ON TOP OF MOUNT LATA—Rising 1,000 meters (3,000 feet) above the Samoan island of Ta'u, Mount Lata is an active volcano. It was formerly dome-shaped, but one of its sides collapsed in landslides that cast debris all the way onto the seafloor. The landslides left a steep escarpment, which is primed for further catastrophic landslides—and possibly tsunamis—especially if it is disturbed by movements within the volcano. (Photo by Jeff Standish, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)[back]
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