Notice - Blog address changed

Continue reading this blog at:
volcanolive.com
johnseach.com
volcano.com.au

Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii - John Seach

A lava flow is advancing towards the old Royal Gardens subdivision at Kilauea volcano in Hawaii. The flow is moving alongside a kipuka and has started forest fires. The lava is moving west of the February 2010 flow and is close to the last inhabited house in the subdivision.
More on Kilauea volcano...

Nyamuragira Volcano, Democratic Republic of Congo - John Seach

A flank eruption has begun at Nyamuragira volcano in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The eruption began on the evening of 6th November 2011. A 1 km long fissure has opened with lava fountains. Park rangers were the first to report the eruption last night. A sky glow was seen by observers in Goma during the night and this morning a large plume was visible.
More on Nyamuragira volcano...

Hierro Volcano, Canary Islands - John Seach

Geyser-like eruptions have broken the ocean surface at El Hierro volcano in the Canary Islands. The eruptions plume contained ash, magmatic material and gas and reached a height of 20 m. Geyser-like eruptions began on 6th November and occurred strongly every 30-60 minutes. Strong smell of gas was noticed by residents near the coast. On the evening of 6th November ash and steam from the eruption site reached a height of 100 m. The volcano is possibly in a transition between submarine and Surtseyan eruption style. The bubbling at the eruption site is caused by the release of magma generated gases.
More on Hierro volcano...

Hierro Volcano, Canary Islands - John Seach

Earthquakes have increased at El Hierro volcano in the Canary Islands. This indicates continued submarine eruptions at the volcano. On 2nd November at 18:10 UT there was a magnitude 4.4 earthquake with a focus at depth of 23 km in El Golfo Bay. The earthquake was followed by strong harmonic tremor. On 3rd November there were new areas of yellow-green stained water above the eruption site. There are reports of a lack of marine life within a 1.5 km radius of the eruption site. On 3rd November there was bubbling water above the eruption site and areas of muddy water. On 4th November between midnight and 8:30 UT there were 15 earthquakes greater than magnitude 1.5. The volcano remains at RED alert.
More on Hierro volcano...

Mauna Kea Volcano, Hawaii - John Seach

An earthquake swarm occurred under Mauna Kea volcano in Hawaii on 19th October 2011. The largest earthquake was magnitude 4.5 and had a focus at a depth of 18 km at a location 9 km NE of the summit.
More on Mauna Kea volcano...

Hierro Volcano, Canary Islands - John Seach

Earthquakes continue at Hierro volcano in the Canary Islands. Since July 2011 over 8000 small earthquakes have been recorded at the volcano. Yesterday an earthquake of magnitude 3.5 occurred. Deformation has increased significantly at the volcano in the past week. On 23rd September 2011 the alert level was raised to YELLOW. Some residents have been evacuated from near the volcano. Earthquakes are occurring in the northwest of the island at the location of a landslide that created a 100 metre high tsunami about 50,000 years ago. A major debris avalanche occurred on the northern flank of Hierro Island, dated about 13,000 years ago. It had a width of 15 km and a scarp height of 1000 m. The landslide deposited 150-180 cubic km of debris on the seafloor down to a depth of 3000 m.
More on Hierro volcano...

Tambora Volcano, Indonesia - John Seach

Tambora volcano in Indonesia has been raised to level 2 alert (out of maximum 4) after an increase in volcanic earthquakes. In April 2011 there were 37 shallow volcanic earthquakes recorded, 167 in May, 277 in June, 363 in July, and 141 from 1-29 August. Continuous tremor was recorded on 29 and 30 August. Tourists and locals are advised to avoid the summit area of Tambora volcano. In 1815 Tambora had one of the largest eruptions on earth in the past 1000 years and ejected 100-150 cubic km of lava.
More on Tambora volcano...

Ranakah Volcano, Indonesia - John Seach

Volcanic unrest has been reported at Ranakah volcano in Indonesia. Between January and 24th August 2011 there was a background level of 1-2 shallow volcanic earthquakes per day at the volcano. On 24th August 2011 there were 10 shallow volcanic earthquakes recorded and 6 on 25th August. There is a risk that volcanic earthquakes could distrupt the lava dome causing pyroclastic flows similar to 1988. On 26th August 2011 the alert status was raised to level 2 (out of a maximum 4). People are advised to avoid the summit area.
More on Ranakah volcano...

