Global Volcanism Program

The Global Volcanism Program has no activity reports available for Nila.

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

The Global Volcanism Program has no Bulletin Reports available for Nila.

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.

Synonyms

Kokon | Lina | Lawarkawra | Nika | Laworkawra

Basic Data

Volcano Number

Last Known Eruption

Elevation

Latitude
Longitude

265060

1968 CE

781 m / 2,562 ft

6.73°S
129.5°E

Morphology

Volcano Landform
Composite

Volcano Types
Stratovolcano
Caldera
Pyroclastic cone

Rock Types

Major
Andesite / Basaltic Andesite

Minor
Basalt / Picro-Basalt

Tectonic Setting

Subduction zone
Oceanic crust (< 15 km)

Population

Within 5 km
Within 10 km
Within 30 km
Within 100 km

200
200
200
1,382

Geological Summary

The 5 x 6 km Nila Island in the Banda Sea is comprised of a low-rimmed caldera breached at sea level on the south and east, with a youthful forested cone. Phreatic eruptions from the dominantly andesitic volcano, also known as Laworkawra, have occurred from summit vents and flank fissures. A 1932 eruption from a fissure that extended from the summit to the SE coast produced heavy ashfall that forced abandonment of Rumadai village.

References

The following references have all been used during the compilation of data for this volcano, it is not a comprehensive bibliography.

Jezek P A, Hutchison C S, 1978. Banda Arc of Eastern Indonesia: petrology and geochemistry of volcanic rocks. Bull Volcanol, 41: 586-608.

Kusumadinata K, 1979. Data Dasar Gunungapi Indonesia. Bandung: Volc Surv Indonesia, 820 p.

Neumann van Padang M, 1951. Indonesia. Catalog of Active Volcanoes of the World and Solfatara Fields, Rome: IAVCEI, 1: 1-271.

Varekamp J C, Snellius II Shipboard Party, 1984. The Banda arc volcanoes, eastern Indonesia (abs). Eos, Trans Amer Geophys Union, 65: 1135.

Vroon P Z, 1992. Subduction of continental material in the Banda Arc, eastern Indonesia: Sr-Nd-Pb isotope and trace element evidence from volcanics and sediments. Fac Aardwetenschappen Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht, 205 p.

Eruptive History

There is data available for 4 confirmed Holocene eruptive periods.

1968 May 7 - 1968 Jun 16 ± 15 days Confirmed Eruption VEI: 1

Episode 1 | Eruption

East flank

1968 May 7 - 1968 Jun 16 ± 15 days

Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 5 Events for Episode 1 at East flank

Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
- - - -	- - - -	Phreatic activity	weak or small
- - - -	- - - -	Earthquakes (undefined)	Before.
- - - -	- - - -	Earthquakes (undefined)
- - - -	- - - -	Crater	Parasitic.
1968 May 7	- - - -	VEI (Explosivity Index)

1964 Mar 16 ± 15 days - 1964 Mar 16 ± 15 days Confirmed Eruption VEI: 1 (?)

Episode 1 | Eruption

1964 Mar 16 ± 15 days - 1964 Mar 16 ± 15 days

Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 4 Events for Episode 1

Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
- - - -	- - - -	Phreatic activity	Uncertain
- - - -	- - - -	Blocks
- - - -	- - - -	Earthquakes (undefined)
1964 Mar	- - - -	VEI (Explosivity Index)

1932 Mar 13 Confirmed Eruption VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption

SE flank

1932 Mar 13 - Unknown

Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 5 Events for Episode 1 at SE flank

Start Date	End Date	Event Type
- - - -	- - - -	Phreatic activity
- - - -	- - - -	Ash
- - - -	- - - -	Earthquakes (undefined)
- - - -	- - - -	Evacuations
1932 Mar 13	- - - -	VEI (Explosivity Index)

1903 Dec 8 Confirmed Eruption VEI: 2

Episode 1 | Eruption

1903 Dec 8 - Unknown

Evidence from Observations: Reported

List of 2 Events for Episode 1

	Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
	- - - -	- - - -	Phreatic activity
	1903 Dec 8	- - - -	VEI (Explosivity Index)

Deformation History

There is no Deformation History data available for Nila.

Emission History

There is no Emissions History data available for Nila.

Photo Gallery

Nila Island, viewed here from off its northern coast, is the emergent summit of a stratovolcano that rises 3700 m from the Banda Sea floor. A submarine vent is located off the north flank immediately west of the small island of Nika. Gas bubbles were observed along the rim of the submarine cone in 1932, when an eruption occurred from a fissure extending from the summit to the SE coast.

Photo by Rizal, 1976 (Volcanological Survey of Indonesia).

A fumarole plume (right-center) rises above the steep SE slopes of Nila volcano, also known as Laworkawra or Lawarkawra. A remnant of the rim of a 5-km-wide caldera forms the forested slope at the left. The 781-m-high summit above it is a post-caldera cone that fills much of the caldera and extends to the sea at the right. Phreatic eruptions from Gunung Nila have occurred from summit vents and flank fissures during historical time.

Photo by Ruska Hadian, 1975 (published in Kusumadinata 1979, "Data Dasar Gunungapi Indonesia").

GVP Map Holdings

Maps are not currently available due to technical issues.

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.

Smithsonian Sample Collections Database

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

External Sites

Copernicus Browser

The Copernicus Browser replaced the Sentinel Hub Playground browser in 2023, to provide access to Earth observation archives from the Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem, the main distribution platform for data from the EU Copernicus missions.

MIROVA

Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity (MIROVA) is a near real time volcanic hot-spot detection system based on the analysis of MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) data. In particular, MIROVA uses the Middle InfraRed Radiation (MIR), measured over target volcanoes, in order to detect, locate and measure the heat radiation sourced from volcanic activity.

MODVOLC Thermal Alerts

Using infrared satellite Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data, scientists at the Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawai'i, developed an automated system called MODVOLC to map thermal hot-spots in near real time. For each MODIS image, the algorithm automatically scans each 1 km pixel within it to check for high-temperature hot-spots. When one is found the date, time, location, and intensity are recorded. MODIS looks at every square km of the Earth every 48 hours, once during the day and once during the night, and the presence of two MODIS sensors in space allows at least four hot-spot observations every two days. Each day updated global maps are compiled to display the locations of all hot spots detected in the previous 24 hours. There is a drop-down list with volcano names which allow users to 'zoom-in' and examine the distribution of hot-spots at a variety of spatial scales.

WOVOdat
   Single Volcano View
   Temporal Evolution of Unrest
   Side by Side Volcanoes

WOVOdat is a database of volcanic unrest; instrumentally and visually recorded changes in seismicity, ground deformation, gas emission, and other parameters from their normal baselines. It is sponsored by the World Organization of Volcano Observatories (WOVO) and presently hosted at the Earth Observatory of Singapore.

GVMID Data on Volcano Monitoring Infrastructure The Global Volcano Monitoring Infrastructure Database GVMID, is aimed at documenting and improving capabilities of volcano monitoring from the ground and space. GVMID should provide a snapshot and baseline view of the techniques and instrumentation that are in place at various volcanoes, which can be use by volcano observatories as reference to setup new monitoring system or improving networks at a specific volcano. These data will allow identification of what monitoring gaps exist, which can be then targeted by remote sensing infrastructure and future instrument deployments.

Volcanic Hazard Maps

The IAVCEI Commission on Volcanic Hazards and Risk has a Volcanic Hazard Maps database designed to serve as a resource for hazard mappers (or other interested parties) to explore how common issues in hazard map development have been addressed at different volcanoes, in different countries, for different hazards, and for different intended audiences. In addition to the comprehensive, searchable Volcanic Hazard Maps Database, this website contains information about diversity of volcanic hazard maps, illustrated using examples from the database. This site is for educational purposes related to volcanic hazard maps. Hazard maps found on this website should not be used for emergency purposes. For the most recent, official hazard map for a particular volcano, please seek out the proper institutional authorities on the matter.

IRIS seismic stations/networks

Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS) Data Services map showing the location of seismic stations from all available networks (permanent or temporary) within a radius of 0.18° (about 20 km at mid-latitudes) from the given location of Nila. Users can customize a variety of filters and options in the left panel. Note that if there are no stations are known the map will default to show the entire world with a "No data matched request" error notice.

UNAVCO GPS/GNSS stations

Geodetic Data Services map from UNAVCO showing the location of GPS/GNSS stations from all available networks (permanent or temporary) within a radius of 20 km from the given location of Nila. Users can customize the data search based on station or network names, location, and time window. Requires Adobe Flash Player.

DECADE Data

The DECADE portal, still in the developmental stage, serves as an example of the proposed interoperability between The Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program, the Mapping Gas Emissions (MaGa) Database, and the EarthChem Geochemical Portal. The Deep Earth Carbon Degassing (DECADE) initiative seeks to use new and established technologies to determine accurate global fluxes of volcanic CO₂ to the atmosphere, but installing CO₂ monitoring networks on 20 of the world's 150 most actively degassing volcanoes. The group uses related laboratory-based studies (direct gas sampling and analysis, melt inclusions) to provide new data for direct degassing of deep earth carbon to the atmosphere.

Large Eruptions of Nila

Information about large Quaternary eruptions (VEI >= 4) is cataloged in the Large Magnitude Explosive Volcanic Eruptions (LaMEVE) database of the Volcano Global Risk Identification and Analysis Project (VOGRIPA).

EarthChem

EarthChem develops and maintains databases, software, and services that support the preservation, discovery, access and analysis of geochemical data, and facilitate their integration with the broad array of other available earth science parameters. EarthChem is operated by a joint team of disciplinary scientists, data scientists, data managers and information technology developers who are part of the NSF-funded data facility Integrated Earth Data Applications (IEDA). IEDA is a collaborative effort of EarthChem and the Marine Geoscience Data System (MGDS).