Nyiragongo is a stratovolcano with a 1.2 km-wide summit crater containing an active lava lake that has been present since at least 1971. It is located the Virunga Volcanic Province (VVP) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, part of the western branch of the East African Rift System. Typical volcanism includes strong and frequent thermal anomalies, primarily due to the lava lake, incandescence, gas-and-steam plumes, and seismicity. This report updates activity during June through November 2019 with the primary source information from monthly reports by the Observatoire Volcanologique de Goma (OVG) and satellite data.

In the July 2019 monthly report, OVG stated that the lava lake level had dropped during the month, with incandescence only visible at night (figure 68). In addition, the small eruptive cone within the crater, which has been active since 2014, decreased in activity during this timeframe. A MONUSCO (United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo) helicopter overflight took photos of the lava lake and observed that the level had begun to rise on 27 July. Seismicity was relatively moderate throughout this reporting period; however, on 9-16 July and 21 August strong seismic swarms were recorded.

Figure 68. Webcam images of Nyiragongo on 20 July 2019 where incandescence is not visible during the day (left) but is observed at night (right). Incandescence is accompanied by gas-and-steam emissions. Courtesy of OVG.

MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity) analysis of MODIS satellite data continued to show frequent and strong thermal anomalies within 5 km of the crater summit through November 2019 (figure 69). Similarly, the MODVOLC algorithm reported almost daily thermal hotspots (more than 600) within the summit crater between June 2019 through November. These data are corroborated with Sentinel-2 thermal satellite imagery and a photo from OVG on 19 December 2019 showing the active lava lake (figures 70 and 71).

Figure 69. Thermal anomalies at Nyiragongo from 3 January through November 2019 as recorded by the MIROVA system (Log Radiative Power) were frequent and strong. Courtesy of MIROVA.

Figure 70. Sentinel-2 thermal satellite imagery (bands 12, 11, 8A) showed ongoing thermal activity (bright yellow-orange) at Nyiragongo during June through November 2019. Courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Figure 71. Photo of the active lava lake in the summit crater at Nyiragongo on 19 December 2019. Incandescence is accompanied by a gas-and-steam plume. Courtesy of OVG via Charles Balagizi.

Geologic Background. One of Africa's most notable volcanoes, Nyiragongo contained a lava lake in its deep summit crater that was active for half a century before draining catastrophically through its outer flanks in 1977. The steep slopes of a stratovolcano contrast to the low profile of its neighboring shield volcano, Nyamuragira. Benches in the steep-walled, 1.2-km-wide summit crater mark levels of former lava lakes, which have been observed since the late-19th century. Two older stratovolcanoes, Baruta and Shaheru, are partially overlapped by Nyiragongo on the north and south. About 100 parasitic cones are located primarily along radial fissures south of Shaheru, east of the summit, and along a NE-SW zone extending as far as Lake Kivu. Many cones are buried by voluminous lava flows that extend long distances down the flanks, which is characterized by the eruption of foiditic rocks. The extremely fluid 1977 lava flows caused many fatalities, as did lava flows that inundated portions of the major city of Goma in January 2002.

Information Contacts: Observatoire Volcanologique de Goma (OVG), Departement de Geophysique, Centre de Recherche en Sciences Naturelles, Lwiro, D.S. Bukavu, DR Congo; MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity), a collaborative project between the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy) supported by the Centre for Volcanic Risk of the Italian Civil Protection Department (URL: http://www.mirovaweb.it/); Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology (HIGP) - MODVOLC Thermal Alerts System, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), Univ. of Hawai'i, 2525 Correa Road, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA (URL: http://modis.higp.hawaii.edu/); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground); Charles Balagizi (Twitter: @CharlesBalagizi, https://twitter.com/CharlesBalagizi).

Activity at Ebeko includes frequent explosions that have generated ash plumes reaching altitudes of 1.5-6 km over the last several years, with the higher altitudes occurring since mid-2018 (BGVN 43:03, 43:06, 43:12, 44:07). Ash frequently falls in Severo-Kurilsk (7 km ESE), which is monitored by the Kamchatka Volcanic Eruptions Response Team (KVERT). This activity continued during June through November 2019; the Aviation Color Code remained at Orange (the second highest level on a four-color scale).

Explosive activity during December 2018 through November 2019 often sent ash plumes to altitudes between 2.2 to 4.5 km, or heights of 1.1 to 3.4 km above the crater (table 8). Eruptions since 1967 have originated from the northern crater of the summit area (figure 20). Webcams occasionally captured ash explosions, as seen on 27 July 2019(figure 21). KVERT often reported the presence of thermal anomalies; particularly on 23 September 2019, a Sentinel-2 thermal satellite image showed a strong thermal signature at the crater summit accompanied by an ash plume (figure 22). Ashfall is relatively frequent in Severo-Kurilsk (7 km ESE) and can drift in different direction based on the wind pattern, which can be seen in satellite imagery on 30 October 2019 deposited NE and SE from the crater(figure 23).

Table 8. Summary of activity at Ebeko, December 2018-November 2019. S-K is Severo-Kurilsk (7 km ESE of the volcano). TA is thermal anomaly in satellite images. Data courtesy of KVERT.

Figure 20. Satellite image showing the summit crater complex at Ebeko, July 2019. Monthly mosaic image for July 2019, copyright 2019 Planet Labs, Inc.

Figure 21. Webcam photo of an explosion and ash plume at Ebeko on 27 July 2019. Videodata by IMGG FEB RAS and KB GS RAS (color adjusted and cropped); courtesy of Institute of Volcanology and Seismology FEB RAS, KVERT.

Figure 22. Satellite images showing an ash explosion from Ebeko on 23 September 2019. Top image is in natural color (bands 4, 3, 2). Bottom image is using "Atmospheric Penetration" rendering (bands 12, 11, 8A) to show a thermal anomaly in the northern crater visible around the rising plume. Courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Figure 23. A satellite image of Ebeko from Sentinel-2 (LC1 natural color, bands 4, 3, 2) on 30 October 2019 showing previous ashfall deposits on the snow going in multiple directions. Courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

The MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity) analysis of MODIS satellite data detected four low-power thermal anomalies during the second half of July, and one each in the months of June, August, and October; no activity was recorded in September or November MODVOLC thermal alerts observed only one thermal anomaly between June through November 2019.

Geologic Background. The flat-topped summit of the central cone of Ebeko volcano, one of the most active in the Kuril Islands, occupies the northern end of Paramushir Island. Three summit craters located along a SSW-NNE line form Ebeko volcano proper, at the northern end of a complex of five volcanic cones. Blocky lava flows extend west from Ebeko and SE from the neighboring Nezametnyi cone. The eastern part of the southern crater contains strong solfataras and a large boiling spring. The central crater is filled by a lake about 20 m deep whose shores are lined with steaming solfataras; the northern crater lies across a narrow, low barrier from the central crater and contains a small, cold crescentic lake. Historical activity, recorded since the late-18th century, has been restricted to small-to-moderate explosive eruptions from the summit craters. Intense fumarolic activity occurs in the summit craters, on the outer flanks of the cone, and in lateral explosion craters.

Information Contacts: Kamchatka Volcanic Eruptions Response Team (KVERT), Far Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, 9 Piip Blvd., Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, 683006, Russia (URL: http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/kvert/); Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, Far Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences (IVS FEB RAS), 9 Piip Blvd., Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky 683006, Russia (URL: http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/eng/); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground); Planet Labs, Inc. (URL: https://www.planet.com/); MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity), a collaborative project between the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy) supported by the Centre for Volcanic Risk of the Italian Civil Protection Department (URL: http://www.mirovaweb.it/); Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology (HIGP) - MODVOLC Thermal Alerts System, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), Univ. of Hawai'i, 2525 Correa Road, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA (URL: http://modis.higp.hawaii.edu/).

Nevado del Ruiz is a glaciated volcano in Colombia (figure 86). It is known for the 13 November 1985 eruption that produced an ash plume and associated pyroclastic flows onto the glacier, triggering a lahar that approximately 25,000 people in the towns of Armero (46 km west) and Chinchiná (34 km east). Since 1985 activity has intermittently occurred at the Arenas crater. The eruption that began on 18 November 2014 included ash plumes dominantly dispersed to the NW of Arenas crater (BGVN 42:06). This bulletin summarizes activity during January 2016 through December 2017 and is based on reports by Servicio Geologico Colombiano and Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Manizales, Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC) notices, and satellite data.

Figure 86. A satellite image of Nevado del Ruiz showing the location of the active Arenas crater. September 2019 Monthly Mosaic image copyright Planet Labs 2019.

Activity during 2016. Throughout January 2016 ash and steam plumes were observed reaching up to a few kilometers. Significant water vapor and volcanic gases, especially SO₂, were detected throughout the month. Thermal anomalies were detected in the crater on the 27th and 31st. Significant water vapor and volcanic gas plumes, in particular SO₂, were frequently detected by the SCAN DOAS (Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy) station and satellite data (figure 87). A M3.2 earthquake was felt in the area on 18 January. Similar activity continued through February with notable ash plumes up to 1 km, and a M3.6 earthquake was felt on the 6th. Ash and gas-and-steam plumes were reported throughout March with a maximum of 3.5 km on the 31st (figure 88). Significant water vapor and gas plumes continued from the Arenas crater throughout the month, and a thermal anomaly was noted on the 28th. An increase in seismicity was reported on the 29th.

Figure 87. Examples of SO2 plumes from Nevado del Ruiz detected by the Aura/OMI instrument on 10, 26, and 31 January 2019. Courtesy of Goddard Space Flight Center.

Figure 88. Ash plumes at Nevado del Ruiz during March. Webcam images courtesy of Servicio Geologico Colombiano, various 2016 reports.

The activity continued into April with a M 3.0 earthquake felt by nearby inhabitants on the 8th, an increase in seismicity reported in the week of 12-18, and another significant increase on the 28th with earthquakes felt around Manizales. Thermal anomalies were noted during 12-18 April with the largest on the 16th. Ash plumes continued through the month as well as significant steam-and-gas plumes. Ashfall was reported in Murillo on the 29th.

The elevated activity continued through May with significant steam plumes up to 1.7 km above the crater during the week of 10-16. Thermal anomalies were reported on the 11th and 12th. Steam, gas, and ash plumes reached 2.5 km above the crater and dispersed to the W and NW. Ashfall was reported in La Florida on the 20th (figure 89) and multiple ash plumes on the 22nd reached 2.5 km and resulted in the closure of the La Nubia airport in Manizales. Ash and gas-and-steam emission continued during June (figure 90).

Figure 89. Ash plumes at Nevado del Ruiz on 17, 18, and 20 May 2016 with fine ash deposited on a car in La Florida, Manizales on the 20th. Webcams located in the NE Guali sector of the volcano, courtesy of Servicio Geologico Colombiano 20 May 2016 report.

Figure 90. Examples of gas-and-steam and ash plumes at Nevado del Ruiz during June and July 2016. Courtesy of Servicio Geologico Colombiano (7 July 2016 report).

Similar activity was reported in July with gas-and-steam and ash plumes often dispersing to the NW and W. Ashfall was reported to the NW on 16 July (figure 91). Drumbeat seismicity was detected on 13, 15, 16, and 17 July, with two hours on the 16th being the longest duration episode do far. Drumbeat seismicity was noted by SGC as indicating dome growth. Significant water vapor and gas emissions continued through August. Ash plumes were reported through the month with plumes up to 1.3 km above the crater on 28 and 2.3 km on 29. Similar activity was reported through September as well as a thermal anomaly and ash deposition apparent in satellite data (figure 92). Drumbeat seismicity was noted again on the 17th.

Figure 91. The location of ashfall resulting from an explosion at Nevado del Ruiz on 16 July 2016 and a sample of the ash under a microscope. The ash is composed of lithics, plagioclase and pyroxene crystals, and minor volcanic glass. Courtesy of Servicio Geologico Colombiano (16 July 2016 report).

Figure 92. This Sentinel-2 thermal infrared satellite image shows elevated temperatures in the Nevado del Ruiz Arenas crater (yellow and orange) on 16 September 2016. Ash deposits are also visible to the NW of the crater. In this image blue is snow and ice. False color (urban) satellite image (bands 12, 11, 4) courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

During the week of 4-10 October it was noted that activity consisting of regular ash plumes had been ongoing for 22 months. Ash plumes continued with reported plumes reaching 2.5 above the crater throughout October (figure 93), accompanied by significant steam and water vapor emissions. A M 4.4 earthquake was felt nearby on the 7th. Similar activity continued through November and December 2016 with plumes consisting of gas and steam, and sometimes ash reaching 2 km above the crater.

Figure 93. An ash plume rising above Nevado del Ruiz on 27 October 2016. Courtesy of Servicio Geologico Colombiano.

Activity during 2017. Significant steam and gas emissions, especially SO₂, continued into early 2017. Ash plumes detected through seismicity were confirmed in webcam images and through local reports; the plumes reached a maximum height of 2.5 km above the volcano on the 6th (figure 94). Drumbeat seismicity was recorded during 3-9, and on 22 January. Inflation was detected early in the month and several thermal anomalies were noted.

Intermittent deformation continued into February. Significant steam-and-gas emissions continued with intermittent ash plumes reaching 1.5-2 km above the volcano. Thermal anomalies were noted throughout the month and there was a significant increase in seismicity during 23-26 February.

Figure 94. Ash plumes at Nevado del Ruiz on 6 January 2017. Courtesy of Servicio Geologico Colombiano.

Thermal anomalies continued to be detected through March. Ash plumes continued to be observed and recorded in seismicity and maximum heights of 2 km above the volcano were noted. Deflation continued after the intermittent inflation the previous month. On 10-11 April a period of short-duration and very low-energy drumbeat seismicity was recorded. Significant gas and steam emission continued through April with intermittent ash plumes reaching 1.5 km above the volcano. Thermal anomalies were detected early in the month.

Unrest continued through May with elevated seismicity, significant steam-and-gas emissions, and ash plumes reaching 1.7 km above the crater. Five episodes of drumbeat seismicity were recorded on 29 May and intermittent deformation continued. There were no available reports for June and July.

Variable seismicity was recorded during August and deflation was measured in the first week. Gas-and-steam plumes were observed rising to 850 m above the crater on the 3rd, and 450 m later in the month. A thermal anomaly was noted on the 14th. There were no available reports for September through December.

On 18 December 2017 the Washington VAAC issued an advisory for an ash plume to 6 km that was moving west and dispersing. The plume was described as a "thin veil of volcanic ash and gasses" that was seen in visible satellite imagery, NOAA/CIMSS, and supported by webcam imagery.

Geologic Background. Nevado del Ruiz is a broad, glacier-covered volcano in central Colombia that covers more than 200 km2. Three major edifices, composed of andesitic and dacitic lavas and andesitic pyroclastics, have been constructed since the beginning of the Pleistocene. The modern cone consists of a broad cluster of lava domes built within the caldera of an older edifice. The 1-km-wide, 240-m-deep Arenas crater occupies the summit. The prominent La Olleta pyroclastic cone located on the SW flank may also have been active in historical time. Steep headwalls of massive landslides cut the flanks. Melting of its summit icecap during historical eruptions, which date back to the 16th century, has resulted in devastating lahars, including one in 1985 that was South America's deadliest eruption.

Information Contacts: Servicio Geologico Colombiano (SGC), Diagonal 53 No. 34-53 - Bogotá D.C., Colombia (URL: https://www2.sgc.gov.co/volcanes/index.html); Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Manizales (URL: https://www.facebook.com/ovsmanizales); Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC), Satellite Analysis Branch (SAB), NOAA/NESDIS OSPO, NOAA Science Center Room 401, 5200 Auth Rd, Camp Springs, MD 20746, USA (URL: www.ospo.noaa.gov/Products/atmosphere/vaac); Global Sulfur Dioxide Monitoring Page, Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC), 8800 Greenbelt Road, Goddard, Maryland, USA (URL: https://so2.gsfc.nasa.gov/); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground).

Sabancaya is an andesitic stratovolcano located in Peru. The most recent eruptive episode began in early November 2016, which is characterized by gas-and-steam and ash emissions, seismicity, and explosive events (BGVN 44:06). The ash plumes are dispersed by wind with a typical radius of 30 km, which occasionally results in ashfall. Current volcanism includes high seismicity, gas-and-steam emissions, ash and SO₂ plumes, numerous thermal anomalies, and explosive events. This report updates information from June through November 2019 using information primarily from the Instituto Geofisico del Peru (IGP) and Observatorio Volcanologico del INGEMMET (Instituto Geológical Minero y Metalúrgico) (OVI-INGEMMET).

Table 5. Summary of eruptive activity at Sabancaya during June-November 2019 based on IGP weekly reports, the Buenos Aires VAAC advisories, the HIGP MODVOLC hotspot monitoring algorithm, and Sentinel-5P/TROPOMI satellite data.

Explosions, ash emissions, thermal signatures, and high concentrations of SO₂ were reported each week during June-November 2019 by IGP, the Buenos Aires Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC), HIGP MODVOLC, and Sentinel-2 and Sentinel-5P/TROPOMI satellite data (table 5). Thermal anomalies were visible in the summit crater, even in the presence of meteoric clouds and ash plumes were occasionally visible rising from the summit in clear weather (figure 68). The maximum plume height reached 4.5 km above the crater drifting NW, W, and S the week of 29 July-4 August, according to IGP who used surveillance cameras to visually monitor the plume (figure 69). This ash plume had a radius of 30 km, which resulted in ashfall in Colca (NW) and Huambo (W). On 27 July the SO₂ levels reached a high of 12,814 tons/day, according to INGEMMET. An average of 58 daily explosions occurred in early November, which is the largest average of this reporting period.

Figure 68. Sentinel-2 satellite imagery detected ash plumes, gas-and-steam emissions, and multiple thermal signatures (bright yellow-orange) in the crater at Sabancaya during June-November 2019. Sentinel-2 atmospheric penetration (bands 12, 11, 8A) images courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Figure 69. A webcam image of an ash plume rising from Sabancaya on 1 August 2019 at least 4 km above the crater. Courtesy of IGP.

Seismicity was also particularly high between August and September 2019, according to INGEMMET. On 14 August, roughly 850 earthquakes were detected. There were 280 earthquakes reported on 15 September, located 6 km NE of the crater. Both seismic events were characterized as seismic swarms. Seismicity decreased afterward but continued through the reporting period.

In February 2017, a lava dome was established inside the crater. Since then, it has been growing slowly, filling the N area of the crater and producing thermal anomalies. On 26 October 2019, OVI-INGEMMET conducted a drone overflight and captured video of the lava dome (figure 70). According to IGP, this lava dome is approximately 4.6 million cubic meters with a growth rate of 0.05 m3/s.

Figure 70. Drone images of the lava dome and degassing inside the crater at Sabancaya on 26 (top) and 27 (bottom) October 2019. Courtesy of INGEMMET (Informe Ténico No A6969).

MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity) analysis of MODIS satellite data shows strong, consistent thermal anomalies occurring all throughout June through November 2019 (figure 71). In conjunction with these thermal anomalies, the October 2019 special issue report by INGEMMET showed new hotspots forming along the crater rim in July 2018 and August 2019 (figure 72).

Figure 71. Thermal anomalies at Sabancaya for 3 January through November 2019 as recorded by the MIROVA system (Log Radiative Power) were frequent, strong, and consistent. Courtesy of MIROVA.

Figure 72. Thermal hotspots on the NW section of the crater at Sabancaya using MIROVA images. These images show the progression of the formation of at least two new hotspots between February 2017 to August 2019. Courtesy of INGEMMET, Informe Técnico No A6969.

Sulfur dioxide emissions also persisted at significant levels from June through November 2019, as detected by Sentinel-5P/TROPOMI satellite data (figure 73). The satellite measurements of the SO₂ emissions exceeded 2 DU (Dobson Units) at least 20 days each month during this time. These SO₂ plumes sometimes occurred for multiple consecutive days (figure 74).