Papandayan Volcano, Indonesia - John Seach

Papandayan volcano in Indonesia has been placed on level 3 alert (out of maximum 4) after an increase in unrest. Seismic activity has increased at the volcano with a doubling of volcanic earthquakes in the first 2 weeks of August compared to previous months. Deformation measurements have detected an 18 mm inflation of the volcano on 10th August compared to 4th July 2011. Temperature in one of the four craters has increased from 106.4 to 107.5 deg C between 7-12 August. A two km exclusion zone has been placed around the crater.
More on Papandayan volcano...

Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii - John Seach

Large changes have occurred on the east rift zone of Kilauea volcano. On 3rd August the floor of Pu'u O'o crater collapsed and draining the lava lake. A lava volume of lava emerged from twelve vents on the west side of Pu'u O'o cone which flowed northwest and south. The walls of Pu'u O'o crater have started to collapse. A small amount of lava has returned to the crater floor and was visible on the webcam. At present the lava flows remain within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and have not approaced inhabited areas.
More on Kilauea volcano...

Katla Volcano, Iceland - John Seach

An eruption has possibly started at Katla volcano, Iceland. A glacial flood, possibly from an eruption of Katla volcano under the Mýrdalsjökull icecap has damaged Highway number 1 by the river Múlakvísl. The bridge across Múlakvísl has been damaged and the road is closed between Höfdabrekka, east of Vík, and Skálm River, near Álftaver. So far the eruption is not large, but people have been advised to avoid the area. The Álftaver area is being evacuated and preparations are being made for evacuation of the camping area in Thakgil. There has been speculation about an eruption in Hekla, another volcano in south Iceland over the past few days.
More on Katla volcano...

Hekla Volcano, Iceland - John Seach

Hekla volcano in Iceland is showning signs of unrest. Signs of possible magma movement under the volcano has been detected for the past few days. Since 1970, Hekla volcano has erupted about every 10 years. The initial phase of each Hekla eruption is always highly explosive. The duration and magnitude of the explosive phase is directly correlated with the length of the preceding repose period. Hekla is the most active volcano in Iceland, and one of the world's best known volcanoes.
More on Hekla volcano...

Puyehue Volcano, Chile - John Seach

Puyehue volcano in Chile erupted on Saturday 4th June 2011 after 51 years of inactivity. On the 3th June a seismic swarm occurred with 1450 earthquakes registered at the volcano, associated with magma movement under the volcano. The earthquakes has a focus of 2-5 km depth on the southeast flank of the volcano. More than 130 earthquakes were greater than magnitude 2. On Saturday 4th of June the volcano alert was raised to level RED after a marked increase in seismic activity. Over a period of six hours there more than 230 earthquakes per hour with a focus of 1-4 km depth. Twelve of the earthquake were greater than magnitude 4.0, 50 greater than magnitude 3.0. More than half the earthquakes were over magnitude 2.0. The largest earthquake occurred at 8:36 am local time on 4th June with a magnitude 4.4. Residents reported felt earthquakes on Friday evening and Saturday morning. The explosive eruption began on Saturday 4th June producing a 10 km high ash column. More than 600 people were evacuated from the area. Volcanic ash fell in the city of Bariloche in Argentina, and the airport was closed. Residents of Bariloche said that ash fell like a snowstorm. The Argentine government has sent military troops to help residents affected by the ashfall. A border crossing between Chile and Argentina at Cardenal Samore was closed due to the eruption creating poor visibility on the mountain pass. The last eruption of Puyehue volcano was in 1960 following a 9.5 earthquake.
More on Puyehue volcano...

Grimsvotn Volcano, Iceland - John Seach

Keflavík airport in Iceland has been closed due to the eruption of Grímsvötn volcano. Ashfall surrounding the volcano has already reached a thickness of half a centimetre. This is the largest eruption at Grímsvotn volcano in 100 years and larger than the one in Eyjafjallajökull last year. It is similar to the eruption of 1873 at Grímsvotn. A large glacial flood (Jokulhlaup) is not expected. This morning ash emissions reached a height of 15 to 18 kilometres, which is ten times more powerful than the last eruption in Grímsvötn in 2004.
More on Grimsvötn volcano...

