Volcanoes of Yemen (15)

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