Figure 73. Consistent, large SO2 plumes from Sabancaya were seen in TROPOMI instrument satellite data throughout June-November 2019, many of which drifted in different directions based on the prevailing winds. Courtesy of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

Figure 74. Persistent SO2 plumes from Sabancaya appeared daily during 13-16 September 2019 in the TROPOMI instrument satellite data. Courtesy of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

Geologic Background. Sabancaya, located in the saddle NE of Ampato and SE of Hualca Hualca volcanoes, is the youngest of these volcanic centers and the only one to have erupted in historical time. The oldest of the three, Nevado Hualca Hualca, is of probable late-Pliocene to early Pleistocene age. The name Sabancaya (meaning "tongue of fire" in the Quechua language) first appeared in records in 1595 CE, suggesting activity prior to that date. Holocene activity has consisted of Plinian eruptions followed by emission of voluminous andesitic and dacitic lava flows, which form an extensive apron around the volcano on all sides but the south. Records of historical eruptions date back to 1750.

Information Contacts: Instituto Geofisico del Peru (IGP), Calle Badajoz N° 169 Urb. Mayorazgo IV Etapa, Ate, Lima 15012, Perú (URL: https://www.gob.pe/igp); Observatorio Volcanologico del INGEMMET (Instituto Geológical Minero y Metalúrgico), Barrio Magisterial Nro. 2 B-16 Umacollo - Yanahuara Arequipa, Peru (URL: http://ovi.ingemmet.gob.pe); MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity), a collaborative project between the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy) supported by the Centre for Volcanic Risk of the Italian Civil Protection Department (URL: http://www.mirovaweb.it/); Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology (HIGP) - MODVOLC Thermal Alerts System, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), Univ. of Hawai'i, 2525 Correa Road, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA (URL: http://modis.higp.hawaii.edu/); Global Sulfur Dioxide Monitoring Page, Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC), 8800 Greenbelt Road, Goddard, Maryland, USA (URL: https://SO2.gsfc.nasa.gov/); Buenos Aires Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC), Servicio Meteorológico Nacional-Fuerza Aérea Argentina, 25 de mayo 658, Buenos Aires, Argentina (URL: http://www.smn.gov.ar/vaac/buenosaires/inicio.php); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground).

Karangetang (also known as Api Siau), located on the island of Siau in the Sitaro Regency, North Sulawesi, Indonesia, has experienced more than 40 recorded eruptions since 1675 in addition to many smaller undocumented eruptions. In early February 2019, a lava flow originated from the N crater (Kawah Dua) traveling NNW and reaching a distance over 3 km. Recent monitoring showed a lava flow from the S crater (Kawah Utama, also considered the "Main Crater") traveling toward the Kahetang and Batuawang River drainages on 15 April 2019. Gas-and-steam emissions, ash plumes, moderate seismicity, and thermal anomalies including lava flow activity define this current reporting period for May through November 2019. The primary source of information for this report comes from daily and weekly reports by the Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as CVGHM, or the Center of Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation), the Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC), and satellite data.

PVMBG reported that white gas-and-steam emissions were visible rising above both craters consistently between May through November 2019 (figures 30 and 31). The maximum altitude for these emissions was 400 m above the Dua Crater on 27 May and 700 m above the Main Crater on 12 June. Throughout the reporting period PVMBG noted that moderate seismicity occurred, which included both shallow and deep volcanic earthquakes.

Figure 30. A Sentinel-2 image of Karangetang showing two active craters producing gas-and-steam emissions with a small amount of ash on 7 August 2019. Courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Figure 31. Webcam images of gas-and-steam emissions rising from the summit of Karangetang on 14 (top) and 25 (bottom) October 2019. Courtesy of PVMBG via Øystein Lund Andersen.

Activity was relatively low between May and June 2019, consisting mostly of gas-and-steam emissions. On 26-27 May 2019 crater incandescence was observed above the Main Crater; white gas-and-steam emissions were rising from both craters (figures 32 and 33). At 1858 on 20 July, incandescent avalanches of material originating from the Main Crater traveled as far as 1 km W toward the Pangi and Kinali River drainages. By 22 July the incandescent material had traveled another 500 m in the same direction as well as 1 km in the direction of the Nanitu and Beha River drainages. According to a Darwin VAAC report, discreet, intermittent ash eruptions on 30 July resulted in plumes drifting W at 7.6 km altitude and SE at 3 km, as observed in HIMAWARI-8 satellite imagery.

Figure 32. Photograph of summit crater incandescence at Karangetang on 12 May 2019. Courtesy of Dominik Derek.

Figure 33. Photograph of both summit crater incandescence at Karangetang on 12 May 2019 accompanied by gas-and-steam emissions. Courtesy of Dominik Derek.

On 5 August 2019 a minor eruption produced an ash cloud that rose 3 km and drifted E. PVMBG reported in the weekly report for 5-11 August that an incandescent lava flow from the Main Crater was traveling W and SW on the slopes of Karangetang and producing incandescent avalanches (figure 34). During 12 August through 1 September lava continued to effuse from both the Main and Dua craters. Avalanches of material traveled as far as 1.5 km SW toward the Nanitu and Pangi River drainages, 1.4-2 km to the W of Pangi, and 1.8 km down the Sense River drainage. Lava fountaining was observed occurring up to 10 m above the summit on 14-20 August.

Figure 34. Photograph of summit crater incandescence and a lava flow from Karangetang on 7 August 2019. Courtesy of MAGMA Indonesia.

PVMBG reported that during 2-22 September lava continued to effuse from both craters, traveling SW toward the Nanitu, Pangi, and Sense River drainages as far as 1.5 km. On 24 September the lava flow occasionally traveled 0.8-1.5 km toward the West Beha River drainage. The lava flow from the Main Crater continued through at least the end of November, moving SW and W as far as 1.5 km toward the Nanitu, Pangi, and Sense River drainages. In late October and onwards, incandescence from both summit craters was observed at night. The lava flow often traveled as far as 1 km toward the Batang and East Beha River drainage on 12 November, the West Beha River drainage on 15, 22, 24, and 29 November, and the Batang and West Beha River drainages on 25-27 November (figure 35). On 30 November a Strombolian eruption occurred in the Main Crater accompanied by gas-and-steam emissions rising 100 m above the Main Crater and 50 m above the Dua Crater. Lava flows traveled SW and W toward the Nanitu, Sense, and Pangi River drainages as far as 1.5 km, the West Beha and Batang River drainages as far as 1 km, and occasionally the Batu Awang and Kahetang River drainages as far as 2 km. Lava fountaining was reported occurring 10-25 m above the Main Crater and 10 m above the Dua Crater on 6, 8-12, 15, 21-30 November.

Figure 35. Webcam image of gas-and-steam emissions rising from the summit of Karangetang accompanied by incandescence and lava flows at night on 27 November 2019. Courtesy of MAGMA Indonesia via Øystein Lund Andersen.

MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity) analysis of MODIS satellite data showed consistent and strong thermal anomalies within 5 km of the summit craters from late July through November 2019 (figure 36). Satellite imagery from Sentinel-2 corroborated this data, showing strong thermal anomalies and lava flows originating from both craters during this same timeframe (figure 37). In addition to these lava flows, satellite imagery also captured intermittent gas-and-steam emissions from May through November (figure 38). MODVOLC thermal alerts registered 165 thermal hotspots near Karangetang's summit between May and November.

Figure 36. Frequent and strong thermal anomalies at Karangetang between 3 January through November 2019 as recorded by the MIROVA system (Log Radiative Power) began in late July and were recorded within 5 km of the summit craters. Courtesy of MIROVA.

Figure 37. Sentinel-2 thermal satellite imagery (bands 12, 11, 8A) confirmed ongoing thermal activity (bright orange) at Karangetang from July into November 2019. The lava flows traveled dominantly in the W direction from the Main Crater. Courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Figure 38. Sentinel-2 satellite imagery showing gas-and-steam emissions with a small amount of ash (middle and right) rising from both craters of Karangetang during May through November 2019. Courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Sentinel-5P/TROPOMI satellite data detected multiple sulfur dioxide plumes between May and November 2019 (figure 39). These emissions occasionally exceeded 2 Dobson Units (DU) and drifted in different directions based on the dominant wind pattern.

Figure 39. SO2 emissions from Karangetang (indicated by the red box) were seen in TROPOMI instrument satellite data during May through November 2019, many of which drifted in different directions based on the prevailing winds. Top left: 27 May 2019. Top middle: 26 July 2019. Top right: 17 August 2019. Bottom left: 27 September 2019. Bottom middle: 3 October 2019. Bottom right: 21 November 2019. Courtesy of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

Geologic Background. Karangetang (Api Siau) volcano lies at the northern end of the island of Siau, about 125 km NNE of the NE-most point of Sulawesi island. The stratovolcano contains five summit craters along a N-S line. It is one of Indonesia's most active volcanoes, with more than 40 eruptions recorded since 1675 and many additional small eruptions that were not documented in the historical record (Catalog of Active Volcanoes of the World: Neumann van Padang, 1951). Twentieth-century eruptions have included frequent explosive activity sometimes accompanied by pyroclastic flows and lahars. Lava dome growth has occurred in the summit craters; collapse of lava flow fronts have produced pyroclastic flows.

Information Contacts: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation, CVGHM), Jalan Diponegoro 57, Bandung 40122, Indonesia (URL: http://www.vsi.esdm.go.id/); MAGMA Indonesia, Kementerian Energi dan Sumber Daya Mineral (URL: https://magma.vsi.esdm.go.id/); Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC), Bureau of Meteorology, Northern Territory Regional Office, PO Box 40050, Casuarina, NT 0811, Australia (URL: http://www.bom.gov.au/info/vaac/); MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity), a collaborative project between the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy) supported by the Centre for Volcanic Risk of the Italian Civil Protection Department (URL: http://www.mirovaweb.it/); Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology (HIGP) - MODVOLC Thermal Alerts System, School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), Univ. of Hawai'i, 2525 Correa Road, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA (URL: http://modis.higp.hawaii.edu/); Global Sulfur Dioxide Monitoring Page, Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC), 8800 Greenbelt Road, Goddard, Maryland, USA (URL: https://SO2.gsfc.nasa.gov/); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground); Øystein Lund Andersen (Twitter: @OysteinLAnderse, https://twitter.com/OysteinLAnderse, URL: https://www.oysteinlundandersen.com); Dominik Derek (URL: https://www.facebook.com/07dominikderek/).

Ulawun is a basaltic-to-andesitic stratovolcano located in West New Britain, Papua New Guinea, with typical activity consisting of seismicity, gas-and-steam plumes, and ash emissions. The most recent eruption began in late June 2019 involving ash and gas-and-steam emissions, increased seismicity, and a pyroclastic flow (BGVN 44:09). This report includes volcanism from September to October 2019 with primary source information from the Rabaul Volcano Observatory (RVO) and the Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC).

Activity remained low through 26 September 2019, mainly consisting of variable amounts of gas-and-steam emissions and low seismicity. Between 26 and 29 September RVO reported that the seismicity increased slightly and included low-level volcanic tremors and Real-Time Seismic Amplitude Measurement (RSAM) values in the 200-400 range on 19, 20, and 22 September. On 30 September small volcanic earthquakes began around 1000 and continued to increase in frequency; by 1220, they were characterized as a seismic swarm. The Darwin VAAC advisory noted that an ash plume rose to 4.6-6 km altitude, drifting SW and W, based on ground reports.

On 1 October 2019 the seismicity increased, reaching RSAM values up to 10,000 units between 0130 and 0200, according to RVO. These events preceded an eruption which originated from a new vent that opened on the SW flank at 700 m elevation, about three-quarters of the way down the flank from the summit. The eruption started between 0430 and 0500 and was defined by incandescence and lava fountaining to less than 100 m. In addition to lava fountaining, light- to dark-gray ash plumes were visible rising several kilometers above the vent and drifting NW and W (figure 21). On 2 October, as the lava fountaining continued, ash-and-steam plumes rose to variable heights between 2 and 5.2 km (figures 22 and 23), resulting in ashfall to the W in Navo. Seismicity remained high, with RSAM values passing 12,000. A lava flow also emerged during the night which traveled 1-2 km NW. The main summit crater produced white gas-and-steam emissions, but no incandescence or other signs of activity were observed.

Figure 21. Photographs of incandescence and lava fountaining from Ulawun during 1-2 October 2019. A) Lava fountains along with ash plumes that rose several kilometers above the vent. B) Incandescence and lava fountaining seen from offshore. Courtesy of Christopher Lagisa.

Figure 22. Photographs of an ash plume rising from Ulawun on 1 October 2019. In the right photo, lava fountaining is visible. Courtesy of Christopher Lagisa.

Figure 23. Photograph of lava fountaining and an ash plume rising from Ulawun on 1 October 2019. Courtesy of Joe Metto, WNB Provincial Disaster Office (RVO Report 2019100101).

Ash emissions began to decrease by 3 October 2019; satellite imagery and ground observations showed an ash cloud rising to 3 km altitude and drifting N, according to the Darwin VAAC report. RVO reported that the fissure eruption on the SW flank stopped on 4 October, but gas-and-steam emissions and weak incandescence were still visible. The lava flow slowed, advancing 3-5 m/day, while declining seismicity was reflected in RSAM values fluctuating around 1,000. RVO reported that between 23 and 31 October the main summit crater continued to produce variable amounts of white gas-and-steam emissions (figure 24) and that no incandescence was observed after 5 October. Gas-and-steam emissions were also observed around the new SW vent and along the lava flow. Seismicity remained low until 27-29 October; it increased again and peaked on 30 October, reaching an RSAM value of 1,700 before dropping and fluctuating around 1,200-1,500.

Figure 24. Webcam photo of a gas-and-steam plume rising from Ulawun on 30 October 2019. Courtesy of the Rabaul Volcano Observatory (RVO).

In addition to ash plumes, SO₂ plumes were also detected between September and October 2019. Sentinel-5P/TROPOMI data showed SO₂ plumes, some of which exceeded 2 Dobson Units (DU) drifting in different directions (figure 25). MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity) analysis of MODIS satellite data showed strong, frequent thermal anomalies within 5 km of the summit beginning in early October 2019 and throughout the rest of the month (figure 26). Only one thermal anomaly was detected in early December.

Figure 25. Sentinel-5P/TROPOMI data showing a high concentration of SO2 plumes rising from Ulawun between late September-early October 2019. Top left: 11 September 2019. Top right: 1 October 2019. Bottom left: 2 October 2019. Bottom right: 3 October 2019. Courtesy of the NASA Space Goddard Flight Center.

Figure 26. Frequent and strong thermal anomalies at Ulawun for February through December 2019 as recorded by the MIROVA system (Log Radiative Power) began in early October and continued throughout the month. Courtesy of MIROVA.

Activity in November was relatively low, with only a variable amount of white gas-and-steam emissions visible and low (less than 200 RSAM units) seismicity with sporadic volcanic earthquakes. Between 9-22 December, a webcam showed intermittent white gas-and-steam emissions were observed at the main crater, accompanied by some incandescence at night. Some gas-and-steam emissions were also observed rising from the new SW vent along the lava flow.

Geologic Background. The symmetrical basaltic-to-andesitic Ulawun stratovolcano is the highest volcano of the Bismarck arc, and one of Papua New Guinea's most frequently active. The volcano, also known as the Father, rises above the N coast of the island of New Britain across a low saddle NE of Bamus volcano, the South Son. The upper 1,000 m is unvegetated. A prominent E-W escarpment on the south may be the result of large-scale slumping. Satellitic cones occupy the NW and E flanks. A steep-walled valley cuts the NW side, and a flank lava-flow complex lies to the south of this valley. Historical eruptions date back to the beginning of the 18th century. Twentieth-century eruptions were mildly explosive until 1967, but after 1970 several larger eruptions produced lava flows and basaltic pyroclastic flows, greatly modifying the summit crater.

Information Contacts: Rabaul Volcano Observatory (RVO), Geohazards Management Division, Department of Mineral Policy and Geohazards Management (DMPGM), PO Box 3386, Kokopo, East New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea; Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC), Bureau of Meteorology, Northern Territory Regional Office, PO Box 40050, Casuarina, NT 0811, Australia (URL: http://www.bom.gov.au/info/vaac/); MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity), a collaborative project between the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy) supported by the Centre for Volcanic Risk of the Italian Civil Protection Department (URL: http://www.mirovaweb.it/); Global Sulfur Dioxide Monitoring Page, Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC), 8800 Greenbelt Road, Goddard, Maryland, USA (URL: https://SO2.gsfc.nasa.gov/); Christopher Lagisa, West New Britain Province, Papua New Guinea (URL: https://www.facebook.com/christopher.lagisa, images posted at https://www.facebook.com/christopher.lagisa/posts/730662937360239 and https://www.facebook.com/christopher.lagisa/posts/730215604071639).

Nyamuragira (also known as Nyamulagira) is a high-potassium basaltic shield volcano located in the Virunga Volcanic Province (VVP) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Previous volcanism consisted of the reappearance of a lava lake in the summit crater in mid-April 2018, lava emissions, and high seismicity (BGVN 44:05). Current activity includes strong thermal signatures, continued inner crater wall collapses, and continued moderate seismicity. The primary source of information for this June-November 2019 report comes from the Observatoire Volcanologique de Goma (OVG) and satellite data and imagery from multiple sources.

OVG reported in the July 2019 monthly that the inner crater wall collapses that were observed in May continued to occur. During this month, there was a sharp decrease in the lava lake level, and it is no longer visible. However, the report stated that lava fountaining was visible from a small cone within this crater, though its activity has also decreased since 2014. In late July, a thermal anomaly and fumaroles were observed originating from this cone (figure 85). Seismicity remained moderate throughout this reporting period.

Figure 85. Photograph showing the small active cone within the crater of Nyamuragira in late July 2019. Fumaroles are also observed within the crater originating from the small cone. Courtesy of Sergio Maguna.

MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity) analysis of MODIS satellite data shows strong, frequent thermal anomalies within 5 km of the summit between June through November (figure 86). The strength of these thermal anomalies noticeably decreases briefly in September. MODVOLC thermal alerts registered 54 thermal hotspots dominantly near the N area of the crater during June through November 2019. Satellite imagery from Sentinel-2 corroborated this data, showing strong thermal anomalies within the summit crater during this same timeframe (figure 87).

Figure 86. The MIROVA graph of thermal activity (log radiative power) at Nyamuragira during 30 January through November 2019 shows strong, frequent thermal anomalies through November with a brief decrease in activity in late April-early May and early September. Courtesy of MIROVA.

Figure 87. Sentinel-2 thermal satellite imagery (bands 12, 11, 8A) confirmed ongoing thermal activity at Nyamuragira into November 2019. Courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Geologic Background. Africa's most active volcano, Nyamuragira, is a massive high-potassium basaltic shield about 25 km N of Lake Kivu. Also known as Nyamulagira, it has generated extensive lava flows that cover 1500 km2 of the western branch of the East African Rift. The broad low-angle shield volcano contrasts dramatically with the adjacent steep-sided Nyiragongo to the SW. The summit is truncated by a small 2 x 2.3 km caldera that has walls up to about 100 m high. Historical eruptions have occurred within the summit caldera, as well as from the numerous fissures and cinder cones on the flanks. A lava lake in the summit crater, active since at least 1921, drained in 1938, at the time of a major flank eruption. Historical lava flows extend down the flanks more than 30 km from the summit, reaching as far as Lake Kivu.

Information Contacts: Observatoire Volcanologique de Goma (OVG), Departement de Geophysique, Centre de Recherche en Sciences Naturelles, Lwiro, D.S. Bukavu, DR Congo; Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground); MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity), a collaborative project between the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy) supported by the Centre for Volcanic Risk of the Italian Civil Protection Department (URL: http://www.mirovaweb.it/); Sergio Maguna (Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sergio.maguna.9, images posted at https://www.facebook.com/sergio.maguna.9/posts/1267625096730837).

Bagana volcano is found in a remote portion of central Bougainville Island in Papua New Guinea. The most recent eruptive phase that began in early 2000 has produced ash plumes and thermal anomalies (BGVN 44:06, 50:01). Activity has remained low between January-July 2019 with rare thermal anomalies and occasional steam plumes. This reporting period updates information for June-November 2019 and includes thermal anomalies and intermittent gas-and-steam emissions. Thermal data and satellite imagery are the primary sources of information for this report.

MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity) analysis of MODIS satellite data showed an increased number of thermal anomalies within 5 km from the summit beginning in late July-early August (figure 38). Two Sentinel-2 thermal satellite images showed faint, roughly linear thermal anomalies, indicative of lava flows trending EW and NS on 7 July 2019 and 6 August, respectively (figure 39). Weak thermal hotspots were briefly detected in late September-early October after a short hiatus in September. No thermal anomalies were recorded in Sentinel-2 past August due to cloud cover; however, gas-and-steam emissions were visible on 7 July and in September (figures 39, 40, and 41).

Figure 38. Thermal anomalies near the crater summit at Bagana during February-November 2019 as recorded by the MIROVA system (Log Radiative Power) increased in frequency and power in early August. A small cluster was detected in early October after a brief pause in activity in early September. Courtesy of MIROVA.

Figure 39. Sentinel-2 thermal satellite imagery showing small thermal anomalies at Bagana between July-August 2019. Left: A very faint thermal anomaly and a gas-and-steam plume is seen on 7 July 2019. Right: Two small thermal anomalies are faintly seen on 6 August 2019. Both Sentinel-2 satellite images with "Atmospheric penetration" (bands 12, 11, 8A) rendering; courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Figure 40. A gas-and-steam plume rising from the summit of Bagana on 18 September 2019. Courtesy of Brendan McCormick Kilbride (University of Manchester).

The Deep Carbon Observatory (DCO) scientific team partnered with the Rabaul Volcano Observatory and the Bougainville Disaster Office to observe activity at Bagana and collect gas data using drone technology during two weeks of field work in mid-September 2019. For this field work, the major focus was to understand the composition of the volcanic gas emitted at Bagana and measure the concentration of these gases. Since Bagana is remote and difficult to climb, research about its gas emissions has been limited. The recent advancements in drone technology has allowed for new data collection at the summit of Bagana (figure 41). Most of the emissions consisted of water vapor, according to Brendan McCormick Kilbride, one of the volcanologists on this trip. During 14-19 September there was consistently a strong gas-and-steam plume from Bagana (figure 42).

Figure 41. Degassing plumes seen from drone footage 100 m above the summit of Bagana. Top: Zoomed out view of the summit of Bagana degassing. Bottom: Closer perspective of the gases emitted from Bagana. Courtesy of Kieran Wood (University of Bristol) and the Bristol Flight Laboratory.

Figure 42. Photos of gas-and-steam plumes rising from Bagana between 14-19 September 2019. Courtesy of Brendan McCormick Kilbride (University of Manchester).

Geologic Background. Bagana volcano, occupying a remote portion of central Bougainville Island, is one of Melanesia's youngest and most active volcanoes. This massive symmetrical cone was largely constructed by an accumulation of viscous andesitic lava flows. The entire edifice could have been constructed in about 300 years at its present rate of lava production. Eruptive activity is frequent and characterized by non-explosive effusion of viscous lava that maintains a small lava dome in the summit crater, although explosive activity occasionally producing pyroclastic flows also occurs. Lava flows form dramatic, freshly preserved tongue-shaped lobes up to 50 m thick with prominent levees that descend the flanks on all sides.

Information Contacts: MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity), a collaborative project between the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy) supported by the Centre for Volcanic Risk of the Italian Civil Protection Department (URL: http://www.mirovaweb.it/); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground); Brendan McCormick Kilbride, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, United Kingdom (URL: https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/brendan.mccormickkilbride.html, Twitter: https://twitter.com/BrendanVolc); Kieran Wood, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1QU, United Kingdom (URL: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/engineering/people/kieran-t-wood/index.html, Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrKieranWood, video posted at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7Hx645v0eU); University of Bristol Flight Laboratory, Bristol BS8 1QU, United Kingdom (Twitter: https://twitter.com/UOBFlightLab).

Kerinci, located in Sumatra, Indonesia, is a highly active volcano characterized by explosive eruptions with ash plumes and gas-and-steam emissions. The most recent eruptive episode began in April 2018 and included intermittent explosions with ash plumes. Volcanism continued from June-November 2019 with ongoing intermittent gas-and-steam and ash plumes. The primary source of information for this report comes from Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation, CVGHM), the Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC), and MAGMA Indonesia.

Brown- to gray-colored ash clouds drifting in different directions were reported by PVMBG, the Darwin VAAC, and MAGMA Indonesia between June and early November 2019. Ground observations, satellite imagery, and weather models were used to monitor the plume, which ranged from 4.3 to 4.9 km altitude, or about 500-1,100 m above the summit. On 7 June 2019 at 0604 a gray ash emission rose 800 m above the summit, drifting E, according to a ground observer. An ash plume on 12 July rose to 4 km altitude and drifted SW, as determined by satellite imagery and weather models. An eruption produced a gray ash cloud on 31 July that rose to 4.6 km altitude and drifted NE and E, according to PVMBG and the Darwin VAAC (figure 17). Another ash cloud rose up to 4.3 km altitude on 3 August. On 2 September a possible ash plume rose to a maximum altitude of 4.9 km and drifted WSW, according to the Darwin VAAC advisory.

Figure 17. A gray ash plume at Kerinci rose roughly 800 m above the summit on 31 July 2019 and drifted NE and E. Courtesy of MAGMA Indonesia.

Brown ash emissions rose to 4.4 km altitude at 1253 on 6 October, drifting WSW. Similar plumes reached 4.6 km altitude twice on 30 October and moved NE, SE, and E at 0614 and WSW at 1721, based on ground observations. On 1-2 November, ground observers saw brown ash emissions rising up to 4.3 km drifting ESE. Between 3 and 5 November the brown ash plumes rose 100-500 m above the summit, according to PVMBG.

Gas emissions continued to be observed through November, as reported by PVMBG and identified in satellite imagery (figure 18). Seismicity that included volcanic earthquakes also continued between June and early November, when the frequency decreased.

Figure 18. Sentinel-2 thermal satellite imagery showing a typical white gas-and-steam plume at Kerinci on 9 August 2019. Sentinel-2 satellite image with "Atmospheric penetration" (bands 12, 11, 8A) rendering; courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Geologic Background. Gunung Kerinci in central Sumatra forms Indonesia's highest volcano and is one of the most active in Sumatra. It is capped by an unvegetated young summit cone that was constructed NE of an older crater remnant. There is a deep 600-m-wide summit crater often partially filled by a small crater lake that lies on the NE crater floor, opposite the SW-rim summit. The massive 13 x 25 km wide volcano towers 2400-3300 m above surrounding plains and is elongated in a N-S direction. Frequently active, Kerinci has been the source of numerous moderate explosive eruptions since its first recorded eruption in 1838.

Information Contacts: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation, CVGHM), Jalan Diponegoro 57, Bandung 40122, Indonesia (URL: http://www.vsi.esdm.go.id/); Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC), Bureau of Meteorology, Northern Territory Regional Office, PO Box 40050, Casuarina, NT 0811, Australia (URL: http://www.bom.gov.au/info/vaac/); MAGMA Indonesia, Kementerian Energi dan Sumber Daya Mineral (URL: https://magma.vsi.esdm.go.id/); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground).

The long-term activity at Bezymianny has been dominated by almost continuous thermal anomalies, moderate gas-steam emissions, dome growth, lava flows, and an occasional ash explosion (BGVN 44:06). The volcano is monitored by the Kamchatka Volcanic Eruptions Response Team (KVERT. Throughout the reporting period of June to November 2019, the Aviation Colour Code remained Yellow (second lowest of four levels).

According to KVERT weekly reports, lava dome growth continued in June through mid-July 2019. Thereafter the reports did not mention dome growth, but indicated that moderate gas-and-steam emissions (figure 32) continued through November. The MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity) volcano hotspot detection system, based on analysis of MODIS data, detected hotspots within 5 km of the summit almost every day. KVERT also reported a thermal anomaly over the volcano almost daily, except when it was obscured by clouds. Infrared satellite imagery often showed thermal anomalies generated by lava flows or dome growth (figure 33).

Figure 32. Photo of Bezymianny showing fumarolic activity on 4 July 2019. Photo by O. Girina (IVS FEB RAS, KVERT); courtesy of KVERT.

Figure 33. Typical infrared satellite images of Bezymianny showing thermal anomalies in the summit crater, including a lava flow to the WNW. Top: 21 August 2019 with SWIR filter (bands 12, 8A, 4). Bottom: 17 September 2019 with Atmospheric Penetration filter (bands 12, 11, 8A). Courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Geologic Background. Prior to its noted 1955-56 eruption, Bezymianny had been considered extinct. The modern volcano, much smaller in size than its massive neighbors Kamen and Kliuchevskoi, was formed about 4700 years ago over a late-Pleistocene lava-dome complex and an ancestral edifice built about 11,000-7000 years ago. Three periods of intensified activity have occurred during the past 3000 years. The latest period, which was preceded by a 1000-year quiescence, began with the dramatic 1955-56 eruption. This eruption, similar to that of St. Helens in 1980, produced a large horseshoe-shaped crater that was formed by collapse of the summit and an associated lateral blast. Subsequent episodic but ongoing lava-dome growth, accompanied by intermittent explosive activity and pyroclastic flows, has largely filled the 1956 crater.

Information Contacts: Kamchatka Volcanic Eruptions Response Team (KVERT), Far Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences, 9 Piip Blvd., Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, 683006, Russia (URL: http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/kvert/); Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, Far Eastern Branch, Russian Academy of Sciences (IVS FEB RAS), 9 Piip Blvd., Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky 683006, Russia (URL: http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/eng/); MIROVA (Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity), a collaborative project between the Universities of Turin and Florence (Italy) supported by the Centre for Volcanic Risk of the Italian Civil Protection Department (URL: http://www.mirovaweb.it/); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground).

Mayon, located in the Philippines, is a highly active stratovolcano with recorded historical eruptions dating back to 1616. The most recent eruptive episode began in early January 2018 that consisted of phreatic explosions, steam-and-ash plumes, lava fountaining, and pyroclastic flows (BGVN 43:04). The previous report noted small but distinct thermal anomalies, gas-and-steam plumes, and slight inflation (BGVN 44:05) that continued to occur from May into mid-October 2019. This report includes information based on daily bulletins from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) and Sentinel-2 satellite imagery.

Between May and October 2019, white gas-and-steam plumes rose to a maximum altitude of 800 m on 17 May. PHIVOLCS reported that faint summit incandescence was frequently observed at night from May-July and Sentinel-2 thermal satellite imagery showed weaker thermal anomalies in September and October (figure 49); the last anomaly was identified on 12 October. Average SO₂ emissions as measured by PHIVOLCS generally varied between 469-774 tons/day; the high value of the period was on 25 July, with 1,171 tons/day. Small SO₂ plumes were detected by the TROPOMI satellite instrument a few times during May-September 2019 (figure 50).

Figure 49. Sentinel-2 thermal satellite imagery of Mayon between May-October 2019. Small thermal anomalies were recorded in satellite imagery from the summit and some white gas-and-steam plumes are visible. Top left: 30 May 2019. Top right: 9 June 2019. Bottom left: 22 September 2019. Bottom right: 12 October 2019. Sentinel-2 satellite images with "Atmospheric penetration" (bands 12, 11, 8A) rendering; courtesy of Sentinel Hub Playground.

Figure 50. Small SO2 plumes rising from Mayon during May-September 2019 recorded in DU (Dobson Units). Top left: 28 May 2019. Top right: 26 July 2019. Bottom left: 16 August 2019. Bottom right: 23 September 2019. Courtesy of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.

Continuous GPS data has shown slight inflation since June 2018, corroborated by precise leveling data taken on 9-17 April, 16-25 July, and 23-30 October 2019. Elevated seismicity and occasional rockfall events were detected by the seismic monitoring network from PHIVOLCS from May to July; recorded activity decreased in August. Activity reported by PHIVOLCS in September-October 2019 consisted of frequent gas-and-steam emissions, two volcanic earthquakes, and no summit incandescence.

Geologic Background. Beautifully symmetrical Mayon, which rises above the Albay Gulf NW of Legazpi City, is the Philippines' most active volcano. The structurally simple edifice has steep upper slopes averaging 35-40 degrees that are capped by a small summit crater. Historical eruptions date back to 1616 and range from Strombolian to basaltic Plinian, with cyclical activity beginning with basaltic eruptions, followed by longer term andesitic lava flows. Eruptions occur predominately from the central conduit and have also produced lava flows that travel far down the flanks. Pyroclastic flows and mudflows have commonly swept down many of the approximately 40 ravines that radiate from the summit and have often devastated populated lowland areas. A violent eruption in 1814 killed more than 1,200 people and devastated several towns.

Information Contacts: Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), Department of Science and Technology, University of the Philippines Campus, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines (URL: http://www.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/); Sentinel Hub Playground (URL: https://www.sentinel-hub.com/explore/sentinel-playground); Global Sulfur Dioxide Monitoring Page, Atmospheric Chemistry and Dynamics Laboratory, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (NASA/GSFC), 8800 Greenbelt Road, Goddard, Maryland, USA (URL: https://SO₂.gsfc.nasa.gov/).

Merapi is an active volcano north of the city of Yogyakarta (figure 79) that has a recent history of dome growth and collapse, resulting in block-and-ash flows that killed over 400 in 2010, while an estimated 10,000-20,000 lives were saved by evacuations. The edifice contains an active dome at the summit, above the Gendol drainage down the SE flank (figure 80). The current eruption episode began in May 2018 and dome growth was observed from 11 August 2018-onwards. This Bulletin summarizes activity during April through September 2019 and is based on information from Balai Penyelidikan dan Pengembangan Teknologi Kebencanaan Geologi (BPPTKG, the Center for Research and Development of Geological Disaster Technology, a branch of PVMBG), Sutopo of Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana (BNPB), MAGMA Indonesia, along with observations by Øystein Lund Andersen and Brett Carr of the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.

Figure 79. Merapi volcano is located north of Yogyakarta in Central Java. Photo courtesy of Øystein Lund Andersen.

Figure 80. A view of the Gendol drainage where avalanches and block-and-ash flows are channeled from the active Merapi lava dome. The Gendol drainage is approximately 400 m wide at the summit. Courtesy of Brett Carr, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.

At the beginning of April the rate of dome growth was relatively low, with little morphological change since January, but the overall activity of Merapi was considered high. Magma extrusion above the upper Gendol drainage resulted in rockfalls and block-and-ash flows out to 1.5 km from the dome, which were incandescent and visible at night. Five block-and-ash flows were recorded on 24 April, reaching as far as 1.2 km down the Gendol drainage. The volume of the dome was calculated to be 466,000 m3 on 9 April, a slight decrease from the previous week. Weak gas plumes reached a maximum of 500 m above the dome throughout April.

Six block-and-ash flows were generated on 5 May, lasting up to 77 seconds. Throughout May there were no significant changes to the dome morphology but the volume had decreased to 458,000 by 4 May according to drome imagery analysis. Lava extrusion continued above the Gendol drainage, producing rockfalls and small block-and-ash flows out to 1.2 km (figure 81). Gas plumes were observed to reach 400 m above the top of the crater.

Figure 81. An avalanche from the Merapi summit dome on 17 May 2019. The incandescent blocks traveled down to 850 m away from the dome. Courtesy of Sutopo, BNPB.

There were a total of 72 avalanches and block-and-ash flows from 29 January to 1 June, with an average distance of 1 km and a maximum of 2 km down the Gendol drainage. Photographs taken by Øystein Lund Andersen show the morphological change to the lava dome due to the collapse of rock and extruding lava down the Gendol drainage (figures 82 and 83). Block-and-ash flows were recorded on 17 and 20 June to a distance of 1.2 km, and a webcam image showed an incandescent flow on 26 June (figure 84). Throughout June gas plumes reached a maximum of 250 m above the top of the crater

Figure 82. The development of the Merapi summit dome from 2 June 2018 to 17 June 2019. Courtesy of Øystein Lund Andersen.

Figure 83. Photos taken of the Merapi summit lava dome in June 2019. Top: This nighttime time-lapse photograph shows incandescence at the south-facing side of the dome on the 16 June. Middle: A closeup of a small rockfall from the dome on 17 June. Bottom: A gas plume accompanying a small rockfall on 17 June. Courtesy of Øystein Lund Andersen.

Figure 84. Blocks from an incandescent rockfall off the Merapi dome reached out to 1 km down the Gendol drainage on 26 June 2019. Courtesy of MAGMA Indonesia.

Analysis of drone images taken on 4 July gave an updated dome volume of 475,000 m3, a slight increase but with little change in the morphology (figure 85). Block-and-ash flows traveled 1.1 km down the Gendol drainage on 1 July, 1 km on the 13th, and 1.1 km on the 14th, some of which were seen at night as incandescent blocks fell from the dome (figure 86). During the week of 19-25 July there were four recorded block-and-ash flows reaching 1.1 km, and flows traveled out to around 1 km on the 24th, 27th, and 31st. The morphology of the dome continued to be relatively stable due to the extruding lava falling into the Gendol drainage. Gas plumes reached 300 m above the top of the crater during July.

Figure 85. The Merapi dome on 30 July 2019 producing a weak plume. Courtesy of MAGMA Indonesia.

Figure 86. Incandescent rocks from the hot lava dome at the summit of Merapi form rockfalls down the Gendol drainage on 14 July 2019. Courtesy of Øystein Lund Andersen.

During the week of 5-11 August the dome volume was calculated to be 461,000 m3, a slight decrease from the week before with little morphological changes due to the continued lava extrusion collapsing into the Gendol drainage. There were five block-and-ash flows reaching a maximum of 1.2 km during 2-8 August. Two flows were observed on the 13th and 14th reaching 950 m, out to 1.9 km on the 20th and 22nd, and to 550 m on the 24th. There were 16 observed flows that reached 500-1,000 m on 25-27 August, with an additional flow out to 2 km at 1807 on the 27th (figure 87). Gas plumes reached a maximum of 350 m through the month.

Figure 87. An incandescent rockfall from the Merapi dome that reached 2 km down the Gendol drainage on 27 August 2019. Courtesy of BPPTKG.

Brett Carr was conducting field work at Merapi during 12-26 September. During this time the lava extrusion was low (below 1 m3 per second). He observed small rockfalls with blocks a couple of meters in size, traveling about 50-200 m down the drainage every hour or so, producing small plumes as they descended and resulting in incandescence on the dome at night. Small dome collapse events produced block-and-ash flows down the drainage once or twice per day (figure 88) and slightly larger flows just over 1 km long a couple of times per week.

Figure 88. A rockfall on the Merapi dome, towards the Gendol drainage at 0551 on 20 September 2019. Courtesy of Brett Carr, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.

The dome volume was 468,000 m3 by 19 September, a slight increase from the previous calculation but again with little morphological change. Two block-and-ash flows were observed out to 600 m on 9 September and seven occurred on the 9th out to 500-1,100 m. Two occurred on the 14th down to 750-900 m, three occurred on 17, 20, and 21 September to a maximum distance of 1.2 km, and three more out to 1.5 km through the 26th. A VONA (Volcano Observatory Notice for Aviation) was issued on the 22nd due to a small explosion producing an ash plume up to approximately 3.8 km altitude (about 800 m above the summit) and minor ashfall to 15 km SW. This was followed by a block-and-ash flow reaching as far as 1.2 km and lasting for 125 seconds (figure 89). Preceding the explosion there was an increase in temperature at several locations on the dome. Weak gas plumes were observed up to 100 m above the crater throughout the month.

Figure 89. An explosion at Merapi on 22 September 2019 was followed by a block-and-ash flow that reached 1.2 km down the Gendol drainage. Courtesy of BPPTKG.

Geologic Background. Merapi, one of Indonesia's most active volcanoes, lies in one of the world's most densely populated areas and dominates the landscape immediately north of the major city of Yogyakarta. It is the youngest and southernmost of a volcanic chain extending NNW to Ungaran volcano. Growth of Old Merapi during the Pleistocene ended with major edifice collapse perhaps about 2000 years ago, leaving a large arcuate scarp cutting the eroded older Batulawang volcano. Subsequently growth of the steep-sided Young Merapi edifice, its upper part unvegetated due to frequent eruptive activity, began SW of the earlier collapse scarp. Pyroclastic flows and lahars accompanying growth and collapse of the steep-sided active summit lava dome have devastated cultivated lands on the western-to-southern flanks and caused many fatalities during historical time.

