Smithsonian / USGS Weekly Volcanic Activity Report 12-18 August 2020

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From: "Kuhn, Sally" <KUHNS@xxxxxx>


Smithsonian / USGS Weekly Volcanic Activity Report

12-18 August 2020



Sally Kuhn Sennert - Weekly Report Editor (kuhns@xxxxxx)

URL: https://volcano.si.edu/reports_weekly.cfm





New Activity/Unrest: Manam, Papua New Guinea  | Raung, Eastern Java
(Indonesia)  | Sinabung, Indonesia



Ongoing Activity: Aira, Kyushu (Japan)  | Dukono, Halmahera (Indonesia)  |
Ebeko, Paramushir Island (Russia)  | Ibu, Halmahera (Indonesia)  | Kadovar,
Papua New Guinea  | Karymsky, Eastern Kamchatka (Russia)  | Kerinci,
Indonesia  | Nishinoshima, Japan  | Reventador, Ecuador  | Semeru, Eastern
Java (Indonesia)  | Sheveluch, Central Kamchatka (Russia)





The Weekly Volcanic Activity Report is a cooperative project between the
Smithsonian's Global Volcanism Program and the US Geological Survey's
Volcano Hazards Program. Updated by 2300 UTC every Wednesday, these reports
are preliminary and subject to change as events are studied in more detail.
This is not a comprehensive list of all of Earth's volcanoes erupting
during the week, but rather a summary of activity at volcanoes that meet
criteria discussed in detail in the "Criteria and Disclaimers" section.
Carefully reviewed, detailed reports about recent activity are published in
issues of the Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network.



Note that 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.







New Activity/Unrest





Manam  | Papua New Guinea  | 4.08°S, 145.037°E  | Summit elev. 1807 m



The Darwin VAAC reported that on 16 August ash plumes from Manam rose
2.1-4.3 km (7,000-14,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted W and NW.



Geologic Summary. 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.



Source: Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)
http://www.bom.gov.au/aviation/volcanic-ash/darwin-va-advisory.shtml





Raung  | Eastern Java (Indonesia)  | 8.119°S, 114.056°E  | Summit elev.
3260 m



PVMBG reported that gray emissions rose 200 m above Raungâ??s summit and
drifted S during 11-12 August. White plumes rose as high as 100 m and
drifted N and S on a few days during 13-18 August; weather conditions
sometimes prevented visual observations. 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.



Geologic Summary. Raung, one of Java's most active volcanoes, is a massive
stratovolcano in easternmost Java that was constructed SW of the rim of
Ijen caldera. The unvegetated summit is truncated by a dramatic
steep-walled, 2-km-wide caldera that has been the site of frequent
historical eruptions. A prehistoric collapse of Gunung Gadung on the W
flank produced a large debris avalanche that traveled 79 km, reaching
nearly to the Indian Ocean. Raung contains several centers constructed
along a NE-SW line, with Gunung Suket and Gunung Gadung stratovolcanoes
being located to the NE and W, respectively.



Source: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known
as CVGHM) http://vsi.esdm.go.id/





Sinabung  | Indonesia  | 3.17°N, 98.392°E  | Summit elev. 2460 m



PVMBG reported that white-and-gray plumes rose 200 m above Sinabungâ??s
summit and drifted E and SE on 12 August. A series of seven eruptions late
on 13 August generated ash plumes that rose as high as 2 km and drifted E,
SE, and S. The first event, at 0607, lasted for 12 minutes and produced an
ash plume that rose 2 km according to BNPB. Seismicity was dominated by
continuous tremor during the series. Eruptive events at 1030, 1425, and
1455 on 14 August produced ash plumes that rose as high as 2.1 km and
drifted SSE and ESE. An ash plume from an event at 1656 rose 4.2 km and
drifted E. At 1724 on 17 August an ash plume rose 1.5 km and drifted SE.
Ash plumes rose as high as 2 km on 18 August. The Alert Level remained at 3
(on a scale of 1-4), with a general exclusion zone of 3 km and extensions
to 5 km on the SE sector and 4 km in the NE sector.



