All times are local unless otherwise stated.

Bezymianny | 13 November-19 November 2002 | New Activity / UnrestCite this Report
Bezymianny Central Kamchatka (Russia)	KVERT raised the Concern Color Code at Bezymianny from Green to Yellow on 18 November. A one-pixel thermal anomaly was observed on various satellite imagery on both 16 and 17 November. The closest telemetered seismic stations, located on Kliuchevskoi volcano 13.5 km from Bezymianny's lava dome, only recorded several shallow seismic events at Bezymianny; 13 per month in August and September, and 3 in October. High seismic activity at Kliuchevskoi makes it difficult to distinguish Bezymianny's seismic events. Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)
Etna | 13 November-19 November 2002 | New Activity / UnrestCite this Report
Etna Sicily (Italy)	The eruption that began at Etna on 27 October continued through 12 November. INGV-CT reported that on 12 November at 1340 volcanic tremor recorded by their seismic network gradually increased, reaching an amplitude two times higher than before. This seismicity increase occurred when fire fountaining and ash emission from the vent at 2,750 m elevation on the volcano's S flank suddenly stopped and were substituted by Strombolian activity. This change marked an increase in the magma level within the conduit, and on the 13th at 1600 a lava flow was emitted from the S base of the upper cinder cone that formed around the 2,750-m vent. The lava flow spread S, filling up the intermediate and lower cinder cones along the same eruptive fissure. It expanded SW towards Monte Nero, running parallel to the lava flow that had stopped on 31 October. By 14 November at 0930 the lava-flow front had reached 1.2 km in length, was at an elevation of 2,450 m a.s.l., and traveled at a velocity of about 2-3 m per minute. Strombolian activity was substituted by fire fountaining and the emission of ash that reached 3.5 km a.s.l. and drifted N and E. SO2 emission from Etna remained very high and fluctuated around 20,000 tons per day. According to a news article, Fontanarossa Airport in Catania, which had been closed since 10 November, reopened on the 13th. The Toulouse VAAC reported that moderate-to-severe ash emissions had occurred at Etna since the eruption began, but had become weaker since the afternoon of 12 November. Sources: Toulouse Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC), Sezione di Catania - Osservatorio Etneo (INGV)
Klyuchevskoy | 13 November-19 November 2002 | New Activity / UnrestCite this Report
Klyuchevskoy Central Kamchatka (Russia)	KVERT raised the Concern Color Code at Kliuchevskoi from Green to Yellow during 8-15 November. According to data from KMSD GS RAS, seismicity was above background levels at Kliuchevskoi during the report week. During 8-10 November, five to nine earthquakes occurred per day, and during 11-13 November 33-56 earthquakes occurred per day. Intermittent spasmodic volcanic tremor slowly decreased during 8-12 November. A gas-and-steam plume was seen rising 100-900 m above the crater and extended more than 10 km to the E and SE. Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)
Papandayan | 13 November-19 November 2002 | New Activity / UnrestCite this Report
Papandayan Western Java	An eruption began at Papandayan on 11 November that led to the evacuation of thousands of residents near the volcano. Increased seismicity was first recorded in early October 2002 when deep volcanic earthquakes occurred. By mid-October, shallow volcanic earthquakes were recorded, which were indicative of earthquake migration towards the surface. These earthquakes continued until the day of the eruption. On 11 November felt earthquakes and tremor were recorded and at 1530 there was a phreatic eruption at Kawah Baru Crater. At 1650 landslides from the W wall of the old crater complex traveled to the river and became lahars. By the 14th the eruption had progressed into a phreatomagmatic or magmatic phase, and 17 eruptions had produced thick gray ash clouds 500-1,000 m above the volcano. Many people who did not live in the most dangerous areas were allowed to return to their homes on the 14th. A relatively large eruption on the 15th at 0630 generated an ash cloud that reached 5 km above the summit. At this point Papandayan was at Alert Level 4 (on a scale of 1-4). During 16-18 November, volcanism was dominated by ash emissions that rose to 700 m and seismicity was dominated by continuous emission and explosion earthquakes. On the 18th at 1200 the Alert Level at Papandayan was reduced to 3. Sources: The Jakarta Post, Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as CVGHM), Reuters
Piton de la Fournaise | 13 November-19 November 2002 | New Activity / UnrestCite this Report
Piton de la Fournaise Reunion Island (France)	After 3 months of high seismicity at Piton de la Fournaise and three small seismic crises, a strong seismic crisis with several hundreds of earthquakes started on 15 November at 2336. The earthquakes were accompanied by large deformation at the summit of up to 300 microradians. An eruption began on the 16th at 0433 with the appearance of eruption tremor on the volcano's E flank around 1,900 m-elevation. Fissures opened on the volcano's E flank between elevations of 1,900 and 1,600 m and lava flowed down the E flank. A small cone formed on one of the most active fissures around 1,600 m elevation. Source: Observatoire Volcanologique du Piton de la Fournaise (OVPF)
Reventador | 13 November-19 November 2002 | New Activity / UnrestCite this Report
Reventador Ecuador	During 12-16 November, seismic and volcanic activity continued at Reventador. Constant tremor, and hybrid and volcanotectonic earthquakes were recorded. On 12 November a column of steam and ash was seen rising 6-7 km above the volcano and drifting to the W. There was only a moderate amount of ash in the cloud, therefore there was not much ashfall. Mudflows traveled down Reventador's flanks and during several evenings incandescence was visible on the NE flank. During a flight over the volcano on the 18th, a lava flow was seen on the crater's S wall advancing slowly. Also, pyroclastic-flow deposits were seen that IG warned may be remobilized during heavy rain, becoming dangerous mud flows. Sources: Instituto Geofísico-Escuela Politécnica Nacional (IG), Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC)
Sheveluch | 13 November-19 November 2002 | New Activity / UnrestCite this Report
Sheveluch Central Kamchatka (Russia)	During 11-14 November, seismicity remained above background levels at Shiveluch. During this interval, seismic data indicated that there had been hot avalanches and seven ash-and-gas explosions in which clouds reached 2-3 km above the lava dome. Weak intermittent spasmodic tremor was registered. According to seismic data, possible short-lived explosions sent ash-and-gas plumes to heights of 5.5 km above the dome. Gas-and-steam plumes were seen rising to ~800 m a.s.l. and thermal anomalies were visible on satellite imagery. Shiveluch remained at Concern Color Code Orange. Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)

