Modern and traditional technology combined in Vanuatu vulcanology expedition
The Vaka Motu from the Okeanos Foundation
Photo:
Stephen Wells/Sacha Leonidas
An expedition is underway to study the gas emissions of Vanuatu volcanoes.
Vanuatu is an archipelago which contains a number of active ones. From Tanna Island in the south, to Tinakula, which is also part of the Solomon Islands, volcanoes make up part of the islands.
Some of these volcanoes have barely been studied, due to their remoteness and inaccessibility.
Dr Ian Schipper, a Vulcanologist at Victoria University - Te Herenga Waka, is part of the international team.
In order to travel to the volcanoes around Vanuatu, and to collect and measure volcanic gaseous emissions, Dr Schipper will not be travelling in a large, diesel-powered research vessel. Instead, he and his team are making the trip in a waka.
This decision was not made solely for cultural, but for practical reasons. Used by Polynesian navigators for millennia, a waka will be able to navigate "nimbly" through the islands, but also can be safely grounded on beaches.
Collecting samples
Photo:
Sacha Leonidas
It is an interesting fusion of an ancient traditional technology with the modern gear, which will collect the gas emissions.
Dr Schipper told RNZ Pacific the waka becomes far more than just a practical mode of transportation.
"It's also a link to the history, the history of observations made by people living on these volcanoes - which is where a lot of our long-term historical information about how active these volcanoes are - will come from."
He expects that to collect data from each volcano will only require a day or two of good weather.
This is not Dr Schipper's first trip into the Pacific. Last year he sailed to some of the places he will be collecting emissions from. Along the way he met with local authorities and chiefs, and he aims to continue building local relationships during his waka voyage.
The data collected will likely be published in scientific journals, but also will serve as an example of how scientific investigations in the Pacific can be carried out in a more environmentally friendly and culturally responsive way.
Drone research
Photo:
Sacha Leonidas
Dr Schipper also spoke about the importance of gathering local knowledge about volcanic activity and being able to build a picture of the impact that eruptions have on the local people, as well as the global environment.
"On our last visit to Epi Island, there had been an eruption of a submarine volcano just off the coast of Epi Island in, I guess, late 2023, and that submarine volcano was scientifically on our radar to go check out with our submersible.
"But I really did not have any appreciation for the social impact that eruption had on the people, especially on the northern coast of Epi Island, and it was only in visiting there, when we were speaking to the chiefs and the locals, that I realized just how much impact this had.
"Because there's no active volcanoes on Epi and so the people there are not accustomed to living with an actively erupting volcano, unlike on Tanna, where Mount Yasur is erupting all the time, the people there are well accustomed to living in that kind of environment.
"But when they [Epi islanders] saw an eruption rising from the ocean off their coast... that was a shock to the people, and so when we arrived, they immediately wanted to know more about it."
He said this shows there's a lot that can come out of the study - "not just understanding what the carbon sulphur ratio is of the gasses, which is what we can publish in our journals, but also, what is the impact? What is the potential?"
The Vaka Motu anchored at Epi Island during Dr Ian Schipper's reconnaissance trip there in September 2024.
Photo:
Sacha Leonidas
Dr Schipper expressed his gratitude to the Royal Society, for the Marsden funding his project had received in 2018, as well as the Okeanos Foundation and the Te Toki Voyaging Trust.
