13°15′24″N 123°41′06″E

Mayon Volcano, active volcano, southeastern Luzon, Philippines, dominating the city of Legaspi. Called the world's most perfect volcanic cone because of the symmetry of its shape, it has a base 80 miles (130 km) in circumference and rises to 8,077 feet (2,462 metres) from the shores of Albay Gulf. This volcano is located on a convergent boundary between the Eurasian and Philippine Plate.

Mayon's activities:
Mayon is the most active volcano in the Philippines, erupting over 47 times in the past 500 years.

Its most destructive recorded eruption occurred on February 1, 1814. Lava flowed but less than the 1766 eruption. The volcano belched dark ash and eventually bombarded the town of Cagsawa with tephra that buried it. Trees burned, and rivers were certainly damaged. Proximate areas were also devastated by the eruption, with ash accumulating to 9 m (30 ft) in depth. In Cagsawa town, about 1,200 locals perished in what is considered to be the most lethal eruption in Mayon's history. The eruption is believed to have contributed to the accumulation of atmospheric ash together with the catastrophic 1815 eruption of other volcanoes like Indonesia's Mount Tambora, leading to the Year Without a Summer in 1816.

The most recent activity of the Mayon volcano was in 2018. On January 13, 2018, at 4:21 pm (PST), a phreatic eruption occurred that propelled a grayish steam and ash plume approximately 2500 meters high that drifted to the southwest side of the volcano. The activity lasted approximately 1 hour and 47 minutes and traces of ash fell in Barangay Anoling, Daraga, Barangays Sua, Quirangay, Tumpa, and many more. Sulfuric odor was noted by residents of Camalig town proper. Rumbling sounds were also heard by residents of Brgy. Anoling, Daraga and rockfall events were intermittently recorded. Faint crater glow was first observed at 10:16 pm. On January 23, 2018, Mayon spewed 300 to 500-meter lava fountains and ash plumes with a 4 to 5-hour interval. Lava bombs and rockfalls could also be observed and sounds from the volcano could be heard. Classes in all levels, both public and private were still suspended, work in some places were suspended as well. The danger zone was expanded up to 9 kilometers despite remaining at Alert Level 4 and residents from the expanded danger zone were evacuated. The activity lasted the whole year of 2018.

Tectonic activities:
Four earthquakes were recorded in the vicinity of Mayon Volcano in December 26, 2020. Moderate emission of white steam-laden plumes that crept downslope were reported by villagers leaving near the volcano. No updates were issued
that includes the magnitude of the earthquakes.

Population:
The city and four towns, with a total population of 500,000, are the most affected whenever Mayon erupts.

Interesting information:
Mayon has been featured as part of the design of Philippine money.
- 1903–1968: Coins were etched with a design of the Mayon volcano. A centavo coin ($0.01) had a simmering Mayon volcano topped with smoke rings as a background.
- 2010–present: 100-peso bills have a quiet Mayon volcano as background in the reverse side.

Reflection:
It is intriguing that there is still a sizeable amount of people who are fine living near this active volcano. As seen in the recent volcanic eruptions and earthquakes,  many mitigation actions have been taken to ensure the safety of these people are kept. However, there have been some instances where people have passed away in the hands of Mother Nature. For example, 75 farmers were killed after the Mayon volcano errupted in 1993. In addition, many of their belongings and resources will be at stake as they are not able to bring them to the refuge centers. Resources such as their cattles used in farming are affected. Houses may also be demolished in the onslaught of hot rocks spewed out of the volcano which requires more resources to rebuild these homes. 

Living near a volcano is one's decision that should be well-thought and justified. Being near an active volcano is dangerous, but to these people, the benefits outweighs the cost/ banes. For example, soil near the volcano is rich of vital nutrients after every volcanic eruptions, leading to fruitful harvests of vegetables and fruits. Also, many generations have lived here. They don't have the courage to leave a place where they have been brought up in, surrounded by people who they have close relationships with; a community who falls together and rises together.

