Volcano season?

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Seismic activity seems to be migrating up the Andean spine of South America. On Thursday night, the Galeras volcano near Colombia’s southwestern city of Pasto erupted spectacularly, prompting authorities to evacuate 8,000 residents. This is the same volcano that in 1993 exploded as a team of scientists were studying gases inside the crater, killing nine.

The image at right was released Thursday by Colombia’s geologic agency and shows the enormous flames that shot up from the cone. The explosion comes days after Tungurahua, a volcano near the resort town of Banos in Ecuador, also rumbled, forcing officials to evacuate 800 residents. On Jan. 1, the Chilean volcano Llaima, located 420 miles south of the capital, Santiago, also erupted. On Thursday, residents of Pasto were quoted by the Bogota paper El Tiempo as saying they heard an explosion that lasted 20 seconds, followed by a reddening of the sky. The odor of sulfur has been present most of this week, they said. Nevado del Huila volcano, 200 miles north of Pasto, is also acting up. According to the Smithsonian Institution’s volcano report, some 18 volcanoes have been active so far this month.

-- Chris Kraul in Bogota