Karymsky | 13 November-19 November 2002 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Karymsky Eastern Kamchatka (Russia)	Seismicity remained above background levels at Karymsky during 8-15 November, with approximately 250 local shallow events recorded per day. The character of the seismicity indicated that ash-and-gas explosions rose to 1-2 km above the volcano and vigorous gas emissions lasting 5-10 minutes possibly occurred. Thermal anomalies (1-2 pixels) were visible on satellite imagery several days. Karymsky remained at Concern Color Code Yellow. Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)
Kilauea | 13 November-19 November 2002 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Kilauea Hawaiian Islands (USA)	During 13-18 November at Kilauea two lava deltas were active, with lava entering the ocean at times. Only a small amount of incandescence was visible above Paliuli. Generally, seismicity was at normal levels. The swarm of long-period earthquakes and tremor beneath Kilauea's caldera, occasionally active since June, continued to show short bursts of tremor interspersed with numerous small earthquakes. Besides gentle deflation at Pu`u `O`o, no other significant deformation occurred. Source: US Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HVO)
Soufriere Hills | 13 November-19 November 2002 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Soufriere Hills Montserrat	Activity at Soufrière Hills increased slightly during 8-15 November. On the 8th and 9th pyroclastic flows traveled 900-1,000 m NW into Tyer's Ghaut at the headwaters of the Belham Valley. From the 10th to 15th, lava-dome growth and ash venting were concentrated to the NE at the base of the NW lava lobe. Rockfall and pyroclastic-flow debris were shed predominantly NE down Tar River Valley and Tuitt's Ghaut and occasionally down the NW flank. During the last 3 days of the report period, the size and energy of the pyroclastic flows increased slightly. SO2 emission rates were higher than the previous week, with a mean emission rate of 520-560 tons per day. Sources: Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC), Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO)
Tungurahua | 13 November-19 November 2002 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Tungurahua Ecuador	During 14-18 November, emissions of steam, gas, and ash continued at Tungurahua. Plumes rose to ~1 km above the volcano and incandescence was seen during several evenings. A moderate explosion occurred on the 14th at dawn that was heard in the town of Ambato. Source: Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC)
Veniaminof | 13 November-19 November 2002 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Veniaminof Alaska Peninsula, Alaska	On 18 November AVO lowered the Concern Color Code at Veniaminof from Yellow to Green. Since early October they had received no pilot reports or other observations of activity at the volcano. Also, they had not detected thermal anomalies in any clear satellite images. Though seismicity remained above levels recorded this summer, it has remained roughly constant for the past month at a level notably lower than in September, when the color code was raised to Yellow. AVO stated that while Veniaminof is in its current state of activity, low-level steaming and minor ash emissions may periodically occur. Source: US Geological Survey Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO)
Witori | 13 November-19 November 2002 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Witori New Britain (Papua New Guinea)	Volcanic activity continued at Pago and residents in relatively low-risk areas near the volcano were told it was safe to return to their homes according to a news article. The eruption of Pago began in August, leading to the evacuation of 12,000-15,000 residents. Source: Asia Pacific

