Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
The Pacific Ring of Fire.
One of the most breathtaking and dangerous regions on earth.
Three quarters of the planet's active and extinct volcanoes are here.
An enormous ring of fire, stretching 40,000 kilometers around the Pacific.
The huge tectonic plates shift under the continents...
unleashing destructive forces.
90 percent of all earthquakes in the world take place here.
It's a journey to the beginning of our planet.
There, where the earth never comes to rest.
VOLCANOES - THE PACIFIC RING OF FIRE
Brad Scott is New Zealand's best-known volcano expert.
He's heading for White Island...
a spectacular volcanic island 50 kilometers off the coast.
You can only see the top of the volcano.
The rest lies 900 meters below the sea.
The earth quakes here 20 to 30 times a day.
Every three months Scott flies to White Island with a team of volcanologists.
The Ring of Fire runs straight through New Zealand.
The team is constantly traveling to one of the active volcanoes.
Volcanic gases shoot out directly from the earth's core, under great pressure.
The chemists take samples. An important job.
The higher the concentration of certain gases, the closer the magma is.
An eruption could happen any minute.
This part of the crater has been heating up slowly.
So we think it's just a shift in the hydrothermal system.
That's not a great change, but it does mean that things are shifting.
In earlier tests, the team measured gas temperatures of 900 degrees.
Some gases are highly toxic. The steam stings the eyes.
This is a boiling mud pod. The PH of the water is probably negative.
Around minus 0.5 to minus 1.
Boiling sulphuric acid. Centuries ago, they tried to extract sulphur here.
An earthquake killed several workers. The plan was abandoned.
Brad Scott has been a volcanologist for 35 years.
He's lost three colleagues. It motivates him to investigate the dangers.
Here in New Zealand, we're on the bottom edge of the Ring.
The Pacific plate is pushed under New Zealand, and melts.
The melted matter is pushed to the surface, increasing volcanic activity.
This process goes on around the Pacific.
The plates keep shifting, they melt...
and create volcanoes around the Pacific, that erupt frequently.
And this simply doesn't let the land come to rest.
Aotearoa, the Land of Great White Clouds...
is New Zealand's name in Maori mythology.
You can feel it directly here. The breath of the gods.
Te Ngaeha Wanikau is a Maori of the Ngati Hikairo tribe, in the North.
He upholds the traditions, and wants to preserve the Maori heritage.
For 200 years, their culture was suppressed by European immigrants.
We are these mountains, and the mountains are us.
If they didn't exist, we wouldn't exist.
When they cry, we cry.
Many Maori are still deeply connected to nature.
To them, the volcanoes are a spiritual place, where their ancestors rest.
Back in the mists of time, our common ancestor was a man called Natoro Irang.
He was the leader, the captain, who brought our people here from Hawaikii.
To us, he was a demigod, a legend.
He was in direct contact with all the Maori gods.
He walked the land for a long time, before he came here.
Naamanga. These mountains.
He climbed them, but he wasn't used to the cold.
He asked his sisters in Hawaikii for help.
Send me the warmth of my homeland.
The sisters heard his plea and sent him warmth.
They sent their spirits of warmth and fire.
Before they reached the coast of Aotearoa, New Zealand...
they stopped at Fakari, White Island.
Then they continued their journey to Waiariki, Rotorua.
Here, next to Tongariro, there's a place called Kaitiaki.
Literally, that means 'one cut'
They brought the warmth of home and the subterranean glow...
to warm their brother.
The volcanoes at Tongariro are still active.
The Maori feel at one with them. Their ancestors live here.
After death, they will enter eternity here.
In the Marai, the gathering place of Te Ngaeha Wanikau's tribe...
a greeting ceremony is taking place.
First the women enter, then the men.
The greeting follows time-honored rules.
This way, they show each other deference and respect.
Two Maori tribes got together today.
Several kiwi birds are presented...
New Zealand's national symbol, threatened with extinction.
Even for many Maoris, this is the first time they see the shy bird.
Kiwis are night creatures. Normally they sleep all day, hidden in the mountains.
Every time I look at the mountains, I look with respect, awe and love.
We talk to them in here, and we talk to them in here.
They're not simply an object, not simply a rock. They are us.
The scientist looks in a different way.
White Island's volcanic structure is over two million years old.
In New Zealand, the Ring keeps causing heavy eruptions and earthquakes.
I don't see this as a primeval birthplace of the whole world.
I observe micro-organisms that live in the geothermal system.
Very elemental animals and insects.
Some of the simplest life forms on earth. We see them here, and on volcanoes.
That probably makes some people think that life begins on volcanoes.
Dangerous volcanoes have to be watched.
New Zealand isn't big. Many people live close to the volcanoes.
Volcanoes always change before they erupt.
So we can predict how probable an eruption is.
