The Semeru ( jv, ꦱꦼꦩꦺꦫꦸ), or Mount Semeru ( jv, ꦒꦸꦤꦸꦁꦱꦼꦩꦺꦫꦸ (Pegon:, Gunung Semeru), is an active

volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates ...

located in

East Java East Java ( id, Jawa Timur) is a province of Indonesia located in the easternmost hemisphere of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean border its northern and so ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. It is located in a subduction zone, where the Indo-Australian plate

subducts Subduction is a geological process in which the oceanic lithosphere is recycled into the Earth's mantle at convergent boundaries. Where the oceanic lithosphere of a tectonic plate converges with the less dense lithosphere of a second plate, the ...

under the Eurasia plate. It is the highest

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

on the island of

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mo ...

. The name "Semeru" is derived from Meru, the central world mountain in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or ''dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global po ...

, or Sumeru, the abode of

gods A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers great ...

. This

stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with a summit crater and p ...

is also known as Mahameru, meaning "The Great Mountain" in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominalization, nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cul ...

. It is one of the more popular hiking destinations in Indonesia.

Geology

Semeru rises steeply above the coastal plains of eastern Java. Maars containing

crater lake Crater Lake (Klamath: ''Giiwas'') is a volcanic crater lake in south-central Oregon in the western United States. It is the main feature of Crater Lake National Park and is famous for its deep blue color and water clarity. The lake partly fills ...

s have formed along a line through the summit of the

. It was formed south of the overlapping Ajek-ajek and Jambagan

caldera A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcano eruption. When large volumes of magma are erupted over a short time, structural support for the rock above the magma chamber ...

s. The eruptive products are andesitic. Semeru lies at the south end of the Tengger Volcanic Complex.

Eruptive history

Semeru's eruptive history is extensive. Since 1818, at least 55 eruptions have been recorded (11 of which resulted in fatalities) consisting of both lava flows and pyroclastic flows. All historical eruptions have had a Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) of 2 or 3. Semeru has been in a state of near-constant eruption from 1967 to the present. Semeru is regularly climbed by tourists, usually starting from the village of Ranu Pane to the north, but though non-technical, it can be dangerous. Soe Hok Gie, an Indonesian political activist of the 1960s, died in 1969 from inhaling poisonous gases while hiking on Mount Semeru.

2021 eruption

On 4 December 2021, Semeru erupted for a second time in the year – the first having been on 16 January 2021. Semeru erupted a third time on 6 December 2021. At least 57 people died, 104 more were injured, while 23 are unaccounted for. Thousands were displaced.

2022 eruption

A fresh eruption started on 4 December 2022, as monsoon rains collapsed the mountain's lava dome, provoking evacuations. Hot gas clouds flowed up to from the crater. Evacuation of people was quickly undertaken.Indonesia raises volcano warning to highest level after Mount Semeru erupts

ABC News Online ABC News, or ABC News and Current Affairs, is a public news service produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Broadcasting within Australia and the rest of the world, the service covers both local and world affairs. The division of ...

, 2022-12-04

Mythology

Semeru is named after Sumeru, the central world-mountain in

. As stated in legend, it was transplanted from

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

to create the island of Java; the tale is recorded in the 15th-century East Javanese work ''

Tantu Pagelaran Tantu Pagelaran or Tangtu Panggelaran is an Old Javanese manuscript written in the Kawi language that originated from the 15th century Majapahit period. The manuscript describes the mythical origin of Java island. Legend of moving Meru to Jav ...

''. It was originally placed in the western part of the island, but that caused the island to tip, so the gods moved it eastward. On that journey, parts kept coming off the lower rim, forming the mountains

Lawu The Lawu ( jv, ꦭꦮꦸ), or Mount Lawu ( jv, ꦒꦸꦤꦸꦁꦭꦮꦸ, Gunung Lawu) is a massive compound stratovolcano straddling the border between East Java and Central Java, Indonesia. The north side is deeply eroded and the eastern s ...

, Wilis, Kelud,

Kawi Kawi may refer to: * Kawi language, oldest attested phase of the Javanese language * Kawi script, writing system used across Southeast Asia from the 8th century to around 1500 AD ::Kawi (Unicode block), the script in Unicode * Mount Kawi, a volcano ...

, Arjuno and Welirang. The damage thus caused to the foot of the mountain caused it to shake, and the top came off and created

Penanggungan Mount Penanggungan is a small stratovolcano, immediately north of Arjuno- Welirang volcanic complex in East Java province, Java island, Indonesia. Mount Penanggungan is about 40 kilometers (24.8 mi) south of Surabaya, and can be seen from there ...

as well. Indonesian Hindus also hold a belief that the mountain is the abode of

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hin ...

in Java.

Floral problems

Non-native invasive plants

25 non-native plants have been found in Mount Semeru National Park. The non-native plants, which threaten the

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...

local plants In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution (though often popularised as "with no human intervention") during history. The term is eq ...

, were imported by Dutch botanist Van Steenis, in the colonial era. They include ''

Foeniculum vulgare Fennel (''Foeniculum vulgare'') is a flowering plant species in the carrot family. It is a hardy, perennial herb with yellow flowers and feathery leaves. It is indigenous to the shores of the Mediterranean but has become widely naturalize ...

'', '' Verbena brasiliensis'', '' Chromolaena odorata'', and '' Salvinia molesta''.

Vegetable plantations

Mud

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is di ...

from surrounding vegetable plantations is adding silt to Ranu Pani Lake, causing the lake to gradually shrink. Research has predicted that the lake will disappear by about 2025, unless the vegetable plantations on the hillsides are replaced with more ecologically sustainable perennials.

Citations

General sources

* * Holt, Claire. ''Art in Indonesia: Continuities and Change''. Ithaca:

Cornell University Press The Cornell University Press is the university press of Cornell University; currently housed in Sage House, the former residence of Henry William Sage. It was first established in 1869, making it the first university publishing enterprise in ...

, 1967. Page 36 explains the mythological aspect of the mountain.

External links

Satellite picture by Google Maps Early December 2022 eruptions
at NASA Earth Observatory
Semeru Volcano by Drone
{{authority control Active volcanoes of Indonesia Maars of Indonesia Mountains of East Java Sacred mountains Stratovolcanoes of Indonesia VEI-3 volcanoes Volcanic crater lakes Volcanoes of East Java Holocene stratovolcanoes Volcanic eruptions in 2022