Tongariro volcano
Updated: Jun 10, 2023 13:55 GMT -
complex volcano 1978 m / 6,490 ft
North Island, New Zealand, -39.12°S / 175.65°E
Current status: normal or dormant (1 out of 5)
North Island, New Zealand, -39.12°S / 175.65°E
Current status: normal or dormant (1 out of 5)
Last update: 10 Dec 2021
Tongariro volcano is a large complex volcano with about 12 craters and vents, including the steep stratovolcano Ngauruhoe, which is the focus of most activity in recent times.
Tongariro with its colorful crater lakes, hot springs, fumaroles, numerous cones and lava deserts is one of the major tourist attractions of the North Island, and the famous "Tongariro crossing" is generally regarded as one of the most scenic hikes in the world.
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Tongariro volcano eruptions: Eruptions outside Ngauruhoe, mainly on SSE flank (Red Crater): 6 Aug 2012, 1927 (?), 1926, 1896, 1890 (?), 1886, 1885±1, 1869, 1859, 1855, 1500 ± 50, 550 BC ± 200 years, 9350 BC (?), 9450 BC (?), 9650 BC (?), 9850 BC (?)
Eruptions from Ngauruhoe vent: 1975-77, 1972, 1968-69, 1962, 1958-59, 1956, 1948-54, 1939-40, 1937, 1934, 1931, 1924-28, 1917, 1913-14, 1909-10, 1904-07, 1897-98, 1892, 1883, 1881, 1878, 1875, 1869-70, 1862-64, 1857, 1844, 1841, 1839, 550 BC ± 200
Latest nearby earthquakes
| Time | Mag. / Depth | Distance/Location | ||
| Tuesday, June 6, 2023 GMT (1 quake) | ||||
| Jun 6, 2023 11:16 pm (GMT +12) (Jun 6, 2023 11:16 GMT) | 2.3 2.1 km | 29 km (18 mi) Waikato, 23 km northwest of North Island, New Zealand | ||
| Monday, June 5, 2023 GMT (1 quake) | ||||
| Jun 5, 2023 3:56 pm (GMT +12) (Jun 5, 2023 03:56 GMT) | 2.1 5.3 km | 28 km (17 mi) 11 km north of Turangi, Waikato, New Zealand | ||
| Sunday, June 4, 2023 GMT (1 quake) | ||||
| Jun 5, 2023 9:14 am (GMT +12) (Jun 4, 2023 21:14 GMT) | 2.0 3.9 km | 28 km (17 mi) 11 km north of Turangi, Waikato, New Zealand | ||
| Saturday, June 3, 2023 GMT (1 quake) | ||||
| Jun 4, 2023 8:28 am (GMT +12) (Jun 3, 2023 20:28 GMT) | 2.2 5.4 km | 29 km (18 mi) Waikato, 22 km northwest of North Island, New Zealand | ||
| Tuesday, May 30, 2023 GMT (1 quake) | ||||
| May 30, 2023 5:53 pm (GMT +12) (May 30, 2023 05:53 GMT) | 2.3 115 km | 33 km (21 mi) Manawatu-Wanganui, 65 km west of North Island, New Zealand | ||
Background
Tongariro is a large andesitic volcanic massif, located immediately NE of Ruapehu volcano, that is composed of more than a dozen composite cones constructed over a period of 275,000 years.Vents along a NE-trending zone extending from Saddle Cone (below Ruapehu volcano) to Te Mari crater (including vents at the present-day location of Ngauruhoe) were active during a several hundred year long period around 10,000 years ago, producing the largest known eruptions at the Tongariro complex during the Holocene. North Crater stratovolcano, one of the largest features of the massif, is truncated by a broad, shallow crater filled by a solidified lava lake that is cut on the NW side by a small explosion crater.
The youngest cone of the complex, Ngauruhoe, has grown to become the highest peak of the massif since its birth about 2500 years ago. The symmetrical, steep-sided Ngauruhoe, along with its neighbor Ruapehu to the south, have been New Zealand's most active volcanoes during historical time.
Tongariro Photos
Layers of oxidized scoria at Tongariro volcano's Red Crater (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) |
Red scoria layers at the Red Crater of Tongariro volcano (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) |
6 August 2012 eruption
A brief but violent phreatic eruption occurred at 23:50 local time on 6 August from new vents near the Te Mari crater of Tongariro.
The explosion followed several weeks of increased earthquakes under the volcano. It produced a 7 km tall ash plume and threw ballistic blocks of up to 1 m diameter to 1.5-2 km distance.
An interesting news article with eyewitness accounts and other information: First Tongariro eruption in over 100 years ...more
A brief but violent phreatic eruption occurred at 23:50 local time on 6 August from new vents near the Te Mari crater of Tongariro.
The explosion followed several weeks of increased earthquakes under the volcano. It produced a 7 km tall ash plume and threw ballistic blocks of up to 1 m diameter to 1.5-2 km distance.
An interesting news article with eyewitness accounts and other information: First Tongariro eruption in over 100 years ...more
See also: Sentinel hub | Landsat 8 | NASA FIRMS