Weekly Reports Archive

Since the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report began in November 2000, there have been 18,995 individual reports over 1,169 weeks (average of 16 per week) on 329 different volcanoes.

Use the dropdowns to choose the year and week for archived Weekly Reports.

 News Feeds and Google Placemarks

 Criteria & Disclaimers

The Weekly Volcanic Activity Report does not necessarily include all volcanic activity that occurred on Earth during the week. More than a dozen volcanoes globally have displayed more-or-less continuous eruptive activity for decades or longer, and such routine activity is typically not reported here. Moreover, Earth's sea-floor volcanism is seldom reported even though in theory it represents the single most prolific source of erupted material. The Weekly Volcanic Activity Report summarizes volcanic activity that meets one or more of the following criteria:

- A volcano observatory raises or lowers the alert level at the volcano.
- A volcanic ash advisory has been released by a volcanic ash advisory center (VAAC) stating that an ash cloud has been produced from the volcano.
- A verifiable news report of new activity or a change in activity at the volcano has been issued.
- Observers have reported a significant change in volcanic activity. Such activity can include, but is not restricted to, pyroclastic flows, lahars, lava flows, dome collapse, or increased unrest.

Volcanoes are included in the "New Activity/Unrest" section of the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report if the activity occurs after at least 3 months of quiescence. Once a volcano is included in the "New Activity/Unrest" section, updates will remain in that section unless the activity continues for more than 1 month without escalating, after which time updates will be listed in the "Continuing Activity" section. Volcanoes are also included in the "New Activity/Unrest" section if the volcano is undergoing a period of relatively high unrest, or increasing unrest. This is commonly equal to Alert Level Orange on a scale of Green, Yellow, Orange, Red, where Red is the highest alert. Or alert level 3 on a scale of 1-4 or 1-5.

It is important to note that volcanic activity meeting one or more of these criteria may occur during the week, but may not be included in the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report because we did not receive a report.

1. The Weekly Volcanic Activity Report is intended to provide timely information about global volcanism on a weekly basis. Consequently, the report is generated rapidly by summarizing volcanic reports from various sources, with little time for fact checking. The accuracy of the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report is dependent upon the quality of the volcanic activity reports we receive. Reports published in the Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network are cover longer time periods and are more carefully reviewed, although all of the volcanoes discussed in the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report are not necessarily reported in the Bulletin. Because of our emphasis on rapid reporting on the web we have avoided diacritical marks. Reports are updated on the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report web page as they are received, therefore information may be included regarding events that occurred before the current report period.