Information Contacts: Balai Penyelidikan dan Pengembangan Teknologi Kebencanaan Geologi (BPPTKG), Center for Research and Development of Geological Disaster Technology (URL: http://merapi.bgl.esdm.go.id/, Twitter: @BPPTKG); Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as Indonesian Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation, CVGHM), Jalan Diponegoro 57, Bandung 40122, Indonesia (URL: http://www.vsi.esdm.go.id/); MAGMA Indonesia, Kementerian Energi dan Sumber Daya Mineral (URL: https://magma.vsi.esdm.go.id/); Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Bencana (BNPB), National Disaster Management Agency, Graha BNPB - Jl. Scout Kav.38, East Jakarta 13120, Indonesia (URL: http://www.bnpb.go.id/, Twitter: https://twitter.com/BNPB_Indonesia); Øystein Lund Andersen? (Twitter: @OysteinLAnderse, URL: http://www.oysteinlundandersen.com); Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, BNPB (Twitter: @Sutopo_PN, URL: https://twitter.com/Sutopo_PN); Brett Carr, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, 61 Route 9W, Palisades, NY, USA (URL: https://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/user/bcarr).

Explosive activity has remained at high levels since mid-January, totaling . . . 42 [explosions] in April (the highest monthly total since April 1986), and 15 through 16 May . . . . The explosions caused no damage. The highest April ash cloud rose 3,000 m on the 30th. April ashfall was 187 g/m² [at KLMO]. Earthquake swarms were recorded on four days, a normal monthly total for the volcano.

Geologic Background. The Aira caldera in the northern half of Kagoshima Bay contains the post-caldera Sakurajima volcano, one of Japan's most active. Eruption of the voluminous Ito pyroclastic flow accompanied formation of the 17 x 23 km caldera about 22,000 years ago. The smaller Wakamiko caldera was formed during the early Holocene in the NE corner of the Aira caldera, along with several post-caldera cones. The construction of Sakurajima began about 13,000 years ago on the southern rim of Aira caldera and built an island that was finally joined to the Osumi Peninsula during the major explosive and effusive eruption of 1914. Activity at the Kitadake summit cone ended about 4850 years ago, after which eruptions took place at Minamidake. Frequent historical eruptions, recorded since the 8th century, have deposited ash on Kagoshima, one of Kyushu's largest cities, located across Kagoshima Bay only 8 km from the summit. The largest historical eruption took place during 1471-76.

Information Contacts: JMA.

Late-April fieldwork revealed continued but diminished sonic activity, no evidence of an eruption, and only minor changes to the volcano's hydrothermal system.

Biologist Milton Friere, working on the island since February, reported that he felt a strong shock, apparently on 9 March at about 1900. Hunters on Santiago Island, 35 km NE of Alcedo, also felt a large earthquake around that time but there is uncertainty about the date and the WWSSN recorded only the 3 March event (16:3). Immediately after the felt earthquake, explosion sounds began to be heard daily at Friere's camp on the caldera's N rim. The initial sounds were the most intense and frequent, then they declined gradually, and by late April were heard only once every few days from the N rim camp. Fewer than 5 earthquakes were felt at the camp until 5 April. Others were documented on 5 April at 1740, 7 April at 1700, and 17 April at 1725. Events of similar intensity may have gone unnoticed during active fieldwork.

While camped on the caldera's S rim during a 23-28 April field survey, Dennis Geist heard eight explosion sounds in 3 days, compared to 2-13 heard daily by Tui DeRoy and Mark Jones in late March (16:3). All were heard in camp, with none noticed during fieldwork. The sounds, consisting of deep rumbling lasting about a second, were likened to thunder generated ~ 10 km away. Although the sounds were clearly directional, each seemed to come from a different direction. None were accompanied by discernible changes in fumarole output, but two were followed 10-15 seconds later by a felt earthquake. The stronger earthquake lasted 5-10 seconds, whereas the weaker one continued for more than 30 seconds after a strong initial jolt.

The seismicity and sonic activity were preceded by the first heavy rains in the Galápagos for several years. Between 26 February and 4 March, 5-10 cm of rain fell daily on Alcedo. Heavy rains also fell on 6, 8, 10, 19, and 30 March, and 10 and 15 April.

Geist noted only subtle changes to the hydrothermal system. Before the 1991 activity, hundreds of fumaroles were distributed around both the southern ring faults and a vent that erupted voluminous rhyolitic pumice and obsidian flows about 90,000 years ago. Fewer than 10 small new fumaroles (identified by remains of recently killed plants) were observed, and no significant increase in total gas output was evident. A large fumarole (called "the Geyser" because it formerly ejected water) may have been somewhat more vigorous than during Geist's previous visits in 1989 and 1983. The vapor plume from this fumarole varied dramatically over periods of hours, and at times there was no visible cloud. No recently formed fissures or fault scarps were observed.

Geologic Background. Alcedo is one of the lowest and smallest of six shield volcanoes on Isabela Island. Much of the flanks and summit caldera are vegetated, but young lava flows are prominent on the N flank near the saddle with Darwin volcano. It is the only Galapagos volcano known to have erupted rhyolite as well as basalt, producing about 1 km3 of late-Pleistocene rhyolitic tephra and lava flows from several vents late in its history. Recent faulting has produced a moat around part of the 7-8 km caldera floor, which is elongated N-S and appears to be migrating to the south. Fewer circumferential fissures occur on Alcedo than on other western Galápagos volcanoes. An eruption attributed to Alcedo in 1954 (Richards, 1957) is more likely to have been from neighboring Sierra Negra (Simkin 1980, pers. comm.). Photo-geologic mapping by K.A. Howard (pers. comm.) revealed only one flow on 30 October 1960 photographs that does not appear on 30 May 1946 photos. That is near Cartago Bay, low on the SE flank, rather than the 610-m, NE-flank elevation listed for the 1954 eruption. An active hydrothermal system is located within the caldera.

Information Contacts: D. Geist, Univ of Idaho.

Strombolian activity, with sporadic small explosions, lava extrusion, and voluminous gas emission, continued during April. Tremor, associated with lava extrusion, dominated seismicity during the first half of the month. Following 15 April, the number of explosions increased and tremor diminished.

The following is a report by W. Melson. "From 7 to 17 April, continuous 24 hour/day seismic, sound, and visual observations from the Arenal Observatory . . . revealed that; 1) blocky lava flows are moving down and have covered the S slope to about 900 m elevation. None are now active in the previous long-term channel on the N slopes into the Río Tabacón drainage; one small 200-m-long flow was active on the WNW slope. 2) The level of pyroclastic activity ranged from 3 events/day (10 April) to 46/day (14-15 April) (figure 37). 3) Episodic periods of intense harmonic tremor are common. Compared to 11 other periods of close monitoring, beginning in 1987, the pyroclastic activity is low (figure 38)."

Figure 37. Daily number of pyroclastic events at Arenal, 7-17 April 1991. Event types are characterized by sound; 'Whooshes' are intense gas, block, and bomb fountains;'Chugs' are rhythmic, less intense gas emissions, commonly accompanied by blocks and bombs. Observations were made from Arenal Observatory Lodge, 2.7 km S of the summit. Courtesy of W. Melson.

Figure 38. Average daily number of pyroclastic events at Arenal, during 12 approximately 10-day periods, 1987-91. Observations were made from Arenal Observatory Lodge (2.7 km S of the summit) by Earthwatch and Smithsonian Volunteer Expeditions personnel. Courtesy of W. Melson.

Geologic Background. Conical Volcán Arenal is the youngest stratovolcano in Costa Rica and one of its most active. The 1670-m-high andesitic volcano towers above the eastern shores of Lake Arenal, which has been enlarged by a hydroelectric project. Arenal lies along a volcanic chain that has migrated to the NW from the late-Pleistocene Los Perdidos lava domes through the Pleistocene-to-Holocene Chato volcano, which contains a 500-m-wide, lake-filled summit crater. The earliest known eruptions of Arenal took place about 7000 years ago, and it was active concurrently with Cerro Chato until the activity of Chato ended about 3500 years ago. Growth of Arenal has been characterized by periodic major explosive eruptions at several-hundred-year intervals and periods of lava effusion that armor the cone. An eruptive period that began with a major explosive eruption in 1968 ended in December 2010; continuous explosive activity accompanied by slow lava effusion and the occasional emission of pyroclastic flows characterized the eruption from vents at the summit and on the upper western flank.

Information Contacts: W. Melson, SI; V. Barboza, E. Fernández, J. Barquero, and R. Sáenz, OVSICORI.

Strong seismicity . . . declined during February and March 1991. Only 19 earthquakes and no tremor episodes were recorded in March. Seismicity increased again 8-18 April and a monthly total of 250 earthquakes and 17 tremor episodes were recorded (figure 13). Steam emission remained unchanged with a plume height of a few hundred meters.

Figure 13. Daily number of recorded earthquakes (top) and tremor episodes (bottom) at Asama, January 1989-early May 1991. Arrow marks small ash eruptions on 20 July 1990. Courtesy of JMA.

Geologic Background. Asamayama, Honshu's most active volcano, overlooks the resort town of Karuizawa, 140 km NW of Tokyo. The volcano is located at the junction of the Izu-Marianas and NE Japan volcanic arcs. The modern Maekake cone forms the summit and is situated east of the horseshoe-shaped remnant of an older andesitic volcano, Kurofuyama, which was destroyed by a late-Pleistocene landslide about 20,000 years before present (BP). Growth of a dacitic shield volcano was accompanied by pumiceous pyroclastic flows, the largest of which occurred about 14,000-11,000 BP, and by growth of the Ko-Asama-yama lava dome on the east flank. Maekake, capped by the Kamayama pyroclastic cone that forms the present summit, is probably only a few thousand years old and has an historical record dating back at least to the 11th century CE. Maekake has had several major plinian eruptions, the last two of which occurred in 1108 (Asamayama's largest Holocene eruption) and 1783 CE.

Information Contacts: JMA.

The following is from Ana Lillian Martín del Pozzo and colleagues.

The new summit-dome lobe grew from about 6 m high and 20 m in diameter on 2 March to 36 m high and 109 m across on 14 April, but geodetic measurements on 15 April showed a reduction in its diameter due to the beginning of its emplacement down the SW flank. Seismicity recorded by four portable seismographs increased dramatically beginning on 12 April, saturating records; avalanche signals and both A-and B-type events were detected. Most seismicity after 15 April was related to avalanching (see also seismic data from RESCO instruments reported in 16:03). During the morning of 16 April, avalanching from the dome occurred every 3-5 minutes, increasing to constant landsliding about noon. Large Merapi-type avalanches began around 1515, with maximum intensity between 1700 and 1800. During that time, three distinct plumes were visible: a white gas column, fine gray ash being carried E, and fine-grained material produced by the avalanches. Colima airport was closed because of ashfall, although <5 mm of ash were measured there. Data from four dry-tilt stations N and S of the summit showed <10 µrad of deformation for the period 14-23 April. Weekly spring-water monitoring showed no pH or temperature changes, although sulfate and boron contents varied, having increased before 16 April. Declines in the levels of nearby lakes appear to have been caused by normal withdrawal of irrigation water.

The following is from a Centro Internacional de Ciencias de la Tierra (CICT) team, including geologists and geophysicists from the Universidad de Colima, UNAM, Univ de Guadalajara, Arizona State, and Louisiana State Universities.

Avalanches generated voluminous dilute dust clouds, mainly produced by the crumbling of blocks falling from the dome and the receding crater rim, and by reactivation of previously deposited dust. The component of hot new magma apparently contributed to the seemingly fluidized character of the avalanches [and the resulting Merapi-type block-and-ash flows].

After the partial collapse of the summit-dome lobe, a block lava flow emerged from the SW part of the dome and began to move down the SW flank. The flow, 70 m long and 40 m wide on 18 April, was about 100 m wide and at least 1,150 m long by the morning of 26 April, with its 25-m-thick front at 2,680 m altitude. Dimensions were similar on 18 May, and the flow was widening at its top. Small avalanches occurred from the flow front, from the crater rim adjacent to the flow levees, and from the levees themselves, especially the E levee. Blocks reached about 2,300 m elevation (~4,000 m outward from the summit) during the largest avalanche associated with the 16 April collapse. Dust clouds extended beyond the range of the avalanche blocks, and three canyons of the volcano's main drainage system on the SW and S flanks were filled with avalanche-derived clastic material, mostly very fine powder. This material has not been compacted and has a volume on the order of 10⁶ m³. A lahar warning has been issued for the coming rainy season, which usually begins in early June. Lava extruded from the SW part of the dome was pushing older dome material toward the W and NW. Unstable material was accumulating, and geologists noted that additional avalanches could be expected in those areas.

Winds in the area have dominantly blown toward the SE to NE recently, and some light ashfall has been reported from towns in that sector up to 30 km away. Seismic records showed events with small wave packages that at times seemed to correlate with explosive summit degassing activity, but their number and amplitude were decreasing as of late April.

Observations of the summit area revealed that the 2 July 1987 crater on the E side of the dome (Flores and others, 1987, and 12:07, 13:09, and 15:12) had a ring-like pattern of fumaroles around its rim. A pair of whitish plumes persistently issued from the N part of the zone of lava extrusion, where some incandescence has been observed. Plume heights during similar wind conditions ranged from a few tens of meters to 1,500 m. As of 18 May, the summit-dome lobe was growing toward the edge of the pre-existing W dome. Geologists noted that if activity continues at the same rate, a new block lava flow will begin to develop, probably on the W or NW side of the volcano, in the next 2-3 weeks.

Airborne COSPEC measurements that began 25 April showed SO₂ emission rates on the order of 300 t/d, similar to those observed in 1982 by Casadevall and others (1984) and in 1985 by geologists from Dartmouth College. Geologists noted that these stable low levels were consistent with the absence of significant deep seismicity or harmonic tremor and support an interpretation that the present cycle of activity does not include the ascent of significant new magma or magmatic gases from depth.

Alert warnings have been issued and transportation made available for possible evacuation of towns in the risk area, which extends to 12 km on the SW flank. However, geologists noted that no evacuations have occurred, since the volume of rock avalanches was limited to a few hundred thousand m³ and seismicity has remained at relatively low levels, without harmonic tremor or low-frequency earthquakes.

The following, from J.B. Murray, describes ground deformation work 1-7 March.

"Ten kilometers of levelling lines, established in 1982, were measured 1-4 March, as were five of six dry-tilt stations. The 6th, on the W side of the cone, could not be measured, because repeated rock avalanches from the dome made it extremely hazardous to approach this side of the mountain.

"The levelling traverse was last occupied in March 1990, and results show that there have been no large changes since then. There was a slight subsidence of the stations nearest to the summit (just over 1 km from the dome), which have dropped 2.5 cm relative to the farthest stations, 3 km from the summit and outside the caldera. Within the precision of the method, the subsidence appears to be radial to the summit, or perhaps between the summit and the parasitic vent Volcancito (on the upper NE flank).

"The three dry-tilt stations within the caldera all showed tilts to the S over the past year. Those on the Playon (the caldera floor at the NW foot of the active cone) had small tilts of 9 and 15 µrad. The station on Volcancito has tilted 39 µrad, although this value is less reliable because the combination of benchmarks used was different than in 1990. The other two stations (at Nevado de Colima and Barranca La Arena), 6 km N and 9 km S of the summit, were vandalized or otherwise disturbed.

"At first sight these results appear reassuring, as one would expect more pronounced deformation if there were any major increase in magma supply that might be associated with a cataclysmic event. However, caution must be exercised, since (a) ground deformation prior to a major eruption has not been measured at Colima before, and is poorly known on this type of volcano, and (b) the levelling traverse and two of the three dry-tilt stations are N of the volcano where the ground rises toward Nevado de Colima, whereas most of the deformation could be occurring on the unbutressed S flank.

"Many large rock avalanches were seen on 1 March, but from 2 March, the rate declined somewhat. During the levelling 2-4 March, avalanches were noted at the overall rate of 3.2/hour down the N and W sides. From the same area, avalanches were noted at the hourly rate of 1.4 on 29 March-1 April 1990; 0.4 on 4-5 February 1986; and 1.5 on 3-7 December 1982. These figures underplay the 1991 activity, because the avalanches were much larger this year and continued for much longer."

References. Casadevall, T.J., Rose, W.I., Fuller, W., Hunt, W., Hart, M., Moyers, J., Woods, D., Chuan, R., and Friend, J., 1984, Sulfur dioxide and particles in quiescent volcanic plumes from Poás, Arenal, and Colima Volcanoes, Costa Rica and México: JGR, v. 89, no. D6, p. 9633-9641.

Flores, J., and others, 1987, Informes de las recientes observaciones practicadas en el Volcán Colima: Revista del Instituto de Geografía y Estadística, Universidad de Guadalajara, México, v. 3, no. 2.

Further Reference. Rodríguez-Elizarrías, S., Siebe, C., Komorowski, J.-C., Espindola, J., and Saucedo, R., 1991, Field observations of pristine block- and-ash-flow deposits emplaced April 16-17, 1991 at Volcán de Colima, Mexico: JVGR, v. 48, p. 399-412.

Geologic Background. The Colima volcanic complex is the most prominent volcanic center of the western Mexican Volcanic Belt. It consists of two southward-younging volcanoes, Nevado de Colima (the 4320 m high point of the complex) on the north and the 3850-m-high historically active Volcán de Colima at the south. A group of cinder cones of late-Pleistocene age is located on the floor of the Colima graben west and east of the Colima complex. Volcán de Colima (also known as Volcán Fuego) is a youthful stratovolcano constructed within a 5-km-wide caldera, breached to the south, that has been the source of large debris avalanches. Major slope failures have occurred repeatedly from both the Nevado and Colima cones, and have produced a thick apron of debris-avalanche deposits on three sides of the complex. Frequent historical eruptions date back to the 16th century. Occasional major explosive eruptions (most recently in 1913) have destroyed the summit and left a deep, steep-sided crater that was slowly refilled and then overtopped by lava dome growth.

Information Contacts: Francisco Núñez-Cornú, F.A. Nava, Gilberto Ornelas-Arciniega, Ariel Ramírez-Vázquez, R. Saucedo, G.A. Reyes-Dávila, R. García, Guillermo Castellanos, and Hector Tamez, CICT, Universidad de Colima; S. de la Cruz-Reyna, Z. Jiménez, J.M. Espindola, and Sergio Rodríguez, UNAM; Julián Flores, Instituto de Geografía y Estadística, Univ de Guadalajara; Claus Siebe and J-C. Komorowski, Arizona State Univ, USA; S. Williams, Louisiana State Univ, USA.Ana Lillian Martín del Pozzo, J. Panohaya, F. Sánchez, R. Maciel, and A. Aguayo, Instituto de Geofísica, UNAM; D. Barrera, Centro de Ciencias de la Tierra, Univ de Guadalajara; G. González, Univ Autónoma de Puebla; J.B. Murray, Open Univ, UK.

The eruption . . . began on 19 April and ended in the early morning hours of 24 April. It was observed by several groups both on and near Fernandina, providing documentation that is unusually detailed for this uninhabited island volcano.

The start of the eruption was witnessed at about 1300 by Kirstin and Feo Pitcairn while sailing towards Fernandina ~30 km to its N. A "towering column" developed within only a few minutes, and one hour later a second plume, from a source N of the first, was recognized. David Day. . . reported that the main vent was near the base of the ESE caldera wall at the 1988 eruption site, with another vent ~3 km to the NW, also on the main caldera boundary fault and near the easternmost 1978 eruption vent. At 1500, Day, then sailing near Isla Santiago, noted that the leading edge of the cloud had already reached that island's high point, ~ 90 km ENE of its source.

