N E W  Z E A L A N D

RAOUL Island    10 min.   O-Web   O-IMG      

Raoul I. is the northernmost of the Kermadec island group, NNE of NZ. The volcano consists of two calderas, several side craters and seamounts. Historical eruptions at Raoul during the 19th and 20th centuries have sometimes occurred simultaneously from both calderas, and have consisted of small-to-moderate phreatic eruptions, the last occurred from Green Lake crater in 2006.

NZ: WHITE ISLAND 1   O-Web   15 min.   O-IMG   

NZ: WHITE ISLAND 2   O-Web   15 min.   O-IMG  

White Island crater rim

NZ: WHITE ISLAND 3   O-Web      O-IMG       1 2

White Island, west rim.

Neuseeland: WHITE ISLAND 4   O-Web   15 min.   O-IMG  

White Island seen in the distance.

Seismogramm: WHITE ISLAND            O-Web        O-IMG

Seismogramm: TONGARIRO TE MAARI          O-Web      O-IMG

NZ: TONGARIRO    O-Web   30 min.   O-IMG  

NZ: RUAPEHU     40 sek.    O-Web    O-IMG

Tanna Island: YASUR    15 min.   O-IMG        

Ambae Island: MANARO    15 min.   O-IMG        

Ambrym Island: MARUM & BENBOW   15 min.   O-IMG  

Lopevi Island: LOPEVI   15 min.   O-IMG        

Yasur is an active volcanic cone, 365 m in altitude with an 1.5 km base, on Tanna Island. This is the youngest of several small volcanoes which occupy the Siwi area (among them the Ombus). Yasur was observed by Captain Cook in 1774, and its activity is regarded as having been fairly constant since that time. Activity is more intense again since early 1994.

Manaro on Ambae (or Aoba) Island is considered the most dangerous volcano of the archipelago. Aoba Island (1496 m) corresponds to the upper part of the most voluminous active volcano of the archipelago. Its summit area has two concentric calderas, the smallest including three lakes. Lake Vui is located in the present crater of the volcano. Dangerously strong SO2 degassing ocurred in 1991.

Ambrym, the most active volcano of the archipelago, is a wide basaltic volcano, about 1800 m high, with a 12 km wide caldera on the main cone. A lava lake in the crater of Marum drains out as basaltic lava flows onto the caldera floor whereas the lava lake in the crater of Benbow drains out through axial fissures on the western part of the island. Magma is also frequently ejected as ash, lapilli and scoria falls. Extra caldera flows frequently occurred along the west and east fissure zones, and explosive activity by magma-water interaction is frequent at the western and eastern extremities of the island.

LOPEVI stratovolcano, a near symmetrical youthful cone, rises steeply from sea level to 1413 m in altitude. It has been active in 1864, 1874, 1883-84, 1892-93, 1908, 1922, 1939, 1960, 1962-64, and from 1967 to 1980. All flanks of the volcano are at high-risk. Moreover, Lopevi may give ash falls up to Paama, as in 1963, which can bother the inhabitants but - do not represent a major threat. Since no caldera exists at Lopevi, the formation of such a structure during a cataclysmic event is possible in the future (see Santa Maria, Ambrym, Kuwae and Tanna).