Inexpensive Camera Aids in Predicting Volcanic Eruptions.

An international team of researchers has developed a low-cost SO2 camera to continually measure emission rates from volcanoes, which could help predict future eruptions. The new design is significantly cheaper and uses less power, with a price tag of around $5,000, reducing the cost of parts needed to build the camera down to approximately a fourth of previous models. The camera is accessible to more volcanologists who otherwise might not have access to datasets containing accurate gas emission rates. The researchers presented two preliminary data sets from Lascar, a stratovolcano in Chile, and Kilauea, a shield volcano on Hawaii's Big Island, where their camera is in continuous operation.