Despite delays, including macro events such as the global pandemic and micro events such as lightning strikes, the project was finally going ahead.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RNZ News
3 days ago
- RNZ News
Teacher suspensions quashed by Vanuatu Supreme Court
Photo: RNZ/ Dan Cook Vanuatu's Supreme Court has quashed a Teaching Service Commission decision to suspend and terminate over 600 teachers for participating in a strike. The court also declared that the industrial action, which started on 6 June last year and recalled on 10 August 2024, remains lawful. The Vanuatu Daily Post reported the strike was initiated by the Vanuatu Teachers Union over payroll issues . Judge Edwin Peter Goldsbrough, who presided over the judicial review, delivered his ruling in a courtroom packed with union members last week. He stated that he found no evidence to support a finding that the industrial action was unlawful through alleged procedural irregularities. The union dedicated the victory not just to teachers, but to all workers in the country. According to a timeline from the Ministry of Education and Training, the union notified the Commissioner of Labor of its intention to strike in early May 2024. The primary claim in the notice was the transfer of the teachers' payroll budget from the Ministry of Education and Training to the Teaching Service Commission. A conciliator was appointed but after three sittings a party did not turn up, so the meeting could not proceed. The union then started industrial action on 7 June, before an undertaking agreement was signed on 17 June by the union, the Teaching Service Commission and the ministry. On 5 August, the three parties met for a final review of the claims to be included in the collective bargaining agreement together with a payment plan. The Vanuatu Teachers Union expressed disapproval with the payment amount, but said its members would return to the classroom once they received the first payment in their accounts. As they waited, the number of suspensions issued by the Teaching Service Commission continued to rise. In a statement in March this year, Minister of Education Simil Johnson said the government has "shown its commitments to implement the content of the Council of the Minister's Paper to settle the four billion [vatu] outstanding". The Ministry also said multiple claims were unsubstantiated. In one instance, 1192 teachers claimed principals and deputy principals' allowances. The verification process saw 496 of those claims paid, 235 considered, which cost about 25,180,000 vatu, and 461 were unsubstantiated. Johnson said in the same statement the Government had already begun "paying teachers legal entitlements" and there was "no way" it would not pay fot all other legal entitlements. "I urge all government-paid teachers to continue in their professions as teachers and school administrators and let government do its part in getting teachers' entitlements paid accordingly," he said.
RNZ News
3 days ago
- RNZ News
Modern and traditional technology combined in Vanuatu vulcanology expedition
The Vaka Motu from the Okeanos Foundation Photo: Stephen Wells/Sacha Leonidas An expedition is underway to study the gas emissions of Vanuatu volcanoes. Vanuatu is an archipelago which contains a number of active ones. From Tanna Island in the south, to Tinakula, which is also part of the Solomon Islands, volcanoes make up part of the islands. Some of these volcanoes have barely been studied, due to their remoteness and inaccessibility. Dr Ian Schipper, a Vulcanologist at Victoria University - Te Herenga Waka, is part of the international team. In order to travel to the volcanoes around Vanuatu, and to collect and measure volcanic gaseous emissions, Dr Schipper will not be travelling in a large, diesel-powered research vessel. Instead, he and his team are making the trip in a waka. This decision was not made solely for cultural, but for practical reasons. Used by Polynesian navigators for millennia, a waka will be able to navigate "nimbly" through the islands, but also can be safely grounded on beaches. Collecting samples Photo: Sacha Leonidas It is an interesting fusion of an ancient traditional technology with the modern gear, which will collect the gas emissions. Dr Schipper told RNZ Pacific the waka becomes far more than just a practical mode of transportation. "It's also a link to the history, the history of observations made by people living on these volcanoes - which is where a lot of our long-term historical information about how active these volcanoes are - will come from." He expects that to collect data from each volcano will only require a day or two of good weather. This is not Dr Schipper's first trip into the Pacific. Last year he sailed to some of the places he will be collecting emissions from. Along the way he met with local authorities and chiefs, and he aims to continue building local relationships during his waka voyage. The data collected will likely be published in scientific journals, but also will serve as an example of how scientific investigations in the Pacific can be carried out in a more environmentally friendly and culturally responsive way. Drone research Photo: Sacha Leonidas Dr Schipper also spoke about the importance of gathering local knowledge about volcanic activity and being able to build a picture of the impact that eruptions have on the local people, as well as the global environment. "On our last visit to Epi Island, there had been an eruption of a submarine volcano just off the coast of Epi Island in, I guess, late 2023, and that submarine volcano was scientifically on our radar to go check out with our submersible. "But I really did not have any appreciation for the social impact that eruption had on the people, especially on the northern coast of Epi Island, and it was only in visiting there, when we were speaking to the chiefs and the locals, that I realized just how much impact this had. "Because there's no active volcanoes on Epi and so the people there are not accustomed to living with an actively erupting volcano, unlike on Tanna, where Mount Yasur is erupting all the time, the people there are well accustomed to living in that kind of environment. "But when they [Epi islanders] saw an eruption rising from the ocean off their coast... that was a shock to the people, and so when we arrived, they immediately wanted to know more about it." He said this shows there's a lot that can come out of the study - "not just understanding what the carbon sulphur ratio is of the gasses, which is what we can publish in our journals, but also, what is the impact? What is the potential?" The Vaka Motu anchored at Epi Island during Dr Ian Schipper's reconnaissance trip there in September 2024. Photo: Sacha Leonidas Dr Schipper expressed his gratitude to the Royal Society, for the Marsden funding his project had received in 2018, as well as the Okeanos Foundation and the Te Toki Voyaging Trust. Despite delays, including macro events such as the global pandemic and micro events such as lightning strikes, the project was finally going ahead.
