(Image: CENAPRED)
The situation is hotting up at the volcano Popocatepetl in Mexico. This photo from the National Disaster Prevention Centre (CENAPRED) shows a lava dome forming, nestled within the crater walls and hidden by clouds of ash.
Like an angry blemish, the dome is growing as viscous lava is extruded from the volcano's crater. If that pimple bursts or collapses, observers fear an explosive eruption or pyroclastic flows of fast-moving ash, pumice and fragments of rock.
A time-lapse video of a lava dome forming on Mount St Helens over four years captures the process in action.
Ash from Popocatepetl has disrupted flights from Mexico City for days. On Sunday, CENAPRED raised its alert level to yellow phase 3, just one shy of the red alarm level. It recommends that people stay out of a 12-kilometre exclusion zone around the volcano. For towns near the area, it suggests staying inside or wearing masks and long-sleeved shirts to prevent inhaling or touching the airborne ash.
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