Shortly after 1500, cloud development accelerated. Kirstin Pitcairn described a "big white mushroom cloud above the N plume" and estimated the height of the rapidly rising S plume at 4-6 km. Day described the distant cloud as building slowly after 1510, and both observers remarked on the increased density of the ash cloud. At 1535 a new plume joined the other two, nearer the S plume, and rose very rapidly, but the S plume remained dominant and Pitcairn saw pink coloration to its top in daytime. Starting about 1600, ash fell at Cabo Hammond, on Fernandina's SW corner, where Markus Horning and assistants were studying fur seals. Ashfall was continuous for 3 hours and intermittent until about 2230, with an estimated accumulation of 5-10 mm for the full eruption. At 2015 Horning first heard noise from the eruption, a strong continuous rumbling without booms or explosions, that continued until well after midnight. A single explosion was heard by Milton Friere, 50 km E on Volcán Alcedo, at 1630 ( ± 15 minutes).

At 1830 David Day, then 110 km ESE, saw "the first of 3 large dark clouds punch up quickly above the low cloud covering Isabela . . . over a 10-minute period," and estimated the cloud height at 3-4 km.

That night the Pitcairns watched and videotaped the eruption from Punta Espinoza on Fernandina's NE coast. They described a varying spectacle including "flame-shaped jets shooting high into the billowing column," alternation of brightness between the two main plumes, and cessation of the central plume at 2043. At Cabo Hammond, Horning routinely measured incident light intensity at sea level every night, and his readings indicated maximum light emission/reflection that night from about 2000 to 2200. He noted that this was the only night in which glow from two vents was visible (only the S vent being active in later nights). Although it was a dark night (new moon 14 April), the peak glow corresponded to roughly 2/3 the light measured on clear full-moon nights.

The eruption was quieter on the early morning of 20 April, but zoologists N.P. and M.J. Ashmole, also at Espinoza, described renewed activity around 0845, including audible explosions, ash, and reappearance of the central column. On the opposite corner of the island, Horning experienced a heavy, dense fog that obscured the summit, but he heard strong explosions at 0857 and 1116. The Pitcairns described a huge dark cloud forming at 0910, and in late morning they sailed W to circle the island, but encountered heavy ashfall off the WNW coast. At 1152 the Nimbus-7 . . . TOMS instrument measured a strong SO₂ plume to the SW, with the greatest concentration 500-600 km SSW and trace values to the W. A preliminary estimate of the total mass of SO₂ was 1.7 x 10⁵ metric tons. The combination of ash and aerosol that stung the eyes caused the Pitcairn group to turn back about 1500. Ashfall increased to the N in late afternoon, and they experienced (decreasing) ashfall all the way back to Punta Espinoza. Very little ash fell at Cabo Hammond.

Activity had declined by the morning of 21 April, with only the S plume continuing and at decreased height. By mid-morning the summit was obscured by low cloud cover, but at 1120 Pitcairn saw all three plumes active (although the N one was small). From the summit of Sierra Negra, 65 km SE of Fernandina, David Day photographed "a medium-size eruption cloud" at noon. At the same time, however, the TOMS instrument detected virtually no SO₂ over Galápagos but a low concentration 600 km W, on the equator. That night, Day sailed around Isabela and briefly saw faint glow over Fernandina as he approached it from the S.

On the morning of 22 April, . . . Day landed at NW Fernandina and noted 1 mm of fresh ash. At about 1040, while still low on the NW flank, he heard roaring from the vent, then roughly 12 km distant. This apparently marked a renewal of activity, for the TOMS instrument measured a strong concentration of SO₂ immediately over Fernandina at 1046. Day reached the rim at 1730 and described 50-100-m fountains from the 1988 vent area, low on the opposite caldera wall. Fresh aa flows covered an estimated 80% of the low caldera floor, with only the higher lobes of the 1988 debris avalanches still visible. Most flows were to the NW, but a smaller flow went W below the SE bench. The aforementioned northerly vent, on the E side of the NW bench, had fed "a small flow" to join the others on the NW floor, and fumarolic activity was vigorous at the vent.

Day reported that the eruption continued with the same intensity all night, and the next day he explored to the S, finding that the maximum thickness of new tephra on the W rim was 1 cm at a point WNW of the main vent. Pele's hair was "fairly abundant." On this day (23 April), the GOES satellite detected a 105-km plume at 0900 that grew to 320 km SSW at 1300 and had dissipated by 1600 (16:3). At 1103 the TOMS instrument detected a strong SO₂ concentration ~ 90 km SW and lower values to ~ 225 km SW; a preliminary estimate of the total mass was ~4 x 10⁴ metric tons. Day was on the S rim of the caldera at 1205, when he saw "a mass of landslides round and above the main vent" that was immediately followed by increased activity at the vent. Fountain height increased by almost 50% and his group (~ 3 km SW of the vent) experienced light scoria fall 10 minutes later that lasted for 15 minutes. Noise and fountaining, after almost ceasing, resumed at 2006 that evening and Day saw additional flareups at 2019, 2037, and 2100. Day observed a small flow NW from the main vent from 2100 to 2122, with no noise, but reported no further observations or sounds overnight.

Horning had reached the SW rim at 1700 and watched the S vent continue producing lava until at least 0100 on 24 April, but it had ceased by 0530. Day also noted no activity between dawn and his leaving the rim at 0630 that morning. Horning's SW-rim camp received 1 mm or less of ash overnight, but when they returned to their coastal camp that evening ~ 1-2 mm had accumulated in their absence. No glow was observed during the nights of 24 and 25 April.

Geologist Dennis Geist was on the summit of Alcedo from 24 April and reported that the only sign of a Fernandina eruption was a small (~ 3 km diameter) white cloud above the caldera. No glow was observed that night, either from Alcedo or N of the volcano (where Day was sailing around N Isabela). The small white cloud persisted over Fernandina at least until 27 April when Geist left Alcedo.

Geologic Background. Fernandina, the most active of Galápagos volcanoes and the one closest to the Galápagos mantle plume, is a basaltic shield volcano with a deep 5 x 6.5 km summit caldera. The volcano displays the classic "overturned soup bowl" profile of Galápagos shield volcanoes. Its caldera is elongated in a NW-SE direction and formed during several episodes of collapse. Circumferential fissures surround the caldera and were instrumental in growth of the volcano. Reporting has been poor in this uninhabited western end of the archipelago, and even a 1981 eruption was not witnessed at the time. In 1968 the caldera floor dropped 350 m following a major explosive eruption. Subsequent eruptions, mostly from vents located on or near the caldera boundary faults, have produced lava flows inside the caldera as well as those in 1995 that reached the coast from a SW-flank vent. Collapse of a nearly 1 km3 section of the east caldera wall during an eruption in 1988 produced a debris-avalanche deposit that covered much of the caldera floor and absorbed the caldera lake.

Information Contacts: D. Day, Isla Santa Cruz; F. Pitcairn and K. Pitcairn, Bryn Athyn, PA, USA; M. Horning, Seeweisen, Germany; S. Doiron, GSFC; N. Ashmole and M. Ashmole, Univ of Edinburgh, Scotland; D. Geist, Univ of Idaho, USA.

A blue water discoloration, extending 2 km E-W, was observed during a 6 February overflight by the JMSA. Overflights on 18 January, 12 March, 15 April, and 10 May revealed no abnormal water.

Geologic Background. Fukutoku-Oka-no-ba is a submarine volcano located 5 km NE of the pyramidal island of Minami-Ioto. Water discoloration is frequently observed from the volcano, and several ephemeral islands have formed in the 20th century. The first of these formed Shin-Ioto ("New Sulfur Island") in 1904, and the most recent island was formed in 1986. The volcano is part of an elongated edifice with two major topographic highs trending NNW-SSE, and is a trachyandesitic volcano geochemically similar to Ioto.

Information Contacts: JMA.

Following the pattern begun in March, activity continued to increase during April, when ash emissions from the main crater and associated seismicity were very frequent (table 5). Fieldwork revealed new fissures and vents on the crater's W wall, increases in the area of incandescence, and slumping of loose material. Analyses of gas samples from Deformes and Besolima fissure fumaroles suggest an increasingly magmatic composition. At Calvache fumarole, the ratio of CO₂/SO₂ has increased steadily (figure 36), while H₂S and HCl have shown no significant variations. Besolima fissure fumarole temperatures continued to decline, from 514°C in March to 468°C on 2 April.

Table 5. Eruptive activity and associated seismicity at Galeras, 1-19 April 1991. Atmospheric conditions prevented direct observations 20-30 April. "Inc" means increased, column heights are in meters, and durations are in seconds.

Figure 36. Concentration of CO2 (squares) and SO2 (circles) in Calvache fumarole gas at Galeras, April 1988-early April 1991. Courtesy of INGEOMINAS.

A significant increase in high-frequency seismicity was recorded during the second half of April, including swarms of events on the 18th and 29th. The earthquakes (M<=2.9) were mostly located SSW of the crater at 1-5 km depth (figure 37). Long-period seismicity was at high levels, and the daily reduced displacement on 13 April was the highest recorded since monitoring began in February 1989 (figure 38). The amplitudes and durations of tremor pulses fluctuated; deep tremor and low-frequency, modulating tremor were also recorded.

Figure 37. Epicenter map of 36 high-frequency earthquakes at Galeras, April 1991. Courtesy of INGEOMINAS.

Figure 38. Daily reduced displacement of long-period earthquakes at Galeras, April 1991. Courtesy of INGEOMINAS.

The electronic tiltmeter 0.9 km E of the crater (at "Crater" station) showed continued inflation, with 85 and 48 µrad of accumulated tangential and radial inflation, respectively, since September 1990 (figure 39). Three km E of the crater, dry tilt (El Pintado station) showed very low, but consistent inflation. Geologists interpreted the inflation as volcanic deformation or neotectonic tilt along the Buesaco fault.

Figure 39. Tangential (top curve) and radial (bottom curve) deformation 0.9 km E of the crater ("Crater" electronic tiltmeter) at Galeras, May 1990-April 1991. Courtesy of INGEOMINAS.

Geologic Background. Galeras, a stratovolcano with a large breached caldera located immediately west of the city of Pasto, is one of Colombia's most frequently active volcanoes. The dominantly andesitic complex has been active for more than 1 million years, and two major caldera collapse eruptions took place during the late Pleistocene. Long-term extensive hydrothermal alteration has contributed to large-scale edifice collapse on at least three occasions, producing debris avalanches that swept to the west and left a large horseshoe-shaped caldera inside which the modern cone has been constructed. Major explosive eruptions since the mid-Holocene have produced widespread tephra deposits and pyroclastic flows that swept all but the southern flanks. A central cone slightly lower than the caldera rim has been the site of numerous small-to-moderate historical eruptions since the time of the Spanish conquistadors.

Information Contacts: INGEOMINAS-OVP.

A swarm of 100 volcanic earthquakes (40 deep and 60 shallow) was recorded on 29 April, an increase from the previous daily average of 10-15 events. Tectonic earthquakes averaged 1-2/day. Seismicity had been increasing since February. No surface activity was observed.

Geologic Background. Gede volcano is one of the most prominent in western Java, forming a twin volcano with Pangrango volcano to the NW. The major cities of Cianjur, Sukabumi, and Bogor are situated below the volcanic complex to the E, S, and NW, respectively. Gunung Pangrango, constructed over the NE rim of a 3 x 5 km caldera, forms the high point of the complex at just over 3000 m elevation. Many lava flows are visible on the flanks of the younger Gunung Gede, including some that may have been erupted in historical time. The steep-walled summit crater has migrated about 1 km NNW over time. Two large debris-avalanche deposits on its flanks, one of which underlies the city of Cianjur, record previous large-scale collapses. Historical activity, recorded since the 16th century, typically consists of small explosive eruptions of short duration.

Information Contacts: W. Modjo, VSI.

A swarm of ~300 earthquakes (M <= 2.5) was recorded between 1000 and 1300 on 22 April. Several of the earthquakes, located at 5 km depth in the central part of the caldera, were felt by area residents. Seismicity gradually declined, and had returned to normal by 24 April. No changes in surface activity were observed. Earthquake swarms have been recorded about once a year, including one in August 1990 (M <= 5.1), at the volcano's E foot. Hakone erupted phreatically about 3,000 years ago, and many fumaroles and hot springs remain active.

Geologic Background. Hakoneyama volcano is truncated by two overlapping calderas, the largest of which is 10 x 11 km wide. The calderas were formed as a result of two major explosive eruptions about 180,000 and 49,000-60,000 years ago. Scenic Lake Ashi lies between the SW caldera wall and a half dozen post-caldera lava domes that were constructed along a NW-SE trend cutting through the center of the calderas. Dome growth occurred progressively to the NW, and the largest and youngest of these, Kamiyama, forms the high point. The calderas are breached to the east by the Hayakawa canyon. A phreatic explosion about 3000 years ago was followed by collapse of the NW side of Kamiyama, damming the Hayakawa valley and creating Lake Ashi. The latest magmatic eruptive activity about 2900 years ago produced a pyroclastic flow and a lava dome in the explosion crater, although phreatic eruptions took place as recently as the 12-13th centuries CE. Seismic swarms have occurred during the 20th century. Lake Ashi, along with the thermal areas in the caldera, is a popular resort destination SW of Tokyo.

Information Contacts: JMA.

The crater lake (45°C) was light green in March and April, a change from its previous gray color, when large bubbles were visible on the surface. A total of one deep and two shallow volcanic earthquakes and one tectonic event were recorded. Tremor was recorded on 25, 26, and 28 March.

Geologic Background. The Ijen volcano complex at the eastern end of Java consists of a group of small stratovolcanoes constructed within the large 20-km-wide Ijen (Kendeng) caldera. The north caldera wall forms a prominent arcuate ridge, but elsewhere the caldera rim is buried by post-caldera volcanoes, including Gunung Merapi, which forms the high point of the complex. Immediately west of the Gunung Merapi stratovolcano is the historically active Kawah Ijen crater, which contains a nearly 1-km-wide, turquoise-colored, acid lake. Picturesque Kawah Ijen is the world's largest highly acidic lake and is the site of a labor-intensive sulfur mining operation in which sulfur-laden baskets are hand-carried from the crater floor. Many other post-caldera cones and craters are located within the caldera or along its rim. The largest concentration of cones forms an E-W zone across the southern side of the caldera. Coffee plantations cover much of the caldera floor, and tourists are drawn to its waterfalls, hot springs, and volcanic scenery.

Information Contacts: W. Modjo, VSI.

A newly emergent volcanic island near previously active Kavachi was observed ejecting lava and ash during a helicopter overflight on 4 May. John Starcy (Australian High Commissioner, Honiara, Solomon Islands) reported that "the volcanic action had already formed a thick rim of black material above sea level, inside which a large body of molten lava was churning and spewing out rocks." At the time, the island was estimated to be ~300x150 m in diameter and ~30 m high, with a lava pond ~50 m in diameter. Red Marsden (a Rabaul-based pilot) flew over the volcano on 12 May. The island had a regular conical shape that he estimated was ~15-20 m high. The volcano continued to eject incandescent lava fragments and some dark material to ~50 m height. White vapor emission occurred between ejections, and considerable steam rose from along the water line. Activity continued as of 13 May and the size of the cone continued to increase.

The location of the new island remains uncertain (figure 5) [but more precise navigation linked it to Kavachi; see 16:7]. It was reported at 8.88°S, 157.88°E, 20 km NW of Kavachi, by Starcy, and ~38 km SW of Kavachi (at 9.23°S, 157.70°E; within the Woodlark Basin) by Ted Tame (Rabaul representative of the Papua New Guinea National Disaster and Emergency Services). A submarine volcano was shown on Admiralty Chart 3995 at ~25 km W of Kavachi (at 9.0°S, 157.8°E), between the two reported positions, but the Machias 1981 bathymetry survey failed to find this feature (Exon and Johnson, 1986). Instead, the survey located a bathymetric high 10 km to the WNW that is probably a southward-trending ridge originating on Tetepare Island.

Figure 5. Map of the western Solomon Islands. Crosses represent reported new island locations, triangles mark the New Georgia Group volcanoes (Pliocene to Recent), and the filled circle represents the unnamed submarine volcano on Admiralty Chart 3995. Modified from Exon and Johnson (1986).

Reference. Exon, N.E., and Johnson, R.W., 1986, The elusive Cook volcano and other submarine forearc volcanoes in the Solomon Islands: BMR Journal of Australian Geology & Geophysics, v. 10, p. 77-83.

Geologic Background. Named for a sea-god of the Gatokae and Vangunu peoples, Kavachi is one of the most active submarine volcanoes in the SW Pacific, located in the Solomon Islands south of Vangunu Island about 30 km N of the site of subduction of the Indo-Australian plate beneath the Pacific plate. Sometimes referred to as Rejo te Kvachi ("Kavachi's Oven"), this shallow submarine basaltic-to-andesitic volcano has produced ephemeral islands up to 1 km long many times since its first recorded eruption during 1939. Residents of the nearby islands of Vanguna and Nggatokae (Gatokae) reported "fire on the water" prior to 1939, a possible reference to earlier eruptions. The roughly conical edifice rises from water depths of 1.1-1.2 km on the north and greater depths to the SE. Frequent shallow submarine and occasional subaerial eruptions produce phreatomagmatic explosions that eject steam, ash, and incandescent bombs. On a number of occasions lava flows were observed on the ephemeral islands.

Information Contacts: G. Wheller, CSIRO, Australia; C. McKee, RVO.

Lava . . . continued to enter the ocean . . . on the W side of the flow field through April (figure 77). The tube supplying lava to the coast divided just above the sea cliff. Its W branch fed a single entry site, where repeated collapse of the fragile lower lava bench caused nearly continuous explosive activity in early April. Bench collapse episodes left the lava tube perched in the sea cliff, and lava poured into the ocean in an arching stream. The explosive activity built a littoral cone >3 m high that was >90% covered by spatter. The two entry sites fed by the tube's E branch have built a large bench below the (pre-autumn 1990) sea cliff.

In mid-April, lava broke out of the tube system near 150 m (500 ft) elevation, generating a large pahoehoe flow that was diverted E by 1990 and 1991 flows and reached the ocean ~1.5 km E of the W entry sites. By 22 April, it had built a new bench below the sea cliff, and had an active front ~300 m wide that extended no more than 20 m offshore. Lava continued to pour into the sea until the beginning of May, when only three sluggish streams of lava were observed at the ocean front. Behind the active entry, small viscous surface flows broke out from the main flow. Despite the apparently diminished supply of lava to the E entry, large volumes of lava continued to flow into the sea at the W entry sites in early May. Surface flows, noted during April along the tube system between ~430 and 340 m (1,400-1,100 ft) elevation, covered a previously lava-free area (kipuka) on the W side of the flow field.

Skylights in the tube system at the base of Kupaianaha shield revealed lava velocities of ~1.5 m/s in late April. The uppermost skylight, at ~620 m (2,050 ft) elevation, was fuming heavily, but very little degassing was occurring from the vicinity of Kupaianaha and its former lava pond, which remained sealed through the month. Three kilometers uprift, the lava pond in the base of Pu`u `O`o crater, ~60 m below the rim, remained active through April. The pond covered less than half of the crater floor, but sometimes overflowed onto more. The walls of Pu`u `O`o remained unstable and collapse continued.

Since the intrusive swarm seismicity in late March seismic activity has returned to lower levels. Low-amplitude volcanic tremor continued along the East rift zone, with some variability at stations near Kupaianaha and Pu`u `O`o. Increases in summit-area microearthquakes were recorded 9-10, 14, and 26-27 April, but events were very small and did not appear to be associated with changes in eruptive activity.

Geologic Background. Kilauea, which overlaps the E flank of the massive Mauna Loa shield volcano, has been Hawaii's most active volcano during historical time. Eruptions are prominent in Polynesian legends; written documentation extending back to only 1820 records frequent summit and flank lava flow eruptions that were interspersed with periods of long-term lava lake activity that lasted until 1924 at Halemaumau crater, within the summit caldera. The 3 x 5 km caldera was formed in several stages about 1500 years ago and during the 18th century; eruptions have also originated from the lengthy East and SW rift zones, which extend to the sea on both sides of the volcano. About 90% of the surface of the basaltic shield volcano is formed of lava flows less than about 1100 years old; 70% of the volcano's surface is younger than 600 years. A long-term eruption from the East rift zone that began in 1983 has produced lava flows covering more than 100 km2, destroying nearly 200 houses and adding new coastline to the island.