~ stratovolcano

~1,651 metres tall and 3-4 kilometres in diameter

~ country affected: Iceland

~last erupted on 14 April 2010 

Impact:
-It left behind vast ash clouds so large that daylight in some areas was entirely obscured
 -The eruption set off a major flood, when erupted lava melted a glacier prompting 700 people to evacuate.
-The eruption threw volcanic ash several kilometres up in the atmosphere, which led to air travel disruption in northwest Europe for six days from 15 to 21 April 2010
- airspace in many parts of Europe was closed
-Airlines lost a combined £130 million per day in lost revenues
-Europe's biggest tourism businesses lost between £5 million and £6 million per day.

-it created electrical storms. 
- Exporters of perishable goods from the Caribbean and Africa were badly affected.

-The ash contaminated local water supplies (as high concentrations of fluoride from the ash mixed with river water can have deadly effects)

+The farms in the valley were  covered in a soft layer of ash which the warmth and nutrition from the ash enabled the crops to grow rather well

Measures taken
-Iceland responded by declaring a state of emergency and European airspace was closed as a safety precaution

~mid-Atlantic plate boundary.

~Here, convection currents are driving apart the North American plate (moving West) and the Eurasian Plate (moving East) along a constructive or divergent plate boundary.

~A few small, shallow earthquakes have been recorded beneath the Eyjafjallajökull summit 

Coordinates: 19°01′20″N 98°37′40″W

8,363 ft (2,549m)

Coordinates:

46°11'28"N 122°11'40"W

Mount St. Helens is on the convergent plate boundary between Juan de Fuca and the North American plates. The boundary is also part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. The Juan de Fuca plate is an oceanic plate and the North American plate is a continental plate. Hence, Mount St. Helens is located at a subduction zone.

Mount St. Helens is located in the North American continent, in Skamania County, WA, USA. The eruption of the volcano also affected other nearby states but most primarily in areas in Bend, Oregon.

There have been numerous volcanic activity but the most infamous eruption by Mount St. Helens occured on May 18, 1980. Although the eruption lasted 9 hours, events leading prior to the eruption can be traced back to at least 3 months before.

Earlier in March, there were several small earthquakes which indicated that magma could have started moving below the volcano. A magnitude 4.2 earthquake occured below the volcano's north flank on March 20. Over the next 5 days, an earthquake swarm (a sequence of seismic events occuring in a local area in a short period of time) started to reach its peak at noon on March 25. Another earthquake measured 5.1 on the Richter scale within the next 2 days. From March 26 to March 27, a total of 174 shocks of magnitude 2.6 or greater was recorded. Earthquakes of magnitude 4 or above occured daily in early April and early May. This resulted in a whopping 10,000 earthquakes recorded before the 1980 eruption.

A total of 7,919 people lived near Mount St. Helens during time time of the eruption. The eruption however killed 57 people. Today, it is estimated that 110,593 people were living near the volcano in 2019, which is suprising as there seems to be a steady increase in population over the years.

The eruption is said to be the most destructive in US history. The eruption destroyed forests, lakes, highways and homes, as well as spew around 550 million tons of ash into the Earth's atmosphere. The lakes around the vicinity of the volcano were partly covered with felled trees for more than 40 years. It was also filled with sediments which caused the water to flood the river banks. Approximately 7000 animals perished in the disaster, with only a few surviving due to them being under water surfaces. Economy-wise, it had an impact of almost $1 billion in total due to the ashes reaching several states outside of Washington.

It is fortunate that most locals managed to escape a day prior to the eruption. Due to the area being located directly above a subduction zone, there could be many other earthquakes that can occur in the area, with a possible chance of another eruption again in the near future. This might be a hazard to these locals and they might also have to continuously rebuild homes and structures which can be an inconvenience. It is surprising to me why people still choose to live there even after the massive eruption, but I think it could be due to (1) the ashes making the soil extremely fertilised which can be taken advantaged of and do farming (2) emotional connection and history to the place. I am intrigued to know what the locals in 1980 think of this incident now, and how life has changed for them after it.

