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Bam

Photo of this volcano
  • Country
  • Primary Volcano Type
  • Last Known Eruption
  •  
  • 3.613°S
  • 144.818°E

  • 685 m
    2247 ft

  • 251010
  • Latitude
  • Longitude

  • Summit
    Elevation

  • Volcano
    Number

Most Recent Bulletin Report: March 1981 (SEAN 06:03) Citation IconCite this Report

Discolored water

During aerial inspections 6 and 19 March, a 1-km-long zone of orange sea discoloration was noted at the S shore of Bam Island.

Information Contacts: Acting Senior Volcanologist, RVO.

The Global Volcanism Program has no Weekly Reports available for Bam.

Bulletin Reports - Index

Reports are organized chronologically and indexed below by Month/Year (Publication Volume:Number), and include a one-line summary. Click on the index link or scroll down to read the reports.

03/1981 (SEAN 06:03) Discolored water




Information is preliminary and subject to change. All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


March 1981 (SEAN 06:03) Citation IconCite this Report

Discolored water

During aerial inspections 6 and 19 March, a 1-km-long zone of orange sea discoloration was noted at the S shore of Bam Island.

Information Contacts: Acting Senior Volcanologist, RVO.

This compilation of synonyms and subsidiary features may not be comprehensive. Features are organized into four major categories: Cones, Craters, Domes, and Thermal Features. Synonyms of features appear indented below the primary name. In some cases additional feature type, elevation, or location details are provided.

Eruptive History

There is data available for 17 confirmed Holocene eruptive periods.

1960 Apr 28 - 1960 Jul 6 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1960 Apr 28 - 1960 Jul 6 Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 4 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion weak or small
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
   - - - -    - - - - Earthquakes (undefined)
1960 Apr 28    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1959 Apr 2 - 1959 Oct 31 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1959 Apr 2 - 1959 Oct 31 Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 3 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion weak or small
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
1959 Apr 2    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1958 Sep 5 - 1958 Sep 10 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1958 Sep 5 - 1958 Sep 10 Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 3 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
1958 Sep 5    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1958 Mar 11 ± 10 days - 1958 Apr 19 (?) Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1958 Mar 11 ± 10 days - 1958 Apr 19 (?) Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 3 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion weak or small
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
1958 Mar 11 ± 10 days    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1957 Oct 26 - 1957 Oct 26 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 1

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1957 Oct 26 - 1957 Oct 26 Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 3 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion
   - - - -    - - - - Incandescence Event was "Glow"
1957 Oct 26    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1954 Aug 3 - 1957 Jan 2 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1954 Aug 3 - 1957 Jan 2 Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 8 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion weak or small
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
   - - - -    - - - - Earthquakes (undefined)
   - - - -    - - - - Property Damage
   - - - -    - - - - Evacuations
1954    - - - - Fatalities
1954 Aug 3    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)
1955 Jun 3    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1947 Mar 13 ± 75 days Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1947 Mar 13 ± 75 days - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 5 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion weak or small
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
   - - - -    - - - - Blocks
   - - - -    - - - - Earthquakes (undefined)
1947 Mar 13 ± 75 days    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

[ 1946 Dec 1 ± 30 days ] Discredited Eruption

An eruption at the end of 1946 (CAVW) actually occurred in 1947 prior to a 24 May letter (Johnson et al., 1972).

1944 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1944 - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 4 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
   - - - -    - - - - Blocks
1944    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

[ 1941 - 1942 ] Discredited Eruption

Explosive eruptions in 1941 and 1942 included in Cooke et al. (1976, figure 2) could not be found in other sources, and are apparently in error (Johnson, 1990 p.c.).

[ 1936 Jul - 1939 Apr ] Uncertain Eruption

Episode 1 | Uncertain Episode
1936 Jul - 1939 Apr Evidence from Unknown
 Holtker saw smoke plumes above the summit during July 1936-April 1939. No lava flows or explosive outbursts were seen, but glow was observed from Manam, the mainland, and the sea (Johnson et al., 1972).

List of 2 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Volcanic "smoke"
   - - - -    - - - - Incandescence Event was "Glow"

1924 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1924 - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 5 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion moderate
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
   - - - -    - - - - Blocks
   - - - -    - - - - Property Damage
1924    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1918 Sep 18 Confirmed Eruption  

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1918 Sep 18 - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 1 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Incandescence Event was "Glow"

1913 Confirmed Eruption  

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1913 - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 2 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion Uncertain
   - - - -    - - - - Volcanic "smoke"

1909 Apr 19 - 1909 Sep 13 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1909 Apr 19 - 1909 Sep 13 Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 4 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion moderate
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
   - - - -    - - - - Blocks
1909 Apr 19    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1908 Jul 12 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1908 Jul 12 - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 3 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion
   - - - -    - - - - Ash
1908 Jul 12    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1907 Nov Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1907 Nov - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 3 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion
   - - - -    - - - - Eruption cloud
1907 Nov    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

[ 1897 - 1898 ] Uncertain Eruption

Episode 1 | Uncertain Episode
1897 - 1898 Evidence from Unknown
 Hantke (1959) reported activity in 1897 and 1898, and Sapper (1917) records activity in the 1890s. Although Cooke et al. (1976) considered this an eruption, Cooke and Johnson (1981) later discounted these reports.