We can't say, it'll be Tuesday at two, or Wednesday at three.
That's what society expects of us, but science isn't that advanced yet.
We can identify changes and probabilities...
but we can't specify a time and day.
Hell's Gate. 700 years ago, it was a sacred place to the Maori...
living near Rotorua, on the Northern islands.
Rotorua is the city of geysers. There's steam and hissing everywhere.
A huge volcano lies under the entire region.
Magma, only 15 kilometers down, brings the water to a boil.
And in the middle live the 70,000 inhabitants of Rotorua.
Pauline Hitchcock reminds them daily they're living in a volcanic area.
She is head of Civil Defense. Here, a house used to stand.
A hydrothermal eruption under the soil destroyed the house.
But nobody was hurt.
The steam and hot water carve out subterranean channels.
No one knows exactly where they lead.
A few meters on, the neighboring house, standing on dangerous ground.
Rotorua lies in a huge caldera.
240,000 years ago, an enormous volcano exploded here.
Pauline Hitchcockis heading for a school.
Several times a month she lectures on dangers...
and how to act in a catastrophe.
The people are used to light earthquakes.
The heavy one that devastated Christchurch in the summer of 2010...
and February 2011, was a shock to many.
We actually live in a volcano.
Tarawera is close. Do you know when it last erupted?
The children are mainly interested in practical matters.
Are you safer inside or outside during an earthquake?
If you're outside, try to get to a big open space.
If you're in the city, glass from broken shop windows is flying around.
Fallen power poles, streetlights, trees, cars out of control.
In that case, you're better off inside.
Many people aren't aware of the danger. Nothing bad happened in many years.
So a lot of people become complacent.
But it's good to remind them that we live in a dangerous area.
Three flight hours to the North, in the South Pacific, lies Vanuatu.
An archipelago with 80 islands and the most dangerous volcanoes of the area.
Vanuatu is a South Sea idyll.
But below it, the Pacific plate is sliding under the Australian one.
Vanuatu lies right on the Pacific Ring of Fire.
The island Ambrym is dominated by a huge volcanic massif.
The maw of hell.
Deep inside the volcanoes Marum and Benbow...
giant lakes of lava are bubbling.
Belief in spirits is rife on Ambrym.
There are wizards, and mysterious rituals.
Sak-Sak claimshe can stop lava streams.
It's magical, and very powerful.
My people are afraid of the volcano, but they know their lives are in my hand.
We fight nature with nature. My grandfather and father already did this.
They stopped the lava this way.
If they hadn't, it would have flowed to the sea and destroyed my village.
La Linda would have been wiped out.
Sak-Sak says the magical power to stop a volcanic eruption...
came from his grandfather.
Allegedly, he saved his village from the mass of lava in 2004.
The villagers distrust modern science, and fear the volcano.
They believe only Sak-Sak can really protect them.
The inhabitants of La Linda respect and fear him.
In 2004, I did something to cool down this man, this volcano.
That's why we're still alive. There hasn't been a big eruption since.
A fault line runs through the middle of Ambrym.
A heavy earthquake there could tear the volcano open, spouting lava.
It would be a catastrophe.
The lava lake's levelhas been rising for months.
A few kilometers under the volcano.
Sak-Sak is at the spot where his grandfather is said to have stopped it.
The lava came from the top, and was sliding down this creek.
With supposedly magic utensils from the rain forest...
Sak-Sak shows how he could stop a volcano as well.
This one is a power, so is this one.Together, they're very powerful.
That's why I have to close this well.
I put it all in the basket, then we walk towards the lava lake.
That's the spot where the lava stopped.
The same ritual must have taken place here...
when Sak-Sak's grandfather stopped the eruption.
The village elder accompanied him at the time.
The people of Ambrym still believe...
that the volcano can be pacified with magic herbs and incantations.
Scientists and tourists are seen as intruders...
who make the volcano angry.
A group of adventure tourists from New Zealand ropes down to the lava lake.
No one has dared to get this close before.
They climb down 400 meters into the crater.
There are only five lava lakes in the world.
The lava comes directly from the volcano's huge magma chambers.
Normally, the New Zealanders climbsteep faces or huge trees.
An extremely dangerous pastime.
It was easy for me,but pretty hard for Johno.
I climbed that rock face over there.
There was lava everywhere, below. It was very hot.
I'm sponsoring heat suits. Next time, I'm going naked.
To the natives, the volcanoes are gods they fear...
or stay far away from.
Also on Tanna Island, in the South of the archipelago.
Esline Garaebiti and a French colleague are heading for the Yasur volcano.
She's responsible for the surveillance of all Vanuatu's volcanoes.
Yasur is one of the most active volcanoes in the world.
For at least 800 years, it erupts every few minutes.