Information Contacts: T. Moulds and P. Okubo, HVO.

A Space Shuttle photograph on 29 April at 1248 shows a plume, apparently containing ash, rising about 1 km above the summit and extending about 15 km downwind. Snow on the SE flank appeared to be ash-covered. A small summit eruption occurred on 8 April, but no additional eruptive activity has been reported.

Geologic Background. Klyuchevskoy (also spelled Kliuchevskoi) is Kamchatka's highest and most active volcano. Since its origin about 6000 years ago, the beautifully symmetrical, 4835-m-high basaltic stratovolcano has produced frequent moderate-volume explosive and effusive eruptions without major periods of inactivity. It rises above a saddle NE of sharp-peaked Kamen volcano and lies SE of the broad Ushkovsky massif. More than 100 flank eruptions have occurred during the past roughly 3000 years, with most lateral craters and cones occurring along radial fissures between the unconfined NE-to-SE flanks of the conical volcano between 500 m and 3600 m elevation. The morphology of the 700-m-wide summit crater has been frequently modified by historical eruptions, which have been recorded since the late-17th century. Historical eruptions have originated primarily from the summit crater, but have also included numerous major explosive and effusive eruptions from flank craters.

Information Contacts: C. Evans, Lockheed, Houston.

An earthquake swarm (M <= 4.0) occurred from 2100 to 2400 on 23 April, with seismicity gradually returning to normal levels by the following day. Many of the earthquakes were felt by residents (to JMA intensity IV). Swarm events were centered from the W coast to 20 km SW of the island (figure 1), at 0-10 km depth. No surface activity was reported.

Figure 1. Epicenter map (top) and space/time diagram (bottom) showing seismicity around Kozu-shima and Nii-jima volcanoes, January 1991-June 1992. Courtesy of JMA.

Geologic Background. A cluster of rhyolitic lava domes and associated pyroclastic deposits form the small 4 x 6 km island of Kozushima in the northern Izu Islands. Kozushima lies along the Zenisu Ridge, one of several en-echelon ridges oriented NE-SW, transverse to the trend of the northern Izu arc. The youngest and largest of the 18 lava domes, 574-m-high Tenjoyama, occupies the central portion of the island. Most of the older domes, some of which are Holocene in age, flank Tenjoyama to the north, although late-Pleistocene domes are also found at the southern end of the island. Only two possible historical eruptions, from the 9th century, are known. A lava flow may have reached the sea during an eruption in 832 CE. Tenjosan lava dome was formed during a major eruption in 838 CE that also produced pyroclastic flows and surges. Earthquake swarms took place during the 20th century.

Information Contacts: JMA.

In April, seismicity remained similar to previous months, with a total of 110 earthquakes and one tremor episode recorded... (figure 5). No surface activity was observed.

Figure 5. Daily number of recorded earthquakes (top) and tremor episodes (bottom) at Kusatsu-Shirane, January 1989-April 1991. Courtesy of JMA.

Geologic Background. The Kusatsu-Shiranesan complex, located immediately north of Asama volcano, consists of a series of overlapping pyroclastic cones and three crater lakes. The andesitic-to-dacitic volcano was formed in three eruptive stages beginning in the early to mid-Pleistocene. The Pleistocene Oshi pyroclastic flow produced extensive welded tuffs and non-welded pumice that covers much of the E, S, and SW flanks. The latest eruptive stage began about 14,000 years ago. Historical eruptions have consisted of phreatic explosions from the acidic crater lakes or their margins. Fumaroles and hot springs that dot the flanks have strongly acidified many rivers draining from the volcano. The crater was the site of active sulfur mining for many years during the 19th and 20th centuries.

Information Contacts: JMA.

"Activity declined in early April . . . . Emissions from Crater 2 consisted of moderate to weak white-grey ash and vapour. An explosion on 3 April produced a dark ash column that rose ~500 m above the crater and resulted in ashfall on the NW side of the volcano. Steady weak red glow from the crater was observed on most nights. Following the first few days of stronger seismicity, when up to four explosion earthquakes/day were recorded, the seismicity declined and on most days no explosion events were recorded."

Geologic Background. Langila, one of the most active volcanoes of New Britain, consists of a group of four small overlapping composite basaltic-andesitic cones on the lower eastern flank of the extinct Talawe volcano. Talawe is the highest volcano in the Cape Gloucester area of NW New Britain. A rectangular, 2.5-km-long crater is breached widely to the SE; Langila volcano was constructed NE of the breached crater of Talawe. An extensive lava field reaches the coast on the north and NE sides of Langila. Frequent mild-to-moderate explosive eruptions, sometimes accompanied by lava flows, have been recorded since the 19th century from three active craters at the summit of Langila. The youngest and smallest crater (no. 3 crater) was formed in 1960 and has a diameter of 150 m.

Information Contacts: C. McKee, RVO.

A sudden increase in seismicity, from 7 to 60 earthquakes/day, was recorded at the end of March. Activity peaked on 26 March, then gradually decreased. No changes in surface activity were observed.

Geologic Background. The Lewotobi "husband and wife" twin volcano (also known as Lewetobi) in eastern Flores Island is composed of the Lewotobi Lakilaki and Lewotobi Perempuan stratovolcanoes. Their summits are less than 2 km apart along a NW-SE line. The conical Lakilaki has been frequently active during the 19th and 20th centuries, while the taller and broader Perempuan has erupted only twice in historical time. Small lava domes have grown during the 20th century in both of the crescentic summit craters, which are open to the north. A prominent flank cone, Iliwokar, occurs on the E flank of Perampuan.

Information Contacts: W. Modjo, VSI.

"The increased activity at Main Crater in late March continued until mid-April, then declined. However, Southern Crater then became more active.

"Main Crater emissions consisted of weak to moderate white-grey ash and vapour with occasional thin blue vapour from 1 to 14 April. Emission clouds reached heights of 180-1,000 m above the crater rim. Light ashfall was noted 5 km downwind on 4 April. Deep roaring noises were heard on most days during this period. Weak red glow was seen above the crater 1-11 April, with some incandescent lava ejections on the 4th.

"Southern Crater activity increased for the first time since August 1990. From about mid-April, emissions consisted of weak to moderate white-grey vapour and ash. Light ashfalls were reported 23 and 25 April on the E side of the volcano, ~5 km from the summit. Low rumbling noises associated with the vapour and ash emissions were heard on 16 and 23-25 April.

"The seismograph at Manam became inoperable from 8 April. Before this time, seismic amplitudes remained at about the same level as at the end of March (~3x normal levels), although the daily totals of recorded volcanic shocks dropped from ~550 to 100. Tiltmeter measurements showed a slight radial deflation of ~1.5 µrad."

Geologic Background. The 10-km-wide island of Manam, lying 13 km off the northern coast of mainland Papua New Guinea, is one of the country's most active volcanoes. Four large radial valleys extend from the unvegetated summit of the conical 1807-m-high basaltic-andesitic stratovolcano to its lower flanks. These "avalanche valleys" channel lava flows and pyroclastic avalanches that have sometimes reached the coast. Five small satellitic centers are located near the island's shoreline on the northern, southern, and western sides. Two summit craters are present; both are active, although most historical eruptions have originated from the southern crater, concentrating eruptive products during much of the past century into the SE valley. Frequent historical eruptions, typically of mild-to-moderate scale, have been recorded since 1616. Occasional larger eruptions have produced pyroclastic flows and lava flows that reached flat-lying coastal areas and entered the sea, sometimes impacting populated areas.

Information Contacts: C. McKee, RVO.

No changes were visible at the summit dome, whose volume remained at ~6.8 x 10⁶ m³. Diffuse to dense gas plumes rose to 450 m above the summit. Temperatures of 832 and 543°C were measured at the dome's Gendol and Woro solfataras, respectively. The temperature measured through cracks in the 1956 lava was 86°C on 20 April. There was no significant change in seismicity, although the weekly number of volcanic earthquakes briefly rose to 17 during the second week in April from the long-term average of 1-4. One multiphase event and 3-10 tectonic earthquakes were recorded/week.

Geologic Background. Merapi, one of Indonesia's most active volcanoes, lies in one of the world's most densely populated areas and dominates the landscape immediately north of the major city of Yogyakarta. It is the youngest and southernmost of a volcanic chain extending NNW to Ungaran volcano. Growth of Old Merapi during the Pleistocene ended with major edifice collapse perhaps about 2000 years ago, leaving a large arcuate scarp cutting the eroded older Batulawang volcano. Subsequently growth of the steep-sided Young Merapi edifice, its upper part unvegetated due to frequent eruptive activity, began SW of the earlier collapse scarp. Pyroclastic flows and lahars accompanying growth and collapse of the steep-sided active summit lava dome have devastated cultivated lands on the western-to-southern flanks and caused many fatalities during historical time.

Information Contacts: W. Modjo, VSI.

Three earthquake swarms (20, 23, and 27 April) and four tremor episodes (27-28 April and 2 May) were recorded during late April-early May. The strongest swarm, on 20 April, lasted a few hours and included a M 1.6 event. None of the shocks were felt, and it was not possible to locate them accurately, but they were believed to be in the summit area. The 27 April tremor episode was the largest (table 1), and accompanying seismicity was the strongest registered (figure 5), since installation of the current seismometer, in July 1988.

Table 1. Tremor episodes recorded at On-take, 15 July 1988-11 May 1991.

Figure 5. Daily number of recorded earthquakes at On-take, 15 July 1988-5 May 1991. Courtesy of JMA.

White steam emissions, unchanged from previous months (figure 6), rose 200 m from summit vents formed during a small phreatic eruption in October 1979. That eruption emitted ash for 1 day; steam emission declined, but has remained steady since then.

Figure 6. Plume heights at On-take, 20 July 1988-13 May 1991. Courtesy of JMA.

A M 6.8 earthquake, 12 km SE of the summit on 14 September 1984, triggered a landslide on the S slope of the volcano that killed 29 people. Aftershocks were distributed on the volcano's S flank in an elliptical zone that may mark a 20-km-long WSW-ENE fault (figure 7). Steam emission and surface activity were unchanged by the 1984 earthquake.

Figure 7. Epicenter map of 138 earthquakes at On-take, January 1990-May 1991. Locations of the three swarms are not shown, but are considered to be in the summit area (triangle). The largest shock, M 1.8, was centered just W of the summit. The group of events in an E-W line 15 km S of the summit are aftershocks from a M 6.8 earthquake in 1984. Courtesy of JMA.

Geologic Background. The massive Ontakesan stratovolcano, the second highest volcano in Japan, lies at the southern end of the Northern Japan Alps. Ascending this volcano is one of the major objects of religious pilgrimage in central Japan. It is constructed within a largely buried 4 x 5 km caldera and occupies the southern end of the Norikura volcanic zone, which extends northward to Yakedake volcano. The older volcanic complex consisted of at least four major stratovolcanoes constructed from about 680,000 to about 420,000 years ago, after which Ontakesan was inactive for more than 300,000 years. The broad, elongated summit of the younger edifice is cut by a series of small explosion craters along a NNE-trending line. Several phreatic eruptions post-date the roughly 7300-year-old Akahoya tephra from Kikai caldera. The first historical eruption took place in 1979 from fissures near the summit. A non-eruptive landslide in 1984 produced a debris avalanche and lahar that swept down valleys south and east of the volcano. Very minor phreatic activity caused a dusting of ash near the summit in 1991 and 2007. A significant phreatic explosion in September 2014, when a large number of hikers were at or near the summit, resulted in many fatalities.

Information Contacts: JMA.

In comparison with observations made in early February (16:02), visits to the volcano in mid-March-early April revealed a decrease in eruptive activity. A small vent with night glow on the W flank (50 m below the summit), periodically the source of incandescent lava fragments that rolled down the upper flank, had disappeared by 21 March. Strombolian activity from a cinder cone in the W quarter of MacKenney Cone's 1987 crater ejected material to 100-150 m height. The number of explosions declined from about 20 to 1-2/hour over the mid March-early April observation period, and during the first week of April, the primary ejecta changed from lava spatter to ash. Some collapse occurred on the cone's interior walls. Two explosions, observed during a 3-hour period on 10 April, emitted ash clouds hundreds of meters high. Lava flow activity, prominent from mid-November through February (15:11-12 and 16:02), declined, and ceased entirely by 10 April. A decrease in seismicity, coincident with the decrease of eruptive activity, began about 1 April and continued as of 19 April.

Geologic Background. Eruptions from Pacaya, one of Guatemala's most active volcanoes, are frequently visible from Guatemala City, the nation's capital. This complex basaltic volcano was constructed just outside the southern topographic rim of the 14 x 16 km Pleistocene Amatitlán caldera. A cluster of dacitic lava domes occupies the southern caldera floor. The post-caldera Pacaya massif includes the ancestral Pacaya Viejo and Cerro Grande stratovolcanoes and the currently active Mackenney stratovolcano. Collapse of Pacaya Viejo between 600 and 1500 years ago produced a debris-avalanche deposit that extends 25 km onto the Pacific coastal plain and left an arcuate somma rim inside which the modern Pacaya volcano (Mackenney cone) grew. A subsidiary crater, Cerro Chino, was constructed on the NW somma rim and was last active in the 19th century. During the past several decades, activity has consisted of frequent strombolian eruptions with intermittent lava flow extrusion that has partially filled in the caldera moat and armored the flanks of Mackenney cone, punctuated by occasional larger explosive eruptions that partially destroy the summit of the growing young stratovolcano.

Information Contacts: Otoniel Matías and Rodolfo Morales, Sección de Vulcanología, INSIVUMEH; Michael Conway, Michigan Technological Univ, Houghton, USA; P. Vetsch, SVG, Switzerland; Thierry Basset, Univ de Genève, Switzerland; Alan Deino, Berkeley Geochronology Laboratory, Institute of Human Origins, USA.

The following includes a more detailed account of events reported in 16:3.

On 2 April, an explosion at the E end of Pinatubo's geothermal area (about 1.5 km NW of the summit and 2/3 of the way down the flank) ejected clouds of steam and minor quantities of ash to 500-800 m height. Ash fell 2 km away, primarily to the NW and SW, and covered an area of about 10,000 m², including part of one village, from which about 2,000 people were evacuated. No injuries or deaths were reported. The ash was composed of sub-angular material, none of which was freshly vesiculated, with a mineralogy of plagioclase, hornblende, small amounts of biotite, and possible quartz. About 1 km² of forested land was devastated by the explosion, extending about 500 m from the explosion site, and leaves and vegetation were stripped over several square kilometers. Downed trees were preferentially oriented N.

Following the explosion, an ENE-WSW-trending line (roughly 1 km long at 1,100-1,350 m elevation - summit elevation is 1,745 m) of new fumaroles with six main vents had developed. The most intense activity was located at the W end of the line, while the blast site, at the E end of the line, had ceased activity (figure 2). Vent emissions, voluminous and at extremely high pressure, consisted mainly of steam, with an H₂S odor and an associated gray haze. Plumes (~200-500 m high in mid- to late-April, 100-300 m high in early May) were carried W by the prevailing wind, onto a zone of dead and dying vegetation. Respiratory and eye irritation forced about 5,000 W-flank residents to leave the area. Increased discharge from springs near the fumaroles caused rapid downward erosion in stream beds, and muddy water was reported in the N drainages.

Figure 2. Sketch looking SSE at Pinatubo on 27 April 1991, from about 1 km distance (at geothermal well site PN-3, drilled in 1989 by PNOC). Fumaroles are labeled A-E, and the explosion site is labeled Z. Courtesy of David Sussman.

A seismometer installed on 5 April recorded 223 high-frequency volcano-tectonic earthquakes over a 24-hour period (figure 3). Seismicity rapidly decreased, with 50-90 events recorded/day 8 April-10 May (the seismometer did not function 6-8 April). Earthquake location became possible on 6 May with the completion of a seismic network at the volcano. During the first few days of operation, earthquakes were centered [~4-8 km NW] of the summit at 3-6 km depth, and had magnitudes of 0.1-1.5 (averaging about M 1.0). The events all had the same first motions, suggesting that they had the same focal mechanisms. Seismicity increased on 10 May (167 recorded earthquakes/day) and remained high as of 12 May (120-150/day). No long-period events have been recorded.

Figure 3. Daily number of recorded earthquakes at Pinatubo, 5 April-12 May 1991. Courtesy of PHIVOLCS.

Deformation measurements on the NW slope have not shown evidence of inflation.

The center of the Pinatubo geothermal area, previously the site of several low-discharge acid-sulfate springs and three steaming sulfur-depositing fumaroles (>90°C), was located within a crater-like structure largely related to collapse. Geologists believe that some of the breccias in the structure's wall are probably of hydrothermally explosive origin. "Numerous alleged eruptive activities have been reported in the area."

Geologic Background. Prior to 1991 Pinatubo volcano was a relatively unknown, heavily forested lava dome complex located 100 km NW of Manila with no records of historical eruptions. The 1991 eruption, one of the world's largest of the 20th century, ejected massive amounts of tephra and produced voluminous pyroclastic flows, forming a small, 2.5-km-wide summit caldera whose floor is now covered by a lake. Caldera formation lowered the height of the summit by more than 300 m. Although the eruption caused hundreds of fatalities and major damage with severe social and economic impact, successful monitoring efforts greatly reduced the number of fatalities. Widespread lahars that redistributed products of the 1991 eruption have continued to cause severe disruption. Previous major eruptive periods, interrupted by lengthy quiescent periods, have produced pyroclastic flows and lahars that were even more extensive than in 1991.

Information Contacts: R. Punongbayan, PHIVOLCS; Chris Newhall, USGS Reston; John Ewert, CVO; David Sussman and Areberto Arevalo, Philippine Geothermal Inc., Manila.

Gas emission increased in April. Fumaroles burned sulfur, produced loud jet-engine noises, and ejected small amounts of gray sediment that covered the W base of the crater. Acid rain continued to be a problem on the W flank of the volcano; rainwater pH was 3.4 at Cerro Pelón (2.5 km SW).

Seismicity levels in April were similar to March, with an average of 266 low-frequency earthquakes recorded/day (average frequency 2.2 Hz) and a monthly total of 26 high-frequency events (figure 37). Low-frequency tremor was recorded up to 22 hours/day on 20-21 April.

Figure 37. Daily number of recorded earthquakes at Poás, April 1991. Courtesy of OVSICORI.

Geologic Background. The broad, well-vegetated edifice of Poás, one of the most active volcanoes of Costa Rica, contains three craters along a N-S line. The frequently visited multi-hued summit crater lakes of the basaltic-to-dacitic volcano, which is one of Costa Rica's most prominent natural landmarks, are easily accessible by vehicle from the nearby capital city of San José. A N-S-trending fissure cutting the 2708-m-high complex stratovolcano extends to the lower northern flank, where it has produced the Congo stratovolcano and several lake-filled maars. The southernmost of the two summit crater lakes, Botos, is cold and clear and last erupted about 7500 years ago. The more prominent geothermally heated northern lake, Laguna Caliente, is one of the world's most acidic natural lakes, with a pH of near zero. It has been the site of frequent phreatic and phreatomagmatic eruptions since the first historical eruption was reported in 1828. Eruptions often include geyser-like ejections of crater-lake water.

Information Contacts: E. Fernández, V. Barboza, and J. Barquero, OVSICORI.

"Seismicity remained at a low level in April. The month's total number of earthquakes was 126 . . . with daily totals ranging from 0 to 19. Thirteen earthquakes were locatable and were distributed on the NW and W sides of the caldera seismic zone. Levelling measurements carried out between 8 March and 23 April showed 4 mm of subsidence at the SE end of Matupit Island."

Geologic Background. The low-lying Rabaul caldera on the tip of the Gazelle Peninsula at the NE end of New Britain forms a broad sheltered harbor utilized by what was the island's largest city prior to a major eruption in 1994. The outer flanks of the 688-m-high asymmetrical pyroclastic shield volcano are formed by thick pyroclastic-flow deposits. The 8 x 14 km caldera is widely breached on the east, where its floor is flooded by Blanche Bay and was formed about 1400 years ago. An earlier caldera-forming eruption about 7100 years ago is now considered to have originated from Tavui caldera, offshore to the north. Three small stratovolcanoes lie outside the northern and NE caldera rims. Post-caldera eruptions built basaltic-to-dacitic pyroclastic cones on the caldera floor near the NE and western caldera walls. Several of these, including Vulcan cone, which was formed during a large eruption in 1878, have produced major explosive activity during historical time. A powerful explosive eruption in 1994 occurred simultaneously from Vulcan and Tavurvur volcanoes and forced the temporary abandonment of Rabaul city.

