Meteorologist Britta Merwin

Plumes of toxic gases spew from Kilauea everyday on the Big Island of Hawaii. The volcano has actually been continuously erupting since 1983. With this activity occurring everyday, an estimated 2,000 tons of vog is created each day over the Big Island. Recently the production of vog has increased due to a new vent opening on the volcano this past March. This secondary vent is now increasing the amount of sulfur dioxide spilling over the island. This increase in toxic gas is killing crops, aggravating people’s respiratory illnesses, and even prompted the evacuation of visitors from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

So what exactly is vog? Vog is volcanic smog. Basically sulfur dioxide and other volcanic particles are emitted into the atmosphere during an eruption. These pollutants then mix with oxygen and water vapor. A key ingredient of vog is sunlight; the intense radiation is needed to create volcanic smog.

Many people wonder is vog like smog? Although the two are very similar and cause city skylines to appear draped in a dark fog the two phenomena are different.

Smog is actually created by certain chemicals that result in the incomplete combustion of fuels and the combination of N2 and O2 in internal combustion engines.

Both require pollutants combining with water vapor, oxygen, and sunlight but vog and smog include a different set of pollutants.

Vog is harmful to plants, animals, and humans. For people with sensitive respiratory systems the presence of vog can worsen symptoms and it can actually cause asthma and lung disease. Large amounts of vog can even irritate a healthy person’s ability to breath and cause irritations of the eyes and skin.