311m

Coordinates:

14°0′36″N 120°59′51″E

Taal Volcano is an active volcano on the western edge of Luzon, Philippines. It was formed by the subduction of the Eurasian Plate underneath the Philippine Mobile Belt (Philippine Sea - Eurasia plate convergence). Taal Lake lies within a 25–30 km (16–19 mi) caldera formed by explosive eruptions between 140,000 and 5,380 BP.  

One of the more devastating eruptions of Taal occurred in January 1911. The total recorded shocks on that day numbered 26. During the 28th there were 217 distinct shocks, of which 135 were microseismic and 10 quite severe. The eruption claimed a reported 1100 lives and injured 199, although it is assumed that more perished than the official records show. The seven barangays (a small territorial and administrative district forming the most local level of government in the Philippines) that existed on the island previous to the eruption were completely wiped out. The devastating effects of the blast reached the west shore of the lake, where a number of villages were also destroyed. 702 cattle were killed and 543 nipa houses destroyed. Crops suffered from the deposit of ashes that fell to a depth of almost half an inch in places near the shore of the lake.

Volcano Island sank between 1 and 3 m (3 and 10 ft) as a result of the eruption. It was also found that the southern shore of Lake Taal sank because of the eruption. No evidence of lava could be discovered anywhere, nor have geologists been able to trace any visible records of a lava flow having occurred at any time on the volcano during the eruption. Another peculiarity of the geologic aspects of Taal is the fact that no sulphur has been found on the volcano. The yellow deposits and encrustations noticeable in the crater and its vicinity are iron salts, according to chemical analysis. A slight smell of sulfur was perceptible at the volcano, which came from the gases that escaped from the crater.

Recently, The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) reported that unrest at Taal continued during 13-20 July 2021. Daily plumes of steam and sulfur dioxide gas rose 0.9-2.1 km from the lake and drifted in multiple directions. Sulfur dioxide emissions averaged 1,142-6,574 tonnes/day. Two tremor events, at 1018 and 1038 on 20 July, were felt at Intensity I by residents of Pira-piraso in the NE sector of Volcano Island. The DROMIC report stated that 3,839 people were in evacuation centers or private residences by 20 July. The Alert Level remained at 3 (on a scale of 0-5) and PHIVOLCS reminded the public that the entire Taal Volcano Island is a Permanent Danger Zone (PDZ) and to not enter the high-risk barangays of Agoncillo and Laurel. Activities on Taal Lake were strictly prohibited.

Some of my family members live in Tagaytay, which is near the Taal volcano. I have seen the Taal volcano from Tagaytay several times, but I have not seen an eruption myself. Sometimes, they have to evacuate whenever the alert level of the volcano increases. Currently, as of July 23 2021, my family members have temporarily moved to Manila due to Taal volcano being at alert level 3 for volcanic activity.

Callista

1,117m (3,665 ft)

Coordinates:

31˚34’50”N 130˚39’29”E

 

Population:

4,500 (on the mountain)

600,000 (Kagoshima)

 

Mount Sakurajima is an active stratovolcano, formerly an island and now a peninsula, located on an a convergent boundary between the Eurasian and Philippine Plate. It is the most active volcano in Japan. 

 

 

Mount Sakurajima had been dormant for over a century. However, in January 1914, several earthquakes of up to magnitude 7 were reported, causing residents to evacuate the island.  The initial eruption on January 11 was very explosive, generating eruption columns and pyroclastic flows. After an earthquake, which killed 58 people, occurred on  January 13, a large lava flow was generated. The lava flows filled the narrow strait between the island and the mainland, turning it into a peninsula.