2. Rapidly developing events lead to coverage that is often fragmentary. Volcanoes, their eruptions, and their plumes and associated atmospheric effects are complex phenomena that may require months to years of data analysis in order to create a comprehensive summary and interpretation of events.

3. Preliminary accounts sometimes contain exaggerations and "false alarms," and accordingly, this report may include some events ultimately found to be erroneous or misleading.

4. Many news agencies do not archive the articles they post on the Internet, and therefore the links to some sources may not be active. To obtain information about the cited articles that are no longer available on the Internet contact the source.

5. USGS Disclaimer Statement for this Website:

Information presented on this website is considered public information and may be distributed or copied. Use of appropriate byline/photo/image credit is requested. We strongly recommend that USGS data be acquired directly from a USGS server and not through other sources that may change the data in some way. While USGS makes every effort to provide accurate and complete information, various data such as names, telephone numbers, etc. may change prior to updating. USGS welcomes suggestions on how to improve our home page and correct errors. USGS provides no warranty, expressed or implied, as to the accuracy, reliability or completeness of furnished data.

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U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA, USA
URL: https://volcano.si.edu/reports_weekly.cfm

 Acronyms and Abbreviations

a.s.l. - above sea level

AVO - Alaska Volcano Observatory

AVHRR - Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer

CENAPRED - Centro Nacionale de Prevencion de Desastres (México)

CONRED - Coordinadora Nacional para la Reducción de Desastres

COSPEC - Correlation Spectrometer

CVGHM (formerly VSI) - Center of Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation

CVO - Cascades Volcano Observatory (USGS)

GMS - Geostationary Meteorological Satellite

GOES - Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite

GVO - Goma Volcano Observatory

GVP - Global Volcanism Program (Smithsonian Institution)

HVO - Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (USGS)

ICE - Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (Costa Rica)

IG - Instituto Geofísico (Ecuador)

IGNS - Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences (New Zealand) - now GNS Science

INETER - Instituto Nicaragüense de Estudios Territoriales (Nicaragua)

INGEMMET - Instituto Geológical Minero y Metalúrgico (Peru)

INGEOMINAS - Instituto Colombiano de Geología y Minería (Colombia)

INGV-CT - Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia - Sezione di Catania (Italy)

INSIVUMEH - Instituto Nacional de Sismologia, Vulcanologia, Meteorologia e Hidrologia (Guatemala)

IRD - Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (France)

JMA - Japanese Meteorological Agency

KEMSD - Kamchatkan Experimental and Methodical Seismilogical Department

KVERT - Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team

M - magnitude

METEOSAT - Meteorological Satellite

MEVO - Mount Erebus Volcano Observatory

MODIS - Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer

MVO - Montserrat Volcano Observatory

MWO - Meteorological Watch Office

NEIC - National Earthquake Information Center

NIED - National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention (Japan)

NOAA - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

NOTAM - Notice to Airmen

OVDAS - Observatorio Volcanologico de los Andes del Sur (Chile)

OFDA - Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance

ONEMI - Oficina Nacional de Emergencia - Ministerio del Interior (Chile)

OVPDLF - Observatoire Volcanologique du Piton de la Fournaise (France)

OVSICORI-UNA - Observatorio Vulcanologico y Sismologico de Costa Rica, Universidad Nacional (Costa Rica)

PHIVOLCS - Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Philippines)

RSAM - Real-time Seismic Amplitude Measurement

RVO - Rabaul Volcano Observatory

SERNAGEOMIN - Servicio Nacional de Geologia y Mineria (Chile)

SIGMET - Significant Meteorological Information

SNET - Servicio Nacional de Estudios Territoriales (El Salvador)

SVERT - Sakhalin Volcanic Eruption Response Team (Russia)

USAID - US Agency for International Development

USGS - United States Geological Survey

UTC - Coordinated Universal Time

VAAC - Volcanic Ash Advisory Center

VAFTAD - Volcanic Ash Forecast Transport And Dispersion

VDAP - Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (USGS)

VHP - Volcano Hazards Program (USGS)

VRC - Volcano Research Center (Japan)