Volcano in Germany threatens to destroy half of Europe

A sleeping super-volcano in Germany is showing worrying signs of waking up.

It`s lurking just 390 miles away underneath the tranquil Laacher See lake near Bonn and is capable of ejecting billions of tons of magma.This monster erupts every 10 to 12,000 years and last went off 12,900 years ago, so it could blow at any time and cover everything in ash from England and Denmark to the north of Italy.

Last time it covered 620 square miles of land with ash and rocks and several small earthquakes in the region last year indicate that it could be awakening from its deep sleep.

Experts believe that if it did go off, it could lead to widespread devastation, mass evacuations and even short-term global cooling from the resulting ash cloud blocking the sun.

Volcanologists believe that the Laacher See volcano is still active as carbon dioxide is bubbling up to the lake’s surface, which indicates that the magma chamber below is `degassing`.

They have estimated the mountain's size to be similar to that of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines - responsible for the biggest ejection of the 20th century.