Mount St. Helens erupted Friday afternoon, spewing a large cloud of ash and steam 16,000 feet into the sky. The event, which lasted for about 20 minutes, forced one airline to cancel flights and others to divert around the turbulent plume. The eruption rose from the southern edge of the 1,000-foot-tall lava dome in the volcano's crater. Following the initial eruption, the volcano appeared to die down and the ash and steam cloud drifted away. U.S. Geological Survey scientist Jeff Wynn called the eruption a "throat-clearing" and cautioned, "we'll see more events like this." Read more here(1).
Photo credit: AP Photo/KOIN-TV

1. http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/aplocal_story.asp?category=1501&slug=Mount+St.+Helens