[ 1888 ] Uncertain Eruption

Episode 1 | Uncertain Episode
1888 - Unknown Evidence from Unknown
 Zoller observed small "smoke clouds" in 1888 (Johnson et al., 1972). This eruption is considered uncertain (Cooke and Johnson, 1981).

List of 1 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Volcanic "smoke"

[ 1885 May 20 ] Uncertain Eruption

Episode 1 | Uncertain Episode
1885 May 20 - Unknown Evidence from Unknown
 Finsch (1888) reported that he was certain he saw smoke rising through the cloud layers on one occasion during his 20 May 1885 sighting of Bam (Cooke and Johnson, 1981). Oral traditions recount a major eruption leading to many deaths and temporary evacuation of the island about seven generations before 2005 (most probably in the mid-1880s), but it is not known which eruption report this references (Silver et al., 2009).

List of 1 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Volcanic "smoke"

[ 1884 ] Discredited Eruption

The date of observations by Otto Finsch was May 1885, not 1884.

[ 1883 Mar ] Uncertain Eruption

Episode 1 | Uncertain Episode
1883 Mar - Unknown Evidence from Unknown
 Bam was observed to be "still in activity" during a March 1883 visit by Miklouho-Maclay (1885). This is considered an uncertain eruption report by Cooke and Johnson (1981) and Lowenstein (1982).

1877 Nov 13 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 3

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1877 Nov 13 - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported
 Reported to be "in full eruption" by Miklouho-Maclay (Sentinella, 1975), but the exact nature of activity is uncertain.

List of 2 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion
1877 Nov 13    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1874 May 20 Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1874 May 20 - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported
 The first reliable report of activity on Bam was a 20 May 1874 observation of large volumes of steam and smoke discharging from the volcano (Moresby, 1875). The inhabitants were undisturbed by the volcano at the time of Moresby's visit, suggesting that this was not the vigorous ca. 1868-1975 eruption that prompted evacuations. Vigorous vapor emission is characteristic of well-documented eruptive periods on Bam, which emits little or no vapor during non-eruptive periods, lending support to the 1874 eruption report (Cooke and Johnson, 1981).

List of 2 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion
1874 May 20    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

1872 ± 4 years Confirmed Eruption Max VEI: 3

Episode 1 | Eruption Episode
1872 ± 4 years - Unknown Evidence from Observations: Reported
 A violent eruption recorded as occurring in 1868 (CAVW), which damaged or destroyed houses and gardens and prompted many of the islanders to flee, was estimated from oral tradition to have occurred sometime between 1868 and 1875 (Johnson et al., 1972; Cooke and Johnson, 1981).

List of 4 Events for Episode 1

Start Date End Date Event Type Event Remarks
   - - - -    - - - - Explosion violent, strong, or large
   - - - -    - - - - Property Damage
   - - - -    - - - - Evacuations
1872 ± 4 years    - - - - VEI (Explosivity Index)

[ 1700 Apr ] Discredited Eruption

The "smoking island" may have been Kadovar, not Bam (Johnson et al., 1972). Cooke and Johnson (1981) state that the only remark by Dampier on activity in the Schouten Islands during his 1700 visit appears to refer to the neighboring island of Kadovar.

[ 1616 ] Discredited Eruption

Reported to be active by Sapper (1917), but Cooke and Johnson (1981) indicate that Dutch mariners Schouten and Le Maire did not see Bam in eruption, but Manam was active.

Deformation History

There is no Deformation History data available for Bam.

Emission History

There is no Emissions History data available for Bam.

GVP Map Holdings

The maps shown below have been scanned from the GVP map archives and include the volcano on this page. Clicking on the small images will load the full 300 dpi map. Very small-scale maps (such as world maps) are not included. The maps database originated over 30 years ago, but was only recently updated and connected to our main database. We welcome users to tell us if they see incorrect information or other problems with the maps; please use the Contact GVP link at the bottom of the page to send us email.

Smithsonian Sample Collections Database

There are no samples for Bam in the Smithsonian's NMNH Department of Mineral Sciences Rock and Ore collection.

External Sites