Monitoring hidden processes beneath Kīlauea could aid eruption forecast
The massive 2018 eruption of Kīlauea Volcano on Hawai'i Island lasted for months, destroyed neighborhoods, and was associated with 60,000 earthquakes.
Volcanic eruption prediction methods encompass quantitative and qualitative techniques aimed at forecasting the onset, magnitude, and style of eruptive activity by integrating multi-parameter monitoring and modeling. Core approaches include analysis of seismicity (e.g., volcano-tectonic and long-period events), ground deformation from GPS and InSAR, gas emission fluxes and compositions, thermal anomalies, and hydrological/geomorphic signals. These observational data feed into physics-based models of magma ascent, conduit flow, and stress evolution, as well as statistical and probabilistic frameworks such as Bayesian event trees and pattern-recognition algorithms. Prediction focuses on estimating conditional probabilities and time windows of unrest-to-eruption transitions, with uncertainty quantification central to civil protection decision-making.
The massive 2018 eruption of Kīlauea Volcano on Hawai'i Island lasted for months, destroyed neighborhoods, and was associated with 60,000 earthquakes.
Earth Sciences
Nov 18, 2025
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Currently, scientists struggle to forecast volcano eruption events, as no universally reliable, real-time eruption forecasting framework is available. Instead, researchers often rely on retrospective analysis to evaluate ...
Located on the island of Sicily, in Italy, Mount Etna is one of the world's most active volcanoes. Documentation of its many eruptions stretches back as far as 2,700 years ago, with the most recent occurring in June 2025. ...
A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences provides scientists with a powerful new tool for monitoring and predicting tectonic activity deep beneath the seafloor at mid-ocean ridges—vast ...
Earth Sciences
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For people living near volcanoes, danger goes well beyond lava flows and clouds of ash. Some explosive eruptions can lead to dramatic collapses of the sides of a volcano, like those at Mount St. Helens, Washington, and Anak ...
Earth Sciences
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Mount Fuji hasn't erupted since 1707. But for Volcanic Disaster Preparedness Day, Japanese officials have released computer- and AI-generated videos showing a simulation of a potential violent eruption of the active volcano.
Environment
Aug 29, 2025
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Volcanic eruptions can have dramatic consequences. But how can we anticipate this phenomenon, which unfolds up to tens of kilometers beneath the surface?
Earth Sciences
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Lava shoots high into the sky. Molten rock erupts from two vents simultaneously. The nighttime sky glows red and orange, reflecting the lava oozing across a summit crater.
Environment
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When volcanoes are preparing to erupt, scientists rely on typical signs to warn people living nearby: deformation of the ground and earthquakes, caused by underground chambers filling up with magma and volcanic gas. But some ...
Earth Sciences
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A mysterious and highly active undersea volcano off the Pacific Coast could erupt by the end of this year, scientists say.
Earth Sciences
May 21, 2025
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