Geologic Summary. Gunung Sinabung is a Pleistocene-to-Holocene
stratovolcano with many lava flows on its flanks. The migration of summit
vents along a N-S line gives the summit crater complex an elongated form.
The youngest crater of this conical andesitic-to-dacitic edifice is at the
southern end of the four overlapping summit craters. The youngest deposit
is a SE-flank pyroclastic flow 14C dated by Hendrasto et al. (2012) at
740-880 CE. An unconfirmed eruption was noted in 1881, and solfataric
activity was seen at the summit and upper flanks in 1912. No confirmed
historical eruptions were recorded prior to explosive eruptions during
August-September 2010 that produced ash plumes to 5 km above the summit.



Sources: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known
as CVGHM) http://vsi.esdm.go.id/;

Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)
http://www.bom.gov.au/aviation/volcanic-ash/darwin-va-advisory.shtml;

Badan Nacional Penanggulangan Bencana (BNPB) http://www.bnpb.go.id/





Ongoing Activity





Aira  | Kyushu (Japan)  | 31.593°N, 130.657°E  | Summit elev. 1117 m



JMA reported that very small eruptive events at Minamidake Crater (at Aira
Calderaâ??s Sakurajima volcano) were recorded during 10-17 August. The daily
sulfur dioxide emission rate was just over 1,000 tons/day on 13 August.
During an overflight on 14 August observers noted that emissions were
rising from multiple vents in the crater. The Alert Level remained at 3 (on
a 5-level scale).



Geologic Summary. 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.



Source: Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) http://www.jma.go.jp/jma/





Dukono  | Halmahera (Indonesia)  | 1.693°N, 127.894°E  | Summit elev. 1229 m



Based on satellite and wind model data, the Darwin VAAC reported that
during 12-18 August ash plumes from Dukono rose to 2.1 km (7,000 ft) a.s.l.
and drifted in multiple directions. A discrete ash plume rose to 4.3 km
(14,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted W on 17 August; the event was associated
with a summit thermal anomaly. 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.



Geologic Summary. Reports from this remote volcano in northernmost
Halmahera are rare, but Dukono has been one of Indonesia's most active
volcanoes. More-or-less continuous explosive eruptions, sometimes
accompanied by lava flows, occurred from 1933 until at least the mid-1990s,
when routine observations were curtailed. During a major eruption in 1550,
a lava flow filled in the strait between Halmahera and the north-flank cone
of Gunung Mamuya. This complex volcano presents a broad, low profile with
multiple summit peaks and overlapping craters. Malupang Wariang, 1 km SW of
the summit crater complex, contains a 700 x 570 m crater that has also been
active during historical time.



Sources: Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)
http://www.bom.gov.au/aviation/volcanic-ash/darwin-va-advisory.shtml;

Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as CVGHM)
http://vsi.esdm.go.id/





Ebeko  | Paramushir Island (Russia)  | 50.686°N, 156.014°E  | Summit elev.
1103 m



Volcanologists in Severo-Kurilsk (Paramushir Island), about 7 km E of
Ebeko, observed explosions on 7, 9, 11, and 13 August that sent ash plumes
up to 3 km (10,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted W, S, and E. Ashfall was reported
in Severo-Kurilsk on 9 August. A thermal anomaly over the volcano was
identified in satellite images on 7 and 10 August. The Aviation Color Code
remained at Orange (the second highest level on a four-color scale).



Geologic Summary. 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.



Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)
http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/kvert/index_eng.php





Ibu  | Halmahera (Indonesia)  | 1.488°N, 127.63°E  | Summit elev. 1325 m



PVMBG reported that during 12-14 and 16-17 August ash plumes rose 200-800 m
above Ibuâ??s summit and drifted N, W, and S. Weather conditions sometimes
prevented visual observations of the summit. The Alert Level remained at 2
(on a scale of 1-4), and the public was warned to stay at least 2 km away
from the active crater, and 3.5 km away on the N side.



