NASA has placed this problem high on its list of human risks

A volcano on the island of Santorini burberry ties in Greece seems to be a bit restless, according to scientists studying the latest data.

Monitoring stations on the island indicate the Santorini caldera is awake again and rapidly deforming, said Georgia Tech researcher Andrew Newman.

“After decades of little activity, a series of earthquakes and deformation began within the Santorini caldera in January of 2011,” Mr. Newman said. “Since then our instruments on the northern part of the island have moved laterally between five and nine centimeters.”

“The volcano’s magma chamber is filling, and we are keeping a close eye on its activity,” he added.

The volcano, if it should erupt, could possibly present Greeks with tsunamis, say experts. The chamber has expanded by nearly 500 million cubic feet since last January, and could force delays in cruise lines navigating the area.

Scientist warn that the growing caldera could burberry handbags outlet damage ports and disrupt ship traffic. Even if the volcano does not erupt, the shifting caldera could increase earthquake risk, and the island cliffs are vulnerable.

Unlike a 2010 volcano in Greenland that shut down flight between the U.S. and Europe, the Greek volcano would likely not cause widespread flight delays, saving European airlines from one extra headache.

An eruption for the nation of Greece is the last thing the indebted nation would likely hope to face. Greek lawmakers are currently considering a number of austerity measures in an effort to meet conditions set by the International Monetary Fund and other institutions involved with providing financial aid for the nation.

Greece’s second bailout package can make its debt sustainable, however Athens will have to stick firmly to agreed policies until 2030 and may need more money after 2014, according to lenders. In the event of a massive eruption, it remains unclear how Greek officials would handle the issue, considering funding for addressing the issue remain tightly attached to preconditions.

More than 50,000 tourists a day flock to Santorini in the summer months (from May to October). It’s common to burberry beige handbag see as many as five cruise ships floating above the volcano. An eruption would likely result in a dip in tourism to the island, and to the nation in general.

Santorini is the site of one of the largest volcanic events in human history. The Minoan eruption, which occurred around 1650 B.C., buried the major port city of Akrotiri with more than 20 meters of ash and created Santorini’s famous, present-day cliffs.

If a Santorini eruption did occur, Mr. Newman said, it would be nothing like the Minoan eruption of 1650 B.C. that birthed the myth of Atlantis. That eruption was a once-in-100,000-year event, and the expansion of the magma chamber happening now is only 1 percent of what would have gone on prior to the ancient blast.

Scientists at the University of Texas Medical School used magnetic resonance imaging scans to look at the eyeballs and optic nerves of astronauts who'd spent an average of 108 days in orbit. In a third of cases, the optic nerve showed signs of compression from the vitreous fluid that surrounds it, decreasing blood supply and burberry scarves possibly causing permanent damage over time.

In addition, 22 per cent of those studied showed a flattening of the rear of the eyeball which, while useful for rectifying some imperfect vision, was damaging to those with normal eyesight. Over one in ten of those studied was found to have changes in the connection between the pituitary gland and the brain. The full research has been published in the journal Radiology.

"This work has certainly has raised the level of concern at NASA," team member Larry Kramer, professor of diagnostic and interventional imaging, told The Register. "As a result of the study, before publication, we've had several meetings with NASA and now every astronaut is going to be checked."

He explained that the agency was determined to do a proper study to check this out. Astronauts will be scanned to establish baseline data, again just before launch, and then immediately on their return. There are burberry kids skirts cheap also plans to get ultrasound equipment into orbit to perform in situ testing in the International Space Station.

"NASA has placed this problem high on its list of human risks, has initiated a comprehensive program to study its mechanisms and implications, and will continue to closely monitor the situation,” Dr William Tarver, chief of flight medicine clinic at NASA/Johnson Space Center said in an emailed statement

The agency may have reason to be concerned. Because of the cost of sending humans out of the gravity well it makes sense to stretch mission times as long as possible, and a trip to another planet or asteroid could take over a year to burberry bags outlet get there and back. If these effects on the eyes are cumulative over time the crew may need an optician as a mission specialist, if a technical fix can't be found.

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