 

From 1955 to present day, Mount Sakurajima has become more active, causing thousands of small explosions to occur each year. In April 2021, Mount Sakurajima erupted, sending a column of smoke over 2.3 kilometres into the air. In response, the Meteorological Agency issued and alert to areas in the Kagoshima Prefecture to protect themselves from potential impact. 

 

 

Because of its close proximity to Kagoshima City, the Sakurajima Volcano Observatory was set up in 1960 to monitor these eruptions. In addition, Kagoshima conducts regular evacuation drills, and a number of shelters have been built where people can take refuge from falling volcanic debris.

 

From February 2016, people have been prohibited from approaching areas within 2km of the crater. 

2,460 m (8,070 ft)[1]

3°10′12″N 98°23′31″E 

STATUS | Pleistocene-Fumarolic
ELEVEVATION: 401
TYPE: Stratovolcano
Latitude: 24.85
Longitude: 121.92
SimpleType | Composite

The TVG is located at the northern tip of Taiwan, where it is just on the top of the western end of the subducted Philippine Sea plate beneath the Eurasian plate. The Tatun volcano group (TVG) is composed of more than 20 volcanoes , which mainly erupted 0.4–0.8 Ma ago. The volcanic features, such as hot springs and fumaroles, are still significant on the surface, and thus the major part of the TVG has been preserved as the Yangminshan (YMS) national park since 1985. The TVG was often considered to be an extinct volcano group in that there were no recorded volcanic eruptions in human history. However, a variety of recent studies from geochemical, seismic, geodetic, and geological data indicate that the TVG is still active. Many shallow micro-earthquakes have clustered at the TVG. Among those clustering earthquakes, some typical volcanic earthquakes such as tornillos, spasmodic events, and very-long-period events have been detected. Since the TVG is close to the Taipei metropolis, with more than 7 million residents living in two large cities (Taipei City and New Taipei City), possible volcanic disasters such as lava flow, pyroclastic flow, and volcanic ash would have a significant social and economic impact.
https://www.google.com.sg/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjcxLr23PjxAhWTWHwKHWmtDPIQFjAKegQIFBAD&url=https%3A%2F%2Flink.springer.com%2Farticle%2F10.1007%2Fs00024-019-02396-w&usg=AOvVaw1ynWs9kbZw1g8Fc3HQxIrS

Elevation: 1584m

Type of volcano: Lava dome

Convergent plate boundary

Eurasian Plate and Pacific Plate

It has caused effusive eruptions in 867 AD, 771 AD and 200 BC.

However, it is now one of Japan’s most noted thermal areas with colourful hot spring pools and mudpots of Beppu along the coast.

The most recent earthquake nearby Mount Tsurumi was on 13 July 2021. It hit Nakatsu Shi with a weak magnitude of 2.7, at 9km depth.

Reflection

I am quite interested in the reason as to why the volcano is currently inactive to the point where it could be a tourist attraction, especially since it used to erupt effusively in the past and is in close proximity with converging plate boundaries. I also wonder if the people living in that area are used to the feeling of earthquakes since its magnitude is weak and the fact that it occurs often.

Novarupta - The Most Powerful Volcanic Eruption of the 20th Century

/ from 1910 -1920 (1300 - 3058)

Plates, Type of Plate Boundary: Eurasian and Australia Plate, convergent plate boundary

Date and duration of eruption: Most recent large eruption: Oct 2010-Nov 2013, most recent eruptions: Mar 2020, March 2020, and January 2021.

Population: Yogyakarta city 28km south of Mt. Merapi, pop.: 2.4 million

Fun facts: A large eruption in 1006 is claimed to have wiped out the Hindu Kingdom of Mataram by covering all of central Java in ash.

-Hwee Yee

Geographical location: Klamath County, Oregon

Date of eruption: I couldn’t find specific dates, but it has a very interesting history (it had a relatively continuous eruptive history dating back to 420,000 years ago)

Earthquakes: 0 to 1 earthquakes within 10 km of the volcano each decade

Population: 68,238 (2019 estimate)