Its so-called strombolic activity is unpredictable.
A few years ago, a tourist and her native guide were killed.
Close surveillance of the volcano is extremely urgent.
But Esline also knows how important is it...
to respect the belief in spirits and the traditions of the islanders.
I won't tell the chief that what they believe is wrong.
We scientists know the islands were created by magmatism.
It was volcanic activity that gave birth to Vanuatu's islands.
But traditional belief claims that every island has its own spirits.
We respect that belief.
I know what their culture means to the people.
But of course I stand by what I know as a scientist.
In 1774, Captain James Cook discovered Tanna Island.
Allegedly, he was lured by the volcano's glow.
Cook called Yasur the lighthouse of the Pacific.
A few weeks ago, the authorities made the volcano inaccessible.
The explosions are becoming more violent now as well.
The people who live close to the volcano aren't afraid of it.
In their legends, the volcano is a man. And they're his family, his people.
Life around Yasur is simple.
The village has no electricity, and just one spring.
Whatever they need to live, they make themselves.
The small village is only two kilometers from the crater's edge.
The constant growling doesn't bother the people.
Yasur is a part of their lives.
This morning, the volcanologist from the distant capital is visiting.
Esline carefully explains the various degrees of danger.
Gedion Nambas, the chief, is willing to listen.
But he also tells how the people have lived with the volcano for centuries...
and trust it.
My grandfather and my father told us that the volcano is a man.
This man was wandering through the area, looking for his own people.
For his own language, culture and tradition.
He was looking for his people, and found them here with us.
That's why the volcano has been with us for generations.
Lap-lap, a traditional dish, plays an important part in the Yasur legend.
Before he finally settled, he met two women, called Sabai and Mona.
They were just making lap-lap, pudding.
It's one of the main dishes here.The preparation is elaborate.
The story about the volcano meeting the women making lap-lap...
talks directly about their lives.
Lap-lap is cooked on hot volcanic stones.
As a child, I heard about the women making lap-lap...
when the volcano came to them to warm himself.
Yasur sat by the fire, and covered them with ashes. This created the volcano.
The volcano found his people.
They spoke his language. That's why the villagers can understand the volcano.
They know what he's saying to them when he erupts.
I don't really trust the scientists. What counts is what our ancestors said.
We have many volcanoes in Vanuatu. There are explosions, but no big ones.
Our ancestors already used a special medicine to calm the volcano down.
And the volcano still recognizes our voices.
Vanuatu's volcanologists trust their modern measuring equipment more.
Every few weeks, they go to Tanna Island to check the data.
Direct data transfer to the capital Port Villa isn't possible yet.
Today, New Zealand colleagues join them.
Together, they collect volcanic gases and analyze them.
When the volcano is about to erupt, the gas indicates the amount of magma.
The more magma in the vent of the volcano, the more gas.
This tells you the magma is close to the surface, and the volcano about to erupt.
Look at this. It's still warm, even.
Here, you can still see how the lava came down.
This impact is still fresh, it's not covered with ashes yet.
Not all Vanuatu's volcanoes have measuring stations.
Although they're very important, if you want to warn the people in time.
Here, we have a great explosion. You can see it very well.
These three seismic signals, that's the explosion we heard.
Yasur's activity has strongly increased again in the last few days.
The villagers aren't worried.
Small volcanoes in the fields. This is how they grow yams, a main source of food.
Gedion Nambas is responsible for the yams.
Every chief takes care of one specific fruit.
This soil was provided by Yasur.
It's soft and fertile, so it's easy for us to till the soil.
When the ashes fall down once a year, the man in the volcano is helping us.
This way, our fruit can grow very well.
The volcanoes make life possible.
But they also have destructive powers.
We continue along the Ring of Fire,to Indonesia.
Few countries haveas many dangerous volcanoes.
In all, 129 of them are active.
Merapi, on Java,is the most dangerous one.
A real monster, that has already claimed thousands of victims.
For centuries, people have settled here, to profit from the fertile soil.
With its many eruptions, Merapi enriches the land with volcanic ashes.
But Java is densely populated. Tens of thousands live in Merapi's foothills.
A mortal danger.
Merapi doesn't come to rest. In 1994, an eruption killed over 66 people.
In October 2010, huge explosions destroyed vast areas.
Fiery clouds of ashes swept the fields and houses.
More than 300 people were killed.
In 2006, Merapi destroyed this village.
The ruins give you an impression of its devastating force.
19,000 people live in the danger zone, at the foot of the volcano.
The farmers are pragmatic. Their life is here.
Many of them don't want to leave.
A few weeks after this was filmed, in October 2010...
Merapi destroyed the Margo family'shouse and farm.
When Merapi erupted in 2006, the animals warned us.
The monkeys came down from the mountains...
and the people heard animals growling.
