Though humans never witnessed the planet's birth, there is a deep, inherent curiosity to observe the Earth naturally shaping itself.

One such prominent event is the volcanic eruption caused by the movement of molten rock (magma) attempting to emerge from within the Earth.

Professor Atalay Ayele, Head of the Seismology Department at the Institute of Geophysics, Space Science, and Astronomy at Addis Ababa University, explained that the new volcanic eruption, which occurred a few days ago on the 'Hayle-Gub' mountain in the Afdera Woreda of the Afar region, reached a height of 40 kilometers from the ground.

He pointed out that a volcano is classified as 'inactive' if it has not erupted for a period between 10,000 and 12,000 years, and clarified that 'Hayle-Gub' is not categorized as such.

Professor Atalay also confirmed to EBCdotstream that there is no concrete data to determine whether an eruption had or had not occurred during the aforementioned years.

Stating that there are more than 50 active volcanoes in Ethiopia, he said that 'Hayle-Gub' is among them.

The Professor further explained that the magnitude of a volcanic eruption is measured by the amount of gas and ash it releases, indicating that the 'Hayle-Gub' eruption, which reached 40 kilometers above the ground, released significant amounts of Carbon Dioxide and Sulfur Dioxide.

He recalled that this eruption was more intense than the Nabro volcano eruption, which occurred in the year 2003 E.C. (2010/2011 G.C.) and had a high volume of molten rock.

He also mentioned that a major earthquake did not occur because the 'Hayle-Gub' eruption was close to the surface, thus the tremor was not deep-seated.

However, he indicated that the resulting smoke/plume is traveling along the wind direction, especially due to its height above the ground.

Consequently, he explained that since this is not suitable for flights in that direction, flight cancellations are to be expected.

He then suggested that by placing predictive technologies on the mountains, it is possible to know when an eruption is about to occur.

He indicated that this would make the event a compelling attraction for both domestic and foreign tourists who wish to observe it safely by being present at the location.

Furthermore, he stated that this would enable local residents to prepare themselves and protect against potential harm, adding that even now, it is appropriate to maintain a sufficient distance from the event's location and to wear a face mask.