since 1991, when 43 people died at Mount Unzen in the south-west.
"There has been a lot of anecdotal evidence about dogs barking or birds migrating before volcanic eruptions or earthquakes.
On Earth, primordial volcanic eruptions brought up lava containing huge amounts of volatile substances such as carbon dioxide, sulfur, water vapor, and chlorine.
He showed them colored plates of Naples, and spoke of excursions to Mount Vesuvius, and the eruptions of fire from it.
