Bárðarbunga Volcano, September 4 2014 - 15145875322

An active volcano is a

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 ...

which is either erupting or is likely to erupt in the future. An active volcano which is not currently erupting is known as a

dormant 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 plat ...

Overview

Tlocene Epoch. Most volcanoes are situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire. An estimated 500 million people live near active volcanoes. ''Historical time'' (or recorded history) is another timeframe for ''active''. However, the span of recorded history differs from region to region. In China and the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on th ...

, it reaches back nearly 3,000 years, but in the Pacific Northwest of the United States and Canada, it reaches back less than 300 years, and in Hawaii and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

it is only around 200 years. The incomplete ''Catalogue of the Active Volcanoes of the World'', published in parts between 1951 and 1975 by the International Association of Volcanology, uses this definition, by which there are more than 500 active volcanoes. , the Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program recognizes 560 volcanoes with confirmed historical eruptions. As of 2013, the following are considered Earth's most active volcanoes: * Kīlauea, the famous

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only ...

an volcano, was in nearly continuous, effusive eruption (in which lava steadily flows onto the ground) between 1983 through 2018, and had the longest-observed lava lake. * Mount Etna and nearby Stromboli, two

volcanoes in "almost continuous eruption" since

antiquity Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to: Historical objects or periods Artifacts *Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures Eras Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...

. * Piton de la Fournaise, in

Réunion Réunion (; french: La Réunion, ; previously ''Île Bourbon''; rcf, label= Reunionese Creole, La Rényon) is an island in the Indian Ocean that is an overseas department and region of France. It is located approximately east of the island ...

, erupts frequently enough to be a tourist attraction. , the longest ongoing (but not necessarily continuous) volcanic eruptive phases are:{{cite web, url=http://www.livescience.com/29790-worlds-five-most-active-volcanoes.html, title=The World's Five Most Active Volcanoes , last=Leontiou , first=A., date=2 November 2010, publisher=livescience.com, access-date=August 4, 2013 * Mount Yasur, 111 years * Mount Etna, 110 years * Stromboli, 108 years * Santa María, 101 years * Sangay, 94 years Other very active volcanoes include: * Mount Nyiragongo and its neighbor, Nyamuragira, are

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

's most active volcanoes Lava Lake Nyiragongo 2

. * Erta Ale, in the Afar Triangle, has maintained a lava lake since at least 1906. * Mount Erebus, in

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...

, has maintained a lava lake since at least 1972. * Mount Merapi *

Whakaari / White Island Whakaari / White Island (, mi, Te Puia Whakaari, lit. "the dramatic volcano"), also known as White Island or Whakaari, is an active andesite stratovolcano situated from the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand, in the Bay of Plen ...

, has been in a continuous state of releasing volcanic gas since before European observation in 1769. * Ol Doinyo Lengai *

Ambrym Ambrym is a volcanic island in Malampa Province in the archipelago of Vanuatu. Volcanic activity on the island includes lava lakes in two craters near the summit. Etymology Ambrym (also known as ''Ambrin'', ''"ham rim"'' in the Ranon lang ...

* Arenal Volcano * Pacaya * Klyuchevskaya Sopka *

Sheveluch Shiveluch (russian: Шивелуч), also called Sheveluch, which originates from the name "suelich" which means "smoking mountain" in Itelmen is the northernmost active volcano in Kamchatka Krai, Russia. It and Karymsky are Kamchatka's largest, ...

Overview

References

See also