RNZ News
4 days ago
- RNZ News
Palau president wants Taiwan to get a fair go at PIF
President Surangel Whipps Jr. at his first state visit to Taiwan in May 2025 after the inauguration of his second term. Photo: Supplied/ Office of the President Palau's president wants to see Taiwan given full access at this year's Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Leaders' meeting. It was great to see 17 out of 18 leaders in Tonga for last year's meeting, Surangel Whipps Jr said - a sense of unity he wants to continue. "That's the record since we've gotten back together. Let's ensure that that continues, because that's what we need to see." He said he has heard that "there's been some difficulty in Taiwan gaining access". Whipps asked the PIF team to make sure they are doing all that it's responsible to do, to make sure the forum conference is a success, and everybody's there that's supposed to be able to participate. A Solomon Islands Government spokesperson said at this stage the government is not in a position to comment on participation or related arrangements for the PIF Leaders' Summit. They pointed out that the registration process for the summit has not yet opened and formal invitations will be issued in due course. "As host, Solomon Islands continues to work closely with the Forum Secretariat and Forum Member countries on all preparations." Whipps has just arrived back from a state visit to Taiwan, where its foreign minister Lin Chia-lung expressed his country's appreciation for Palau's consistent support on the international stage. Three Forum members - Tuvalu, Palau and Marshall Islands - have diplomatic ties with Taiwan and not China. Taiwan has been a development partner since 1992. China has been a dialogue partner of the PIF since 1990. Last year, RNZ Pacific captured China's representative to the meeting in Tonga asking Cook Islands prime minister Mark Brown to change the final communique which recognised Taiwan and China separately. Earlier this month, Solomon Islands' prime minister Jeremiah Manele warned government workers against engaging with "Taiwan". In a statement, Jeremiah Manele reaffirmed his government's commitment to the One-China Policy. The ABC reported a newly appointed government minister was pressured by China to quit an international group critical of its policies. Beijing's Embassy in Honiara said the allegations are baseless. It said China will never interfere in Solomon Islands internal affairs and also firmly oppose any other countries' interference in Solomon Islands' internal affairs. The president of Kiribati, Taneti Maamau, and top diplomats from Niue, Tonga, Nauru, Micronesia, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Cook Islands, Fiji and Samoa have been in China for a two-day meeting. In a joint statement, published to the website of China's foreign affairs ministry, the parties said: "All parties recognize that there is but one China in the world, that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory, and that the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China. "China firmly opposes 'Taiwan independence' in all forms and commits to realizing national reunification, which has gained wide understanding and support at the meeting. "China firmly supports Pacific Island countries in upholding their sovereignty and independence." Meanwhile, a regional architecture review (RRA) has entered its final stage. It's the Pacific Islands Forum leaders' response to the increasing interest from a growing number of Forum dialogue partners wanting a seat - and a say - at the regional decision-making table. Palau's president has made it clear to the RRA committee that, "it is important that all our partners are able to be present at PIF".