Information Contacts: C. McKee, RVO.

A [phreatomagmatic] eruption at 1015-1025 on 8 May ejected small quantities of [ash, bombs, blocks, and mud, and produced small lahars]. Gray lahars with a sulfur odor traveled N down the Río Pénjamo and Azul systems, destroying the forest along the rivers and two small bridges, and cutting off access to the towns of Buenos Aires (12 km NE) and Gavilán. At the distal end of the lahars, 15 km from the summit, the deposits reached 2 m in thickness, and covered the surface for several hundred meters on both sides of the Pénjamo river channels. Following passage of the lahars, the rivers were milky and had high acidity. The eruption followed two smaller explosive events on 6 and 7 May, but no other seismic precursors were recorded.

Geologic Background. Rincón de la Vieja, the largest volcano in NW Costa Rica, is a remote volcanic complex in the Guanacaste Range. The volcano consists of an elongated, arcuate NW-SE-trending ridge that was constructed within the 15-km-wide early Pleistocene Guachipelín caldera, whose rim is exposed on the south side. Sometimes known as the "Colossus of Guanacaste," it has an estimated volume of 130 km3 and contains at least nine major eruptive centers. Activity has migrated to the SE, where the youngest-looking craters are located. The twin cone of 1916-m-high Santa María volcano, the highest peak of the complex, is located at the eastern end of a smaller, 5-km-wide caldera and has a 500-m-wide crater. A plinian eruption producing the 0.25 km3 Río Blanca tephra about 3500 years ago was the last major magmatic eruption. All subsequent eruptions, including numerous historical eruptions possibly dating back to the 16th century, have been from the prominent active crater containing a 500-m-wide acid lake located ENE of Von Seebach crater.

Information Contacts: R. Barquero, ICE; J. Barquero and R. Sáenz, OVSICORI.

An increase in the number of tremor pulses preceded several days of ash emission at the end of April. Lithic and crystalline ash (<2 mm in diameter) was reported W of the volcano in Pereira (40 km from the summit), Santa Rosa de Cabal (35 km), Chinchiná (35 km), and Manizales (25 km), and NE of the volcano in Mariquita (55 km). High- and low-frequency seismicity was generally at low levels in April, with a slight increase in released energy from low-frequency events. The monthly average SO₂ flux, measured by COSPEC, was ~2,740 t/d, up from 2,233 t/d in March.

Geologic Background. Nevado del Ruiz is a broad, glacier-covered volcano in central Colombia that covers more than 200 km2. Three major edifices, composed of andesitic and dacitic lavas and andesitic pyroclastics, have been constructed since the beginning of the Pleistocene. The modern cone consists of a broad cluster of lava domes built within the caldera of an older edifice. The 1-km-wide, 240-m-deep Arenas crater occupies the summit. The prominent La Olleta pyroclastic cone located on the SW flank may also have been active in historical time. Steep headwalls of massive landslides cut the flanks. Melting of its summit icecap during historical eruptions, which date back to the 16th century, has resulted in devastating lahars, including one in 1985 that was South America's deadliest eruption.

Information Contacts: C. Carvajal, INGEOMINAS, Manizales.

Quoted material is a report from the Santiaguito Volcano Observatory.

"At 0903 on 10 April, a powerful pyroclastic eruption shook El Caliente vent. The eruption produced a vertical plume that rose 3.5 km above the vent, and a pyroclastic flow that moved a few kilometers down the Río Nimá II. Ash blanketed the area immediately SW to a maximum thickness of 1-2 mm, and noticeable ashfall was observed at Retalhuleu [25 km SSW]. The ash consisted of comminuted dacite, gray to black volcanic glass, plagioclase, and quartz. This eruption marked the first major pyroclastic event at Santiaguito since 23 November 1990 and could signal an increase in hazardous pyroclastic activity similar to the period April-November 1990. Seismic activity increased significantly during the final week of March, following a period of relative quiescence from January through mid-March (figure 20)."

Figure 20. Daily explosions and avalanches at Santiaguito, January-March 1991. Dotted lines indicate no data. Courtesy of Otoniel Matías.

Smaller pyroclastic events, observed during fieldwork 24-27 March and 11-13 April, lasted about 4-7 minutes and were separated by tens of minutes to >1 hour. Eruptive plumes ranged from black to white and rose 500-1,500 m. On 11 April, observers measured a 20° initial eastward inclination of the explosion clouds, and plume heights of 3,000 m. The source of the explosions had migrated about 150-200 m NNE from the summit, which continued to degas quietly.

Numerous avalanches, with 150-400 recorded daily by seismometers (figure 20), occurred on the E flank of the volcano, sometimes accompanied by loud summit explosions. The block lava flow erupting from the E summit of Caliente continued to flow slowly (<100 m/month), with frequent collapses of the flow front sending block-and-ash debris avalanching [into] the Río Nimá II [drainage].

Geologic Background. Symmetrical, forest-covered Santa María volcano is part of a chain of large stratovolcanoes that rise above the Pacific coastal plain of Guatemala. The sharp-topped, conical profile is cut on the SW flank by a 1.5-km-wide crater. The oval-shaped crater extends from just below the summit to the lower flank, and was formed during a catastrophic eruption in 1902. The renowned Plinian eruption of 1902 that devastated much of SW Guatemala followed a long repose period after construction of the large basaltic-andesite stratovolcano. The massive dacitic Santiaguito lava-dome complex has been growing at the base of the 1902 crater since 1922. Compound dome growth at Santiaguito has occurred episodically from four vents, with activity progressing W towards the most recent, Caliente. Dome growth has been accompanied by almost continuous minor explosions, with periodic lava extrusion, larger explosions, pyroclastic flows, and lahars.

Information Contacts: Otoniel Matías and Rodolfo Morales, INSIVUMEH; Michael Conway, Michigan Technological Univ; P. Vetsch, SVG, Switzerland; Thierry Basset, Univ de Genève, Switzerland.

Explosions continued during April, with column heights averaging 300-400 m, and explosion earthquakes recorded an average of 112 times/day . . . . Seismographs also recorded 2-3 daily avalanches of material off the lava flow erupted 17 February. A total of one deep volcanic earthquake and 18 tectonic events were recorded.

Geologic Background. Semeru, the highest volcano on Java, and one of its most active, lies at the southern end of a volcanic massif extending north to the Tengger caldera. The steep-sided volcano, also referred to as Mahameru (Great Mountain), rises above coastal plains to the south. Gunung Semeru was constructed south of the overlapping Ajek-ajek and Jambangan calderas. A line of lake-filled maars was constructed along a N-S trend cutting through the summit, and cinder cones and lava domes occupy the eastern and NE flanks. Summit topography is complicated by the shifting of craters from NW to SE. Frequent 19th and 20th century eruptions were dominated by small-to-moderate explosions from the summit crater, with occasional lava flows and larger explosive eruptions accompanied by pyroclastic flows that have reached the lower flanks of the volcano.

Information Contacts: W. Modjo, VSI.

After the 8 April explosive eruption, satellite images showed an apparent narrow zone of tephra deposited SE from the summit to the coast. The NOAA 10 polar orbiter showed a second, similar deposit on 9 May at 1000, extending E from the summit then turning SE to parallel the 8 April material. . . .

Geologic Background. The high, isolated massif of Sheveluch volcano (also spelled Shiveluch) rises above the lowlands NNE of the Kliuchevskaya volcano group. The 1300 km3 volcano is one of Kamchatka's largest and most active volcanic structures. The summit of roughly 65,000-year-old Stary Shiveluch is truncated by a broad 9-km-wide late-Pleistocene caldera breached to the south. Many lava domes dot its outer flanks. The Molodoy Shiveluch lava dome complex was constructed during the Holocene within the large horseshoe-shaped caldera; Holocene lava dome extrusion also took place on the flanks of Stary Shiveluch. At least 60 large eruptions have occurred during the Holocene, making it the most vigorous andesitic volcano of the Kuril-Kamchatka arc. Widespread tephra layers from these eruptions have provided valuable time markers for dating volcanic events in Kamchatka. Frequent collapses of dome complexes, most recently in 1964, have produced debris avalanches whose deposits cover much of the floor of the breached caldera.

Information Contacts: W. Gould, NOAA/NESDIS.

Explosive activity was at low levels from January through March, seldom exceeding the long-term average of six recorded explosions/hour (figure 11). Visits to the summit on 30 March and 9 April revealed that activity was restricted to Crater 1, and that the small cone 1 in Crater 3 had collapsed, forming a glowing red vent. The number of earthquakes exceeding instrument saturation level was quite high from the end of January to the beginning of February (~30/day), and 11-17 March (~19/day; figure 12). Average tremor amplitude returned to normal following a low in December.

Figure 11. Daily average number of seismically recorded explosion events/hour at Stromboli, January-March 1991. The mean value for the period is shown. Courtesy of M. Riuscetti.

Figure 12. Number of seismometer-saturating events/day (upper curve); and average tremor amplitude (lower curve) at Stromboli, January-March 1991. Courtesy of M. Riuscetti.

Geologic Background. Spectacular incandescent nighttime explosions at this volcano have long attracted visitors to the "Lighthouse of the Mediterranean." Stromboli, the NE-most of the Aeolian Islands, has lent its name to the frequent mild explosive activity that has characterized its eruptions throughout much of historical time. The small island is the emergent summit of a volcano that grew in two main eruptive cycles, the last of which formed the western portion of the island. The Neostromboli eruptive period took place between about 13,000 and 5,000 years ago. The active summit vents are located at the head of the Sciara del Fuoco, a prominent horseshoe-shaped scarp formed about 5,000 years ago due to a series of slope failures that extend to below sea level. The modern volcano has been constructed within this scarp, which funnels pyroclastic ejecta and lava flows to the NW. Essentially continuous mild Strombolian explosions, sometimes accompanied by lava flows, have been recorded for more than a millennium.

Information Contacts: M. Riuscetti, Univ di Udine.

High levels of seismicity . . . suddenly declined in late April (figure 1). A total of 670 high-frequency earthquakes were felt by the end of April, including nine of JMA intensity IV, and a M 4.3 event on 31 March. The swarm was centered on the NW coast of the island (figure 2) at 0-10 km depth (the majority at ~5 km). No surface phenomena (steaming, bubbling, or water discoloration) were found despite frequent patrolling over the island and adjacent sea area by JMSA aircraft.

Figure 1. Daily number of recorded earthquakes at Iriomote-jima island, 23 January-10 May 1991. Solid columns represent felt events. Courtesy of JMA.

Figure 2. Epicenter map of earthquakes at Iriomote-jima island, 23 January-10 May 1991. A solid square marks the JMA weather station. Courtesy of JMA.

Geologic Background. The southernmost Ryukyu Islands volcano is a shallow submarine volcano NNE of Iriomote-jima island. It is located 20 km NNE of Iriomotejima and 35 km WSW of the northern tip of the island of Ishigakishima in an area with an estimated depth of 200-300 m. A major submarine eruption took place on 31 October 1924. It produced rhyolitic pumice rafts with an estimated volume of about 1 km3 that were carried by currents along both coasts of Japan as far north as Hokkaido. The largest pumice blocks exceeded 1 x 2 m in size, and the volume of ejecta places this poorly known eruption among the largest in historical time in Japan.

Information Contacts: JMA.

High seismicity continued as of early May, with the daily number of earthquakes varying from 15 to 30 (figure 4). Felt earthquakes reached intensity IV. Acidity and chloride content of the volcano's crater lake continued to fluctuate, ranging from 2.4-2.8 and 9,630-11,720 ppm, respectively. Lake temperature increased slightly from 30° to 31°C, and lake level rose by 4 cm.

On 26 April, strong bubbling and increased steaming were observed in the N sector of the crater and at the base of the wall. Geysering, to 1.2 m height, was also noted near the NNE shore of the lake, where water temperatures of 99°C were measured.

Deformation measurements on Taal Volcano Island have found no inflation or swelling of the volcanic edifice.

Volcano Island has been partly evacuated since 23 March, but a small number of residents have remained, particularly near the PHIVOLCS station at the N end of the island.

Geologic Background. Taal is one of the most active volcanoes in the Philippines and has produced some of its most powerful historical eruptions. Though not topographically prominent, its prehistorical eruptions have greatly changed the landscape of SW Luzon. The 15 x 20 km Talisay (Taal) caldera is largely filled by Lake Taal, whose 267 km2 surface lies only 3 m above sea level. The maximum depth of the lake is 160 m, and several eruptive centers lie submerged beneath the lake. The 5-km-wide Volcano Island in north-central Lake Taal is the location of all historical eruptions. The island is composed of coalescing small stratovolcanoes, tuff rings, and scoria cones that have grown about 25% in area during historical time. Powerful pyroclastic flows and surges from historical eruptions have caused many fatalities.

Information Contacts: R. Punongbayan, PHIVOLCS.

Shortly after the [M 7.6] earthquake on 22 April [85 km WSW], numerous small concentric fractures were found along the S and SW rims of the central crater and the W rim of the main crater. Small landslides continued on the S, SW, and N walls of the main crater, and fumarole temperatures remained at 89°C.

Geologic Background. Turrialba, the easternmost of Costa Rica's Holocene volcanoes, is a large vegetated basaltic-to-dacitic stratovolcano located across a broad saddle NE of Irazú volcano overlooking the city of Cartago. The massive edifice covers an area of 500 km2. Three well-defined craters occur at the upper SW end of a broad 800 x 2200 m summit depression that is breached to the NE. Most activity originated from the summit vent complex, but two pyroclastic cones are located on the SW flank. Five major explosive eruptions have occurred during the past 3500 years. A series of explosive eruptions during the 19th century were sometimes accompanied by pyroclastic flows. Fumarolic activity continues at the central and SW summit craters.

Information Contacts: E. Fernández, V. Barboza, and J. Barquero, OVSICORI.

Frequent, almost continuous, ash emissions (500 m high) continued in April from two vents. In mid-April, the most intense activity switched from Byobu-iwa vent . . . to Jigoku-ato vent . . . . No earthquake swarms were recorded in April, but seismicity remained high. A total of 733 earthquakes was recorded and 27 felt . . . compared to 734 recorded and 21 felt in March. Most of the events were located a few kilometers W of Fugen-dake peak . . . . The number of tremor episodes increased in April (181, compared to 99 in March), as did amplitudes and durations (figure 16).

Figure 16. Daily number (top), amplitude (middle), and duration (bottom) of tremor episodes at Unzen, July 1990-early May 1991. Arrows at top mark eruptions on 17 November 1990 and 12 February 1991. Courtesy of JMA.

A swarm of microearthquakes, the first since July 1990, began 13 May and continued as of 17 May. Ash emissions were at low levels during this period. Heavy rains on recently fallen tephra caused lahars in at least one flank valley. The press reported that more than 1,200 people were evacuated on 19 May. A lava dome was extruded into the summit crater before dawn on 21 May. Small ash emissions occurred from the dome and fissures exposed its interior.

Geologic Background. The massive Unzendake volcanic complex comprises much of the Shimabara Peninsula east of the city of Nagasaki. An E-W graben, 30-40 km long, extends across the peninsula. Three large stratovolcanoes with complex structures, Kinugasa on the north, Fugen-dake at the east-center, and Kusenbu on the south, form topographic highs on the broad peninsula. Fugendake and Mayuyama volcanoes in the east-central portion of the andesitic-to-dacitic volcanic complex have been active during the Holocene. The Mayuyama lava dome complex, located along the eastern coast west of Shimabara City, formed about 4000 years ago and was the source of a devastating 1792 CE debris avalanche and tsunami. Historical eruptive activity has been restricted to the summit and flanks of Fugendake. The latest activity during 1990-95 formed a lava dome at the summit, accompanied by pyroclastic flows that caused fatalities and damaged populated areas near Shimabara City.

Information Contacts: JMA; H. Glicken, Tokyo Metropolitan Univ; AP.

Observations at "La Fossa" crater in recent years have included changes in fumarole temperatures and chemical compositions, ground deformation, and opening of new fractures. Data collected since a systematic surveillance program began in 1977 have allowed geologists to identify different stages during which changing contributions of magmatic gases and water caused fluctuating fumarole outputs. The interaction of heat rising from depth with shallow aquifers has produced changes in water vaporization and pressure as the heat/water ratio varied.

Only minor crater activity occurred until 1987, probably because of the constraints imposed by a limited fracture system on the thermal input. Since then, a sharp change has been observed, with ground inflation and significant increases in the maximum temperature and water concentration of emitted fluids.

In 1990, a further increase in the maximum temperature (to 620°C) and decrease in water contents of fumarole fluids were interpreted as a consequence of increased heat flow, causing significant aquifer depletion (15:08).

The most recent (April 1991) observations indicate that fumarole temperatures are again increasing, and significant vaporization as well as new inflation can be expected. Geologists noted that the long-lasting instability of La Fossa's NW sector could result in some form of collapse that could create problems for the local community.

Further References. Falsaperla, S., Frazzetta, G., Neri, G., Nunnari, G., Velardita, R., and Villari, L., 1989, Volcano monitoring in the Aeolian Islands (southern Tyrrhenian Sea): the Lipari-Vulcano eruptive complex, in Latter, J.H., ed., Volcanic Hazards: Assessment and Monitoring: Springer-Verlag, p. 339-356.

Martini, M., 1989, The forecasting significance of chemical indicators in areas of quiescent volcanism: examples from Vulcano and Phlegrean Fields (Italy), in Latter, J.H., ed., Volcanic Hazards: Assessment and Monitoring: Springer-Verlag, p. 372-383.

Martini, M., Giannini, L., Buccianti, A., Prati, F., Legittimo, P.C., Iozelli, P., and Capaccioni, B., 1991, 1980-1990: Ten years of geochemical investigation at Phlegrean Fields (Italy): Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, v. 48, p. 161-171.

Martini, M., Giannini, L., and Capaccioni, B., 1991, Geochemical and seismic precursors of volcanic activity: Acta Vulcanologia, v. 1, p. 7-11.

Martini, M., Giannini, L., and Capaccioni, B., 1991, The influence of water on chemical changes of fumarolic gases: different characters and their implications in forecasting volcanic activity: Acta Vulcanologia, v. 1, p. 13-16.

Geologic Background. The word volcano is derived from Vulcano stratovolcano in Italy's Aeolian Islands. Vulcano was constructed during six stages during the past 136,000 years. Two overlapping calderas, the 2.5-km-wide Caldera del Piano on the SE and the 4-km-wide Caldera della Fossa on the NW, were formed at about 100,000 and 24,000-15,000 years ago, respectively, and volcanism has migrated to the north over time. La Fossa cone, active throughout the Holocene and the location of most of the historical eruptions, occupies the 3-km-wide Caldera della Fossa at the NW end of the elongated 3 x 7 km island. The Vulcanello lava platform forms a low, roughly circular peninsula on the northern tip of Vulcano that was formed as an island beginning in 183 BCE and was connected to Vulcano in about 1550 CE. Vulcanello is capped by three pyroclastic cones and was active intermittently until the 16th century. The latest eruption from Vulcano consisted of explosive activity from the Fossa cone from 1898 to 1900.

Information Contacts: M. Martini, Univ di Firenze.

There was no evidence, during fieldwork 21 April, of eruptive activity since the 20-22 March eruption that formed Orca vent and was probably responsible for up to 10 mm of ash deposited on the 1978/91 Crater rim since 13 February. An increase in gas emission (compared to visits during February and March) was noted at Orca vent and TV1 Crater. . . . Intense gas emission also occurred from an area of hot ground NW of TV1.

Several morphologic changes were observed in the crater area. A second, smaller vent (~5 m in diameter) was found on the slope NW of Orca vent. A new collapse pit, ~20 m in diameter and 50 m deep, was located above the conduit that had previously fed Donald Duck Crater. The new pit, a few meters NW of the crater, looked fresh, suggesting that it had formed shortly before the 21 April visit.

