African lakes Nios and Mone — indicators of unique carbon element-deep respiration of the Earth

Authors

  • Mykola Shatalov Scientific Centre for Aerospace Research of the Earth Institute of Geological Science National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.36023/ujrs.2019.21.150

Keywords:

ecolymnological catastrophe, carbon dioxide, geology, tectonics, seismotectonics, faults, deep degosification, satellite images

Abstract

As a result of the analysis of space, geological and tectonic information, it was established that the true causes of natural ecolymnological disasters in Cameroon in 1984 and 1986 were modern fault-block tectonic movements, which are closely associated with seismic and geodynamics in one of the sections of the “living” Adamawa Mountains. The main cause of catastrophes must be considered the activation of endogenous processes occurring in the mantle and the tectonosphere of the Earth. Cosmo- and rotogenesis of the planet Earth, in the near-surface parts of the Earth’s crust of the Adamava mountain segment, led to intensive mountain-building and heat exchange processes, the causes and mechanism of which are closely associated with the rise of abnormally hot magmatic material and gas-liquid fluids containing CO2 from the mantle. Favorable transport routes for heat and mass transfer in the Earth’s lithosphere are volcanic channels, as well as the orthogonal and diagonal network of deep faults. At the same time, volcanic channels should be considered as unique drain pipes of our planet. The lethal carbon dioxide ejected from the depths of Lakes Nyos and Monun is mainly a differentiate of igneous melts, and the latter, in turn, have mantle “roots” extending to a depth of 200–300 km. The volcano-crater lakes Nios and Monun are confined to the nodes of the intersection of “living” deep faults, revealing the deep horizons of the planet, where in magmatic foci CO2 is predominant as products of differentiation. The author proposed a mechanism for the formation of a solid gas hydrate shell, a relatively tightly sealed volcanic crater. This giant gas hydrate plug prevented the gradual-passive circulation, i. e. outflow of CO2 into the hydrosphere and atmosphere coming from deep and intermediate magmatic foci. So, under the gas hydrate shell of the lakes Nios and Monun, a large amount of CO2 accumulated. Explosive emissions of significant amounts of lethal gas could appear only with the geodynamic activation of the earth’s crust, where these unique volcano-crater lakes are located. Seismotectonic processes contributed to the destruction of the gas hydrate shell and the breakthrough of CO2 through fractures, cracks and through the water membrane to the surface. Emissions of gases on the volcano-crater lakes Nyos and Monun are the brightest example (indicator) of the Earth’s carbon dioxide-deep degassing.

References

Killer Lake in Cameroon. (1986). Priroda. No. 10. pp. 119–120 (in Russian). Retrieved from: http://priroda.ras.ru/

Tragedy in Cameroon. (1987). Priroda. No. 4. pp. 115–116 (in Russian). Retrieved from: http://priroda.ras.ru/

Lake Manoun (Cameroon). Retrieved from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Monoun

Lake Nios. Retrieved from: http://www.factruz.ru/world_ocean_2/lake-nyos.htm

Photos of Lake Nios. Retrieved from: https://wikiway.com/cameroon/ozero-nios/photo/

Shestopalov, V. M., Lukin, A. E., Zgonnik, V. A., Makarenko, A. N., Larin, N. V., Boguslavsky, A. S. (2018). Essays on Earth’s degassing. Kyiv: Institute of geological sciences of NAS of Ukraine. (in Russian).

Guern, F. Le., Shanklin, E., Tebor, S. (1992) Witness accounts of the catastrophic event of August 1986 at Lake Nyos (Cameroon). Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. V. 51. 1-2. 171-184. https://doi.org/10.1016/0377-0273(92)90067-N

Lake Nyos Dam Assessment. (2005). Published in Switzerland, by the Joint UNEP/OCHA Environment Unit. Retrieved from: https://www.unocha.org/sites/dms/Documents/Lake_Nyos_Dam_Assessment.pdf

Kusakabe, M. (2017) Lakes Nyos and Monoun gas disasters (Cameroon) – Limnic eruptions caused by excessive accumulation of magmatic CO2 in crater lakes. Geochem. Monogr. Ser. 1, 1–50. https://doi.org/10.5047/gems.2017.00101.0001

Evans, W. C., Kling, G. W., Tuttle, M. L., Tanyileke, A. G. (1993). Gas buildup in Lake Nyos, Cameroon: The recharge process and its consequences. Applied Geochemistry. Vol. 8. 3. pp. 207–221. https://doi.org/10.1016/0883-2927(93)90036-g

Haraldur, Sigurdsson. (1988). Gas Bursts from Cameroon Crater Lakes: A New Natural Hazard. V. 12. 2. 131-146. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7717.1988.tb00661.x

Lake Nyos Zoom-in. Retrieved from: https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/2348

Lake Nyos. Retrieved from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Nyos_disaster

Published

2019-07-15

Issue

Section

Earth observation data applications: Challenges and tasks