Did a volcanic eruption contribute to the fall of Minoan civilization?

[wolram]

An off shoot to the Trojan war thread.
Minoan civilization enjoyed 500 years of prosperity through their flourishing trading efforts, but a series of natural disasters would start their decline. about 1500 BC, a huge earthquake destroyed the palaces of Minoa, and about 50 years later, the volcanic island of Strongphyle, erupted, tearing apart the island , The destruction caused by this catastrophe is unknown, it is estimated to have been five times greater than the eruption of krakato in 1883. afterwards, the Minoan civilization was weakened due to the collapse of their cities. They were then conquered by the Myceneans who had developed on the Greek mainland. Mycenae dominated after 1500 BC , Linear A did not appear after that date, only Linear B did: a mixture of early Greek writing and Linear A. Gradually Minoan economic and palace life died out as more Mycenaens began to take over the area, and by 1400 BC, the civilization of Minoa had collapsed.

 

[wolram]

This page shows the magnitude of the eruption, estimates equal a 600 kiloton
bomb.

http://volcano.und.nodak.edu/vwdocs/volc_images/europe_west_asia/santorini.html

 

[wolram]

http://www.mystae.com/restricted/streams/thera/crete.html

"One can no longer suppose that the paroxysmal eruption was the direct cause of the destruction and abandonment of so many sites in East Crete c. 1450 B.C. But any attempt to play down the destructive force of the eruption has been more than counteracted by the new evidence on the extent of the ash fall-out. I still believe that the eruption, which I would date closer to 1470 than 1500, was a severe body blow to Minoan power and prosperity, and that it greatly undermined their morale. The sudden extinction of their naval base on Thera, and devastation extending past their shores to Rhodes and Cos, would indicate that they had lost the favour of the great Mother Goddess of Earth and mountain."