The cows were very nervous, and didn't give milk for three months afterwards.
In the summer of 2010, shortly before the devastating October eruption...
there were no signs of the coming catastrophe.
For many years, Heny Yuda has supported the elderly people here.
Many of them have to fend for themselves. Their children live in town.
Merapi is like a protective grandfather to the farmers.
It let them live here for centuries.
They talk to it. This way, they can survive difficult times.
Like when the volcano's activity increases.
It gives them signals. They feel safe that way.
Merapi is never discussed negatively.
Talking about an eruption brings bad luck, they say.
Nobody expected the catastrophe in October 2010.
Even the famous Borobodur temple, within view of Merapi...
was covered by the clouds of ashes.
The Buddhist temple complex was built in the 8th century.
200 years later, it was buried by an enormous eruption.
It fell into oblivion,and wasn't rediscovered until 1814.
Eastern Java. Mysterious,and full of legends.
In the 15th century, a Hindu princess and her husband fled from the Muslims...
up the Bromo volcano.
They called the area Tengger, after the last syllables of their names.
Their marriage was childless, so they asked the god of Bromo for help.
He granted them children, but the last one had to be sacrificed to the volcano.
The princess had 25 children, but refused to sacrifice the youngest.
The angry volcano threatened to erupt. The earth shook.
So the princess had to sacrifice her youngest child to the volcano.
Her descendants still commemorate this legend with the Kesada festival.
At the start, holy water is taken from three springs in the volcano.
Days before the actual festival, offerings are consecrated.
The Hindu Tengger visit the Bromo volcano once a year.
To commemorate the sacrifice their princess had to make 500 years ago.
Subur's family lives by the Bromo volcano.
The sacrifice ritual is a yearly highlight in the pious Hindu's life.
The days before the festival, Subur is busy almost around the clock.
Kesada is the most important festival on the Tengger calendar.
Friends and neighbors get together, to help prepare the festival.
Indonesia is mostly Islamic.
There are only Hindus on Bali, and here, by the Bromo volcano.
The Tengger believe our god will be very angry if we don't hold the festival.
This has happened in the past.
Some village elders fell into a trance, as if they were possessed.
Today, Kesada is also a kind of harvest festival.
Fruit, vegetables, rice and animals are sacrificed to the volcano.
The god we Tengger worship, has given us his blessing.
And this blessing comes directly from Bromo.
It's the god Brahma who speaks to us this way.
Subur's wife also grew up with this tradition.
Life by the volcano, and the strict faith, shapes the generations.
The whole family gets together.
The offerings take days of cooking and baking.
Without the ritual, something terrible would happen.
Everyone upholds it, even the children.That's what our ancestors taught us.
At the foot of Bromo, in a huge caldera of black lava sand...
lies the Pura Luhur temple.
The Kesada ceremony takes place here every year.
Pilgrims from surrounding villages bring offerings, to be consecrated.
Some of them even come from the neighboring island of Bali.
Subur has also arrived, in festive clothing.
He dresses puppets in traditional costumes.
They represent the spirits of the ancestors, and the spiritual powers.
During the ceremony, small offerings are given to them.
At Kesada, the people don't just appease the god of Bromo.
They also pray for a good harvest, and remember their ancestors.
When Islam spread across Java in the 15th century...
many Hindus fled to Bali, or retreated into the mountains around Bromo.
The actual ceremony begins at night, at two o'clock.
Every year, the priests determine the time of the festival anew.
It's always a night of a full moon.
The exact day is calculated according to the Javanese calendar.
After a procession through the caldera, the Tengger arrive at the temple.
All night long, there's praying and singing.
Mantras are recited.
A new priest is also elected each year.
After hours of praying, early in the morning...
an endless stream of people ascends to the crater.
The ceremonies are held on the crater's narrow rim.
This group of Hindus has come over from Bali.
Living animals are also sacrificed to the volcano.
Since the festival's start, people have been living in the crater.
The poor of the surrounding villages.
They want to catch the offerings.
In spite of the poisonous gases, and the risk of a sudden eruption...
they spend several nights under plastic sheets, directly in the crater.
The faithful don't seem to mind that their offerings are caught by others.
During the morning, more and more offerings are brought up from the temple.
More than 10,000 people throw their offerings into Bromo today.
There are small wranglings every time.
Some people try to tear off the offerings before they're thrown in.
It's not just about getting food.
Consecrated vegetables can also be sold, for more than their actual worth.
Subur and his family lay their offerings at a shrine at the foot of the volcano.
Should Bromo erupt after all...
the people would have to keep bringing offerings, until it calmed down.
According to legend, the voice of the sacrificed child could once be heard.
It asked the Tengger never to forget that its life had been sacrificed...
to pacify the volcano.
Since then, Kesada has been celebrated every year.