Mata o le Afi ("Eye of the Fire" or "Source of the Fire") is an active
volcano
A volcano is a rupture in the Crust (geology), crust of a Planet#Planetary-mass objects, planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and volcanic gas, gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.
On Ear ...
on the island of
Savai'i in
Samoa
Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands ( Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands ( Manono and Apolima); ...
. It last erupted in 1902.
1902 eruption
An eruption began on 30 October 1902.
It was preceded by a series of thirteen earthquakes, which damaged stone churches at
Safune
Safune is a traditional village district on the central north coast of Savai'i island in Samoa. It lies within the electoral constituency of Gaga'ifomauga. Safune is the birthplace of Mau leader Olaf Frederick Nelson and the filming location o ...
and
Sasina and destroyed the church at Paia.
The inhabitants of these villages and of
Aopo fled.
On 8 November Dr
Otto Tetens examined the volcano, finding a crater a hundred yards across emitting smoke and rocks,
[ with a second crater two miles to the north where the eruption had finished.][ The eruption had already begun to die down, and ceased around 17 November.][
]
References
Mountains of Samoa
Volcanoes of Samoa
Savai'i
{{Samoa-geo-stub