Geologic Summary. The truncated summit of Gunung Ibu stratovolcano along
the NW coast of Halmahera Island has large nested summit craters. The inner
crater, 1 km wide and 400 m deep, contained several small crater lakes
through much of historical time. The outer crater, 1.2 km wide, is breached
on the north side, creating a steep-walled valley. A large parasitic cone
is located ENE of the summit. A smaller one to the WSW has fed a lava flow
down the W flank. A group of maars is located below the N and W flanks.
Only a few eruptions have been recorded in historical time, the first a
small explosive eruption from the summit crater in 1911. An eruption
producing a lava dome that eventually covered much of the floor of the
inner summit crater began in December 1998.



Sources: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known
as CVGHM) http://vsi.esdm.go.id/;

Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)
http://www.bom.gov.au/aviation/volcanic-ash/darwin-va-advisory.shtml





Kadovar  | Papua New Guinea  | 3.608°S, 144.588°E  | Summit elev. 365 m



Based on satellite and wind model data, the Darwin VAAC reported that on 16
August an ash plume from Kadovar rose to an altitude of 1.5 km (5,000 ft)
a.s.l. and drifted NW.



Geologic Summary. The 2-km-wide island of Kadovar is the emergent summit of
a Bismarck Sea stratovolcano of Holocene age. It is part of the Schouten
Islands, and lies off the coast of New Guinea, about 25 km N of the mouth
of the Sepik River. Prior to an eruption that began in 2018, a lava dome
formed the high point of the andesitic volcano, filling an arcuate
landslide scarp open to the south; submarine debris-avalanche deposits
occur in that direction. Thick lava flows with columnar jointing forms low
cliffs along the coast. The youthful island lacks fringing or offshore
reefs. A period of heightened thermal phenomena took place in 1976. An
eruption began in January 2018 that included lava effusion from vents at
the summit and at the E coast.



Source: Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)
http://www.bom.gov.au/aviation/volcanic-ash/darwin-va-advisory.shtml





Karymsky  | Eastern Kamchatka (Russia)  | 54.049°N, 159.443°E  | Summit
elev. 1513 m



KVERT reported that a thermal anomaly over Karymsky was identified in
satellite images on 7 and 10 August; weather clouds prevented views of the
volcano on the other days during 7-14 August. The Aviation Color Code
remained at Orange (the second highest level on a four-color scale).



Geologic Summary. Karymsky, the most active volcano of Kamchatka's eastern
volcanic zone, is a symmetrical stratovolcano constructed within a
5-km-wide caldera that formed during the early Holocene. The caldera cuts
the south side of the Pleistocene Dvor volcano and is located outside the
north margin of the large mid-Pleistocene Polovinka caldera, which contains
the smaller Akademia Nauk and Odnoboky calderas. Most seismicity preceding
Karymsky eruptions originated beneath Akademia Nauk caldera, located
immediately south. The caldera enclosing Karymsky formed about 7600-7700
radiocarbon years ago; construction of the stratovolcano began about 2000
years later. The latest eruptive period began about 500 years ago,
following a 2300-year quiescence. Much of the cone is mantled by lava flows
less than 200 years old. Historical eruptions have been vulcanian or
vulcanian-strombolian with moderate explosive activity and occasional lava
flows from the summit crater.



Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)
http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/kvert/index_eng.php





Kerinci  | Indonesia  | 1.697°S, 101.264°E  | Summit elev. 3800 m



PVMBG reported that at 1602 on 12 August a brown ash emission from Kerinci
rose 1 km above the summit and drifted NE, E, and SE. At 1225 on 13 August
and 0731 on 15 August brown ash emissions rose 600-800 m and drifted ENE
and NW, respectively. On 16 August brown emissions rose 300-500 m and
drifted W. The Alert Level remained at 2 (on a scale of 1-4), and the
public was warned to remain outside of the 3-km exclusion zone.