Grimsvotn Volcano, Iceland - John Seach

An eruption began at Grímsvötn volcano in Iceland at approximately 17:30 UTC, on 21st May 2011. The volcano is located under the Vatnajokull glacier in south-east Iceland. The subglacial eruption sent a plume 20 km high. A 120 nautical mile flight restriction has been placed around the volcano. A group of people stayed in a hut in Grímsvötn volcano the night before the eruption, and had left an midday on Saturday six hours before the eruption started. The group noticed nothing unusual, but another group that climbed Hrútafellstindar in the southern part of Vatnajökull glacier said they smelled suphur on the morning of 21st May. More than one hundred people climbed Öræfajökull, Iceland’s highest peak on Saturday and saw nothing unusual. A flood in Skeidarársandur is expected, and will depend on the exact location of the eruption. Eruptions in Grímsvötn are quite frequent, every ten years on the average and are generally short and small. Many of the eruptions have lasted from one to three weeks, the 2004 eruption lasted only four days.
More on Grimsvötn volcano...

Gamkonora Volcano, Indonesia - John Seach

Seismic activity has increased at Gamkonora volcano, Indonesia. During January to May 2011 an average of two shallow volcanic earthquakes, and one deep earthquake was measured at the volcano per day, and emissions rose 50-100 m above the crater. On 1st May 46 deep earthquakes, and 6 shallow earthquakes occurred. On 2nd May 35 deep earthquakes and 2 shallow earthquakes were detected at the volcano, and emissions reached a height of 300 m above the crater. The smell of sulphur was reported at villages near the volcano. On the 3rd May the alert level at the volcano was increased from Normal (Level I) to Waspada (Level II).
More on Gamkonora volcano...

Taal Volcano, Philippines - John Seach

Taal volcano in the Philippines has been placed on level 2 alert due to an intrusion of Magma towards the surface. The temperature of the main crater lake has increased to 31.5 ded C. There has been a small inflation of the volcano. High levels of carbon dioxide have been released in the main crater and seismic activity is elevated. PHIVOLCS has advised the Main Crater, Daang Kastila Trail and Mt. Tabaro are closed to visitors due to the risk of explosion, and emission of toxic gas.
More on Taal volcano...

Great Japan Earthquake 2011 and Volcanic Eruptions - John Seach

The Great Japan Earthquake of 2011 (mag 8.9) and its aftershocks, are capable disrupting volcanoes large distances from the epicentre. Very large eruptions are possible after Great Earthquakes. It is possible for eruptions to occur anytime after the earthquake, and the high risk period will last for several months. Japan has ten percent of the world's active volcanoes. The closest active volcano to the earthquake is Narugo, 150 km WNW of the epicentre. Volcanoes near to the earthquake epicentre include:
Kurikoma (153 km), Zao (170 km), Hijiori (195 km), Azuma (200 km), Adatara (200 km), Iwate (205 km), Akita-Komaga-take (210 km), Bandai (220 km), Chokai (220 km), Hachimantai (223 km), Akita-Yake-yama (228 km), and Nasu (250 km).
Volcanoes of Japan...

Great Japan Earthquake (Mag 8.9) and Tsunami - John Seach

Tsunamis from the great Japan earthquake have hit parts of the Pacific Ocean distant from the epicentre. Tsunami heights were 1.5 m in the Marquesas, 2.0 m Crescent City (California), 1.0 m Manus Island (Papua New Guinea), 1.4 m Hilo (Hawaii), 1.7 m Maui (Hawaii), 1.8 m Hokkaido (Japan), Vancouver Island (Canada), 1.3 m Midway Island, 0.65 m Saipan, and 0.7 m Vanuatu.
The Japan earthquake is the 5th largest recorded in the world. The top five earthquakes are: Chile mag 9.5 (1960), Prince William Sound, Alaska mag 9.2 (1964), Sumatra, Indonesia mag 9.1 (2004), and Kamchatka, Russia mag 9.0 (2004).
Volcanoes of Japan...