Ash-laden steam emission reportedly began 23 April and was continuing as of 3 May. No significant volcanic tremor or other seismicity was recorded during this period.

Geologic Background. The uninhabited White Island, also known as Whakaari in the Maori language, is the 2 x 2.4 km emergent summit of a 16 x 18 km submarine volcano in the Bay of Plenty about 50 km offshore of North Island. The island consists of two overlapping andesitic-to-dacitic stratovolcanoes. The summit crater appears to be breached to the SE, because the shoreline corresponds to the level of several notches in the SE crater wall. Volckner Rocks, sea stacks that are remnants of a lava dome, lie 5 km NW. Descriptions of eruptions since 1826 have included intermittent moderate phreatic, phreatomagmatic, and Strombolian eruptions; activity there also forms a prominent part of Maori legends. Formation of many new vents during the 19th and 20th centuries has produced rapid changes in crater floor topography. Collapse of the crater wall in 1914 produced a debris avalanche that buried buildings and workers at a sulfur-mining project. Explosive activity in December 2019 took place while tourists were present, resulting in many fatalities.

Information Contacts: I. Nairn and B. Scott, DSIR Geology & Geophysics, Rotorua.

In discussing the week ending on 12 September, "Earthweek" (Newman, 1997) incorrectly claimed that a volcano named "Mount Pinukis" had erupted. Widely read in the US, the dramatic Earthweek report described terrified farmers and a black mushroom cloud that resembled a nuclear explosion. The mountain's location was given as "200 km E of Zamboanga City," a spot well into the sea. The purported eruption had received mention in a Manila Bulletin newspaper report nine days earlier, on 4 September. Their comparatively understated report said that a local police director had disclosed that residents had seen a dormant volcano showing signs of activity.

In response to these news reports Emmanuel Ramos of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) sent a reply on 17 September. PHIVOLCS staff had initially heard that there were some 12 alleged families who fled the mountain and sought shelter in the lowlands. A PHIVOLCS investigation team later found that the reported "families" were actually individuals seeking respite from some politically motivated harassment. The story seems to have stemmed from a local gold rush and an influential politician who wanted to use volcanism as a ploy to exclude residents. PHIVOLCS concluded that no volcanic activity had occurred. They also added that this finding disappointed local politicians but was much welcomed by the residents.

PHIVOLCS spelled the mountain's name as "Pinokis" and from their report it seems that it might be an inactive volcano. There is no known Holocene volcano with a similar name (Simkin and Siebert, 1994). No similar names (Pinokis, Pinukis, Pinakis, etc.) were found listed in the National Imagery and Mapping Agency GEOnet Names Server (http://geonames.nga.mil/gns/html/index.html), a searchable database of 3.3 million non-US geographic-feature names.

The Manila Bulletin report suggested that Pinokis resides on the Zamboanga Peninsula. The Peninsula lies on Mindanao Island's extreme W side where it bounds the Moro Gulf, an arm of the Celebes Sea. The mountainous Peninsula trends NNE-SSW and contains peaks with summit elevations near 1,300 m. Zamboanga City sits at the extreme end of the Peninsula and operates both a major seaport and an international airport.

[Later investigation found that Mt. Pinokis is located in the Lison Valley on the Zamboanga Peninsula, about 170 km NE of Zamboanga City and 30 km NW of Pagadian City. It is adjacent to the two peaks of the Susong Dalaga (Maiden's Breast) and near Mt. Sugarloaf.]

References. Newman, S., 1997, Earthweek, a diary of the planet (week ending 12 September): syndicated newspaper column (URL: http://www.earthweek.com/).

Manila Bulletin, 4 Sept. 1997, Dante's Peak (URL: http://www.mb.com.ph/).

Simkin, T., and Siebert, L., 1994, Volcanoes of the world, 2nd edition: Geoscience Press in association with the Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program, Tucson AZ, 368 p.

Information Contacts: Emmanuel G. Ramos, Deputy Director, Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, Department of Science and Technology, PHIVOLCS Building, C. P. Garcia Ave., University of the Philippines, Diliman campus, Quezon City, Philippines.

Xinhua News Agency filed a news report on 27 February under the headline "Volcano erupts in Somalia" but the veracity of the story now appears doubtful. The report disclosed the volcano's location as on the W side of the Gedo region, an area along the Ethiopian border just NE of Kenya. The report had relied on the commissioner of the town of Bohol Garas (a settlement described as 40 km NE of the main Al-Itihad headquarters of Luq town) and some or all of the information was relayed by journalists through VHF radio. The report claimed the disaster "wounded six herdsmen" and "claimed the lives of 290 goats grazing near the mountain when the incident took place." Further descriptions included such statements as "the volcano which erupted two days ago [25 February] has melted down the rocks and sand and spread . . . ."

Giday WoldeGabriel returned from three weeks of geological fieldwork in SW Ethiopia, near the Kenyan border, on 25 August. During his time there he inquired of many people, including geologists, if they had heard of a Somalian eruption in the Gedo area; no one had heard of the event. WoldeGabriel stated that he felt the news report could have described an old mine or bomb exploding. Heavy fighting took place in the Gedo region during the Ethio-Somalian war of 1977. Somalia lacks an embassy in Washington DC; when asked during late August, Ayalaw Yiman, an Ethiopian embassy staff member in Washington DC also lacked any knowledge of a Somalian eruption.

A Somalian eruption would be significant since the closest known Holocene volcanoes occur in the central Ethiopian segment of the East African rift system S of Addis Ababa, ~500 km NW of the Gedo area. These Ethiopian rift volcanoes include volcanic fields, shield volcanoes, cinder cones, and stratovolcanoes.

Information Contacts: Xinhua News Agency, 5 Sharp Street West, Wanchai, Hong Kong; Giday WoldeGabriel, EES-1/MS D462, Geology-Geochemistry Group, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545; Ayalaw Yiman, Ethiopian Embassy, 2134 Kalorama Rd. NW, Washington DC 20008.

Following the Ms 7.8 earthquake in Turkey on 17 August (BGVN 24:08) an Email message originating in Turkey was circulated, claiming that volcanic activity was observed coincident with the earthquake and suggesting a new (magmatic) volcano in the Sea of Marmara. For reasons outlined below, and in the absence of further evidence, editors of the Bulletin consider this a false report.

The report stated that fishermen near the village of Cinarcik, at the E end of the Sea of Marmara "saw the sea turned red with fireballs" shortly after the onset of the earthquake. They later found dead fish that appeared "fried." Their nets were "burned" while under water and contained samples of rocks alleged to look "magmatic."

No samples of the fish were preserved. A tectonic scientist in Istanbul speculated that hot water released by the earthquake from the many hot springs along the coast in that area may have killed some fish (although they would be boiled rather than fried).

The phenomenon called earthquake lights could explain the "fireballs" reportedly seen by the fishermen. Such effects have been reasonably established associated with large earthquakes, although their origin remains poorly understood. In addition to deformation-triggered piezoelectric effects, earthquake lights have sometimes been explained as due to the release of methane gas in areas of mass wasting (even under water). Omlin and others (1999), for example, found gas hydrate and methane releases associated with mud volcanoes in coastal submarine environments.

The astronomer and author Thomas Gold (Gold, 1998) has a website (Gold, 2000) where he presents a series of alleged quotes from witnesses of earthquakes. We include three such quotes here (along with Gold's dates, attributions, and other comments):

(A) Lima, 30 March 1828. "Water in the bay 'hissed as if hot iron was immersed in it,' bubbles and dead fish rose to the surface, and the anchor chain of HMS Volage was partially fused while lying in the mud on the bottom." (Attributed to Bagnold, 1829; the anchor chain is reported to be on display in the London Navy Museum.)

(B) Romania, 10 November 1940. ". . . a thick layer like a translucid gas above the surface of the soil . . . irregular gas fires . . . flames in rhythm with the movements of the soil . . . flashes like lightning from the floor to the summit of Mt Tampa . . . flames issuing from rocks, which crumbled, with flashes also issuing from non-wooded mountainsides." (Phrases used in eyewitness accounts collected by Demetrescu and Petrescu, 1941).

(C) Sungpan-Pingwu (China), 16, 22, and 23 August 1976. "From March of 1976, various large anomalies were observed over a broad region. . . . At the Wanchia commune of Chungching County, outbursts of natural gas from rock fissures ignited and were difficult to extinguish even by dumping dirt over the fissures. . . . Chu Chieh Cho, of the Provincial Seismological Bureau, related personally seeing a fireball 75 km from the epicenter on the night of 21 July while in the company of three professional seismologists."

Yalciner and others (1999) made a study of coastal areas along the Sea of Marmara after the Izmet earthquake. They found evidence for one or more tsunamis with maximum runups of 2.0-2.5 m. Preliminary modeling of the earthquake's response failed to reproduce the observed runups; the areas of maximum runup instead appeared to correspond most closely with several local mass-failure events. This observation together with the magnitude of the earthquake, and bottom soundings from marine geophysical teams, suggested mass wasting may have been fairly common on the floor of the Sea of Marmara.

Despite a wide range of poorly understood, dramatic processes associated with earthquakes (Izmet 1999 apparently included), there remains little evidence for volcanism around the time of the earthquake. The nearest Holocene volcano lies ~200 km SW of the report location. Neither Turkish geologists nor scientists from other countries in Turkey to study the 17 August earthquake reported any volcanism. The report said the fisherman found "magmatic" rocks; it is unlikely they would be familiar with this term.

The motivation and credibility of the report's originator, Erol Erkmen, are unknown. Certainly, the difficulty in translating from Turkish to English may have caused some problems in understanding. Erkmen is associated with a website devoted to reporting UFO activity in Turkey. Photographs of a "magmatic rock" sample were sent to the Bulletin, but they only showed dark rocks photographed devoid of a scale on a featureless background. The rocks shown did not appear to be vesicular or glassy. What was most significant to Bulletin editors was the report author's progressive reluctance to provide samples or encourage follow-up investigation with local scientists. Without the collaboration of trained scientists on the scene this report cannot be validated.

References. Omlin, A, Damm, E., Mienert, J., and Lukas, D., 1999, In-situ detection of methane releases adjacent to gas hydrate fields on the Norwegian margin: (Abstract) Fall AGU meeting 1999, Eos, American Geophysical Union.

Yalciner, A.C., Borrero, J., Kukano, U., Watts, P., Synolakis, C. E., and Imamura, F., 1999, Field survey of 1999 Izmit tsunami and modeling effort of new tsunami generation mechanism: (Abstract) Fall AGU meeting 1999, Eos, American Geophysical Union.

Gold, T., 1998, The deep hot biosphere: Springer Verlag, 256 p., ISBN: 0387985468.

Gold, T., 2000, Eye-witness accounts of several major earthquakes (URL: http://www.people.cornell.edu/ pages/tg21/eyewit.html).

Information Contacts: Erol Erkmen, Tuvpo Project Alp.

In December 2002 information appeared in Mongolian and Russian newspapers and on national TV that a volcano in Central Mongolia, the Har-Togoo volcano, was producing white vapors and constant acoustic noise. Because of the potential hazard posed to two nearby settlements, mainly with regard to potential blocking of rivers, the Director of the Research Center of Astronomy and Geophysics of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Dr. Bekhtur, organized a scientific expedition to the volcano on 19-20 March 2003. The scientific team also included M. Ulziibat, seismologist from the same Research Center, M. Ganzorig, the Director of the Institute of Informatics, and A. Ivanov from the Institute of the Earth's Crust, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Geological setting. The Miocene Har-Togoo shield volcano is situated on top of a vast volcanic plateau (figure 1). The 5,000-year-old Khorog (Horog) cone in the Taryatu-Chulutu volcanic field is located 135 km SW and the Quaternary Urun-Dush cone in the Khanuy Gol (Hanuy Gol) volcanic field is 95 km ENE. Pliocene and Quaternary volcanic rocks are also abundant in the vicinity of the Holocene volcanoes (Devyatkin and Smelov, 1979; Logatchev and others, 1982). Analysis of seismic activity recorded by a network of seismic stations across Mongolia shows that earthquakes of magnitude 2-3.5 are scattered around the Har-Togoo volcano at a distance of 10-15 km.

Figure 1. Photograph of the Har-Togoo volcano viewed from west, March 2003. Courtesy of Alexei Ivanov.

Observations during March 2003. The name of the volcano in the Mongolian language means "black-pot" and through questioning of the local inhabitants, it was learned that there is a local myth that a dragon lived in the volcano. The local inhabitants also mentioned that marmots, previously abundant in the area, began to migrate westwards five years ago; they are now practically absent from the area.

Acoustic noise and venting of colorless warm gas from a small hole near the summit were noticed in October 2002 by local residents. In December 2002, while snow lay on the ground, the hole was clearly visible to local visitors, and a second hole could be seen a few meters away; it is unclear whether or not white vapors were noticed on this occasion. During the inspection in March 2003 a third hole was seen. The second hole is located within a 3 x 3 m outcrop of cinder and pumice (figure 2) whereas the first and the third holes are located within massive basalts. When close to the holes, constant noise resembled a rapid river heard from afar. The second hole was covered with plastic sheeting fixed at the margins, but the plastic was blown off within 2-3 seconds. Gas from the second hole was sampled in a mechanically pumped glass sampler. Analysis by gas chromatography, performed a week later at the Institute of the Earth's Crust, showed that nitrogen and atmospheric air were the major constituents.

Figure 2. Photograph of the second hole sampled at Har-Togoo, with hammer for scale, March 2003. Courtesy of Alexei Ivanov.

The temperature of the gas at the first, second, and third holes was +1.1, +1.4, and +2.7°C, respectively, while air temperature was -4.6 to -4.7°C (measured on 19 March 2003). Repeated measurements of the temperatures on the next day gave values of +1.1, +0.8, and -6.0°C at the first, second, and third holes, respectively. Air temperature was -9.4°C. To avoid bias due to direct heating from sunlight the measurements were performed under shadow. All measurements were done with Chechtemp2 digital thermometer with precision of ± 0.1°C and accuracy ± 0.3°C.

Inside the mouth of the first hole was 4-10-cm-thick ice with suspended gas bubbles (figure 5). The ice and snow were sampled in plastic bottles, melted, and tested for pH and Eh with digital meters. The pH-meter was calibrated by Horiba Ltd (Kyoto, Japan) standard solutions 4 and 7. Water from melted ice appeared to be slightly acidic (pH 6.52) in comparison to water of melted snow (pH 7.04). Both pH values were within neutral solution values. No prominent difference in Eh (108 and 117 for ice and snow, respectively) was revealed.

Two digital short-period three-component stations were installed on top of Har-Togoo, one 50 m from the degassing holes and one in a remote area on basement rocks, for monitoring during 19-20 March 2003. Every hour 1-3 microseismic events with magnitude <2 were recorded. All seismic events were virtually identical and resembled A-type volcano-tectonic earthquakes (figure 6). Arrival difference between S and P waves were around 0.06-0.3 seconds for the Har-Togoo station and 0.1-1.5 seconds for the remote station. Assuming that the Har-Togoo station was located in the epicentral zone, the events were located at ~1-3 km depth. Seismic episodes similar to volcanic tremors were also recorded (figure 3).

Figure 3. Examples of an A-type volcano-tectonic earthquake and volcanic tremor episodes recorded at the Har-Togoo station on 19 March 2003. Courtesy of Alexei Ivanov.

Conclusions. The abnormal thermal and seismic activities could be the result of either hydrothermal or volcanic processes. This activity could have started in the fall of 2002 when they were directly observed for the first time, or possibly up to five years earlier when marmots started migrating from the area. Further studies are planned to investigate the cause of the fumarolic and seismic activities.

At the end of a second visit in early July, gas venting had stopped, but seismicity was continuing. In August there will be a workshop on Russian-Mongolian cooperation between Institutions of the Russian and Mongolian Academies of Sciences (held in Ulan-Bator, Mongolia), where the work being done on this volcano will be presented.

References. Devyatkin, E.V. and Smelov, S.B., 1979, Position of basalts in sequence of Cenozoic sediments of Mongolia: Izvestiya USSR Academy of Sciences, geological series, no. 1, p. 16-29. (In Russian).

Logatchev, N.A., Devyatkin, E.V., Malaeva, E.M., and others, 1982, Cenozoic deposits of Taryat basin and Chulutu river valley (Central Hangai): Izvestiya USSR Academy of Sciences, geological series, no. 8, p. 76-86. (In Russian).

Geologic Background. The Miocene Har-Togoo shield volcano, also known as Togoo Tologoy, is situated on top of a vast volcanic plateau. The 5,000-year-old Khorog (Horog) cone in the Taryatu-Chulutu volcanic field is located 135 km SW and the Quaternary Urun-Dush cone in the Khanuy Gol (Hanuy Gol) volcanic field is 95 km ENE. Analysis of seismic activity recorded by a network of seismic stations across Mongolia shows that earthquakes of magnitude 2-3.5 are scattered around the Har-Togoo volcano at a distance of 10-15 km.

Information Contacts: Alexei V. Ivanov, Institute of the Earth Crust SB, Russian Academy of Sciences, Irkutsk, Russia; Bekhtur andM. Ulziibat, Research Center of Astronomy and Geophysics, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Ulan-Bator, Mongolia; M. Ganzorig, Institute of Informatics MAS, Ulan-Bator, Mongolia.

An eruption at Mount Elgon was mistakenly inferred when fumes escaped from this otherwise quiet volcano. The fumes were eventually traced to dung burning in a lava-tube cave. The cave is home to, or visited by, wildlife ranging from bats to elephants. Mt. Elgon (Ol Doinyo Ilgoon) is a stratovolcano on the SW margin of a 13 x 16 km caldera that straddles the Uganda-Kenya border 140 km NE of the N shore of Lake Victoria. No eruptions are known in the historical record or in the Holocene.

On 7 September 2004 the web site of the Kenyan newspaper The Daily Nation reported that villagers sighted and smelled noxious fumes from a cave on the flank of Mt. Elgon during August 2005. The villagers' concerns were taken quite seriously by both nations, to the extent that evacuation of nearby villages was considered.

The Daily Nation article added that shortly after the villagers' reports, Moses Masibo, Kenya's Western Province geology officer visited the cave, confirmed the villagers observations, and added that the temperature in the cave was 170°C. He recommended that nearby villagers move to safer locations. Masibo and Silas Simiyu of KenGens geothermal department collected ashes from the cave for testing.

Gerald Ernst reported on 19 September 2004 that he spoke with two local geologists involved with the Elgon crisis from the Geology Department of the University of Nairobi (Jiromo campus): Professor Nyambok and Zacharia Kuria (the former is a senior scientist who was unable to go in the field; the latter is a junior scientist who visited the site). According to Ernst their interpretation is that somebody set fire to bat guano in one of the caves. The fire was intense and probably explains the vigorous fuming, high temperatures, and suffocated animals. The event was also accompanied by emissions of gases with an ammonia odor. Ernst noted that this was not surprising considering the high nitrogen content of guano—ammonia is highly toxic and can also explain the animal deaths. The intense fumes initially caused substantial panic in the area.

It was Ernst's understanding that the authorities ordered evacuations while awaiting a report from local scientists, but that people returned before the report reached the authorities. The fire presumably prompted the response of local authorities who then urged the University geologists to analyze the situation. By the time geologists arrived, the fuming had ceased, or nearly so. The residue left by the fire and other observations led them to conclude that nothing remotely related to a volcanic eruption had occurred.

However, the incident emphasized the problem due to lack of a seismic station to monitor tectonic activity related to a local triple junction associated with the rift valley or volcanic seismicity. In response, one seismic station was moved from S Kenya to the area of Mt. Elgon so that local seismicity can be monitored in the future.

Information Contacts: Gerald Ernst, Univ. of Ghent, Krijgslaan 281/S8, B-9000, Belgium; Chris Newhall, USGS, Univ. of Washington, Dept. of Earth & Space Sciences, Box 351310, Seattle, WA 98195-1310, USA; The Daily Nation (URL: http://www.nationmedia.com/dailynation/); Uganda Tourist Board (URL: http://www.visituganda.com/).