Geologic Summary. 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.



Sources: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known
as CVGHM) http://vsi.esdm.go.id/;

Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)
http://www.bom.gov.au/aviation/volcanic-ash/darwin-va-advisory.shtml





Nishinoshima  | Japan  | 27.247°N, 140.874°E  | Summit elev. 25 m



Based on satellite data, the Tokyo VAAC reported that during 12-18 August
ash plumes from Nishinoshima rose to 2.4-5.5 km (8,000-18,000 ft) a.s.l.
and drifted NE, NW, W, and SW.



Geologic Summary. The small island of Nishinoshima was enlarged when
several new islands coalesced during an eruption in 1973-74. Another
eruption that began offshore in 2013 completely covered the previous
exposed surface and enlarged the island again. Water discoloration has been
observed on several occasions since. The island is the summit of a massive
submarine volcano that has prominent satellitic peaks to the S, W, and NE.
The summit of the southern cone rises to within 214 m of the sea surface 9
km SSE.



Source: Tokyo Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC)
http://ds.data.jma.go.jp/svd/vaac/data/vaac_list.html





Reventador  | Ecuador  | 0.077°S, 77.656°W  | Summit elev. 3562 m



IG reported that a high level of activity continued to be recorded at
Reventador during 11-17 August. Gas, steam, and ash emissions observed
sometimes multiple times a day with the webcam or reported by the
Washington VAAC rose as high as 1 km above the summit crater and drifted NW
and W. Cloudy weather sometimes prevented views of the volcano.
Incandescent blocks rolled 500-700 m down mainly the NE and E flanks during
12-13 and 15-16 August. A lava flow traveled 200 m down the NE flank on 13
August. The flow lengthened to 300 m by 15 August and remained active,
though did not advance, through 18 August. A small pyroclastic flow
descended the NE flank during 15-16 August.



Geologic Summary. Reventador is the most frequently active of a chain of
Ecuadorian volcanoes in the Cordillera Real, well east of the principal
volcanic axis. The forested, dominantly andesitic Volcán El Reventador
stratovolcano rises to 3562 m above the jungles of the western Amazon
basin. A 4-km-wide caldera widely breached to the east was formed by
edifice collapse and is partially filled by a young, unvegetated
stratovolcano that rises about 1300 m above the caldera floor to a height
comparable to the caldera rim. It has been the source of numerous lava
flows as well as explosive eruptions that were visible from Quito in
historical time. Frequent lahars in this region of heavy rainfall have
constructed a debris plain on the eastern floor of the caldera. The largest
historical eruption took place in 2002, producing a 17-km-high eruption
column, pyroclastic flows that traveled up to 8 km, and lava flows from
summit and flank vents.



Source: Instituto Geofísico-Escuela Politécnica Nacional (IG)
http://www.igepn.edu.ec/





Semeru  | Eastern Java (Indonesia)  | 8.108°S, 112.922°E  | Summit elev.
3657 m



The Darwin VAAC reported, based on satellite images and weather models,
that on 14 and 16 August ash plumes from Semeru rose to an altitude of 4 km
(13,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted W and WSW. A thermal anomaly was visible on
16 August. The Alert Level remained at 2 (on a scale of 1-4).



Geologic Summary. 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.



Sources: Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre (VAAC)
http://www.bom.gov.au/aviation/volcanic-ash/darwin-va-advisory.shtml;

Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as CVGHM)
http://vsi.esdm.go.id/





Sheveluch  | Central Kamchatka (Russia)  | 56.653°N, 161.36°E  | Summit
elev. 3283 m



KVERT reported that a thermal anomaly over Sheveluch was identified in
satellite images during 7-14 August. The Aviation Color Code remained at
Orange (the second highest level on a four-color scale).



Geologic Summary. 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.



Source: Kamchatkan Volcanic Eruption Response Team (KVERT)
http://www.kscnet.ru/ivs/kvert/index_eng.php



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