Government or official record
The 21 August 1986 Lake Nyos gas disaster, Cameroon: final report
U.S. Geological Survey · M. L. Tuttle and others
Where this source supports the record
Each entry separates the article’s editorial relevance note from its exact, section-level claims. A bibliography link without a direct claim is labeled plainly.
-
Open article references → Why editors use it hereContemporary scientific-team report record documenting field investigation of the gas release and its effects.
-
Quick read
On the evening of 21 August 1986, a vast quantity of carbon dioxide escaped suddenly from deep water in Lake Nyos, a volcanic crater lake in northwestern Cameroon.
Reviewed 4 August 2026 -
Trigger and conditions
Deep, gas-rich water rose and depressurized, allowing dissolved carbon dioxide to form bubbles and accelerate more water upward.
Reviewed 4 August 2026 -
Uncertainty
The broad carbon dioxide mechanism is strongly supported, but the exact trigger for overturn remains unresolved.
Reviewed 4 August 2026 -
Why it matters
Nyos expanded the known geography of disaster.
Reviewed 4 August 2026
-
Quick read