Ash Explosion at Indonesia's Mount Sinabung

A powerful ash eruption shot 2 miles (3 kilometers) into the air at Indonesia's Mount Sinabung on Thursday (Oct. 24), according to news reports. There were no injuries or damage, but authorities evacuated 3,300 people living near the volcano as thick ash fell across the region. There are 29 villages within a 4-mile (6 km) radius of Mount Sinabung.

The volcano awoke last month after a three-year sleep, sparking forest fires and jetting ash and volcanic gas. The 8,530-foot-high (2,600 meter) peak is one of 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia. Mount Sinabung erupted in 2010 after a 400-year period of inactivity. More than 17,500 people were evacuated at the time.

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Becky Oskin covers Earth science, climate change and space, as well as general science topics. Becky was a science reporter at Live Science and The Pasadena Star-News; she has freelanced for New Scientist and the American Institute of Physics. She earned a master's degree in geology from Caltech, a bachelor's degree from Washington State University, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz.