All times are local unless otherwise stated.

Nishinoshima (Japan) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | New Activity / Unrest Cite this Report
Nishinoshima Ogasawara Volcanic Arc	A thermal anomaly at Nishinoshima was identified in satellite images on 5 December, prompting JMA to expand the marine exclusion zone around the island to 1.5 km. The Japan Coast Guard (JCG) conducted an overflight the next day and observed Strombolian explosions ejecting blocks as high as 200 m above a crater on the E side of the central pyroclastic cone. Lava flows had traveled to within 200 m of the coastline. Light gray eruption plumes drifted E. During an overflight on 7 December observers confirmed continuing Strombolian activity and saw lava entering the sea. Sources: Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), Japan Coast Guard
Semisopochnoi (United States) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | New Activity / Unrest Cite this Report
Semisopochnoi Aleutian Ridge Volcanic Arc	Strong tremor at Semisopochnoi was recorded by local seismic and regional infrasound networks beginning at 0026 on 7 December, heralding the start of an eruption and prompting AVO to raise the Aviation Color Code to Orange and the Volcano Alert Level to Watch. The meteorological cloud deck over the volcano was at around 3 km (10,000 ft) a.s.l.; no ash signals were detected above this altitude. A period of intermittent explosions was detected, and afterwards seismicity remained elevated at least through 9 December. Source: US Geological Survey Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO)
Whakaari/White Island (New Zealand) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | New Activity / Unrest Cite this Report
Whakaari/White Island Taupo Volcanic Zone	A deadly and short-lived (1-2 minutes) eruption at White Island began around 1411 on 9 December, prompting GeoNet to raise the Alert Level to 4 and the Aviation Color Code to Orange. The eruption originated from the crater floor and generated an ash plume that rose 3.7 km (12,000 ft) above the vent. Ashfall was confined to the island and covered the crater floor based on webcam views. Activity waned after the event and within a few hours the Alert Level was lowered to 3. An exclusion zone extending just under 10 km around the island was emplaced for all (non-police) vessels. The New Zealand Police stated that 47 local and international people in a tour group were on the island at the time of the eruption. A majority of the people in the group were seriously injured and taken to area hospitals; six were confirmed dead. On 10 December the police concluded that there likely were no additional survivors after several reconnaissance flights conducted post-eruption; nine people remained missing and assumed to be on the island. On 10 December GeoNet reported that although seismic activity had dropped to low levels after the eruption, localized steaming and mud jetting continued from the active vents. Tremor significantly increased starting around 0400 on 11 December. Results from an overflight to collect gas emission data, along with other monitoring data collected over time, suggested that a shallow magma source was driving the tremor, gas emissions, and jetting activity. Sources: GeoNet, New Zealand Police

Aira (Japan) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Aira Ryukyu Volcanic Arc	JMA reported that incandescence from Minamidake Crater (at Aira Caldera’s Sakurajima volcano) was visible at night during 2-9 December. There were 15 explosions and four non-explosive eruptive events detected by the seismic network. Ash plumes rose 2.3-2.6 km above the crater rim and blocks were ejected as far as 1.7 km away. The Alert Level remained at 3 (on a 5-level scale). Source: Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA)
Dukono (Indonesia) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Dukono Halmahera Volcanic Arc	Based on satellite and wind model data, and information from PVMBG, the Darwin VAAC reported that during 4-9 December ash plumes from Dukono rose to altitudes of 1.8-2.1 km (6,000-7,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted in multiple directions. The Alert Level remained at 2 (on a scale of 1-4), and the public was warned to remain outside of the 2-km exclusion zone. Sources: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as CVGHM), Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)
Ebeko (Russia) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Ebeko Kuril Volcanic Arc	Volcanologists in Severo-Kurilsk (Paramushir Island), about 7 km E of Ebeko, observed explosions during 30 November and 1-2 and 5 December that sent ash plumes up to 3 km (10,000 ft) a.s.l. Ash plumes drifted NE and E. The Aviation Color Code remained at Orange (the second highest level on a four-color scale). Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)
Karangetang (Indonesia) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Karangetang Sangihe Volcanic Arc	PVMBG reported that during 2-8 December lava continued to effuse from Karangetang’s Main Crater (S), traveling as far as 1.8 km down the Nanitu, Pangi, and Sense drainages on the SW and W flanks. Sometimes dense white plumes rose to 200 m above the summit. Incandescence from both summit craters was visible at night. The Alert Level remained at 2 (on a scale of 1-4). Source: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as CVGHM)
Klyuchevskoy (Russia) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Klyuchevskoy Eastern Kamchatka Volcanic Arc	KVERT reported that Strombolian activity at Klyuchevskoy was visible on 29 November and 1 December, the same days a weak thermal anomaly was identified in satellite images. The Aviation Color Code remained at Orange. Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)
Reventador (Ecuador) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Reventador Northern Andean Volcanic Arc	IG reported that during 4-10 December seismic data from Reventador’s network indicated a high level of seismic activity, including explosions, long-period earthquakes, harmonic tremor, and signals indicating emissions. Weather sometimes prevented views of the summit area, although during clear conditions ash, gas, and steam plumes were visible rising sometimes higher than 1 km above the crater rim and drifting N, NW, W, and SW. Crater incandescence was periodically observed at night. Blocks rolled 500-700 m down the flanks in multiple directions during 7-10 December. Source: Instituto Geofísico-Escuela Politécnica Nacional (IG-EPN)
Sangay (Ecuador) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Sangay Northern Andean Volcanic Arc	IG reported that the eruption at Sangay that began on 7 May was continuing as of 4 December without a notable increase or decrease in activity levels. Activity was concentrated at two eruptive centers: the Central Crater and the Ñuñurcu dome (located 190 m SSE of Central Crater). Sporadic explosions at Central Crater produced ash plumes that rose as high as 2 km above the crater rim and drifted mainly NE during the previous month. Minor ashfall was recorded in the towns of Alao (20 km NW), Cebadas (35 km WNW), and Guaguallá (Chimborazo province), in Macas (42 km SSE, Morona-Santiago province), and in the Azuay province. Almost continuous lava effusion from the Ñuñurcu dome fed lava flows that traveled down the SE flank. Collapses along the margins of the lava flows generated small pyroclastic flows and small rockfalls that reached the upper channel of the Río Volcán. These deposits created dams which were remobilized by rainfall into lahars, which in turn partially dammed parts of the river at the confluence of the Río Upano. Parque Nacional Sangay and IG-EPN staff measured deposits at the confluence that were more than 2 m thick on 27 November; similar deposits were observed along a 16-km stretch upsteam. Sulfur dioxide emissions up to 640 tons/day were detected by satellite in recent weeks, and a strong sulfur odor was noted around 1 km above the crater rim during a 3 December overflight. Source: Instituto Geofísico-Escuela Politécnica Nacional (IG-EPN)
Sangeang Api (Indonesia) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Sangeang Api Sunda Volcanic Arc	The Darwin VAAC reported that during 4-5 and 7-9 December discrete ash emissions from Sangeang Api rose to an altitude of 2.4 km (8,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted NW, W, and SW. A thermal anomaly was visible on 27 November. The Alert Level remained at 2 (on a scale of 1-4). Source: Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)
Sheveluch (Russia) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Sheveluch Eastern Kamchatka Volcanic Arc	KVERT reported that a thermal anomaly over Sheveluch was identified in satellite images during 29 November-6 December. The Aviation Color Code remained at Orange (the second highest level on a four-color scale). Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)
Shishaldin (United States) | 4 December-10 December 2019 | Continuing ActivityCite this Report
Shishaldin Aleutian Ridge Volcanic Arc	AVO reported that elevated surface temperatures at Shishaldin were identified in satellite images during 3-4 December consistent with lava effusion, and a pilot confirmed active lava flows on the flank. Continuous tremor was recorded by the seismic network during 4-5 December. Seismicity, including Strombolian explosion signals, continued to increase until 2100 on 5 December and then afterwards was characterized by episodic tremor bursts and occasional Strombolian activity. Intermittent, very minor, and low-level ash or steam emissions near the summit and along the N flank were visible in clear webcam views on 5 December. A new lava flow had traveled 1.4 km down the NW flank. The eruption either slowed or paused during 6-7 December as evidenced by decreased seismicity and slightly elevated surface temperatures in satellite data. Temperatures again increased and were slightly elevated during 7-9 December, likely signifying renewed lava effusion. The Aviation Color Code remained at Orange and the Volcano Alert Level remained at Watch. Source: US Geological Survey Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO)

Weekly Reports Archive

Since the Weekly Volcanic Activity Report began in November 2000, there have been 20,627 individual reports over 1,243 weeks (average of 17 per week) on 338 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.

Some of the documents on this server may contain live references (or pointers) to information created and maintained by other organizations. Please note that USGS does not control and cannot guarantee the relevance, timeliness, or accuracy of these outside materials.

For site security purposes and to ensure that this service remains available to all users, this government computer system employs software programs to monitor network traffic to identify unauthorized attempts to upload or change information, or otherwise cause damage. Unauthorized attempts to upload information or change information on this website are strictly prohibited and may be punishable under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1986 and the National Information Infrastructure Protection Act. Information may also be used for authorized law enforcement investigations. (Last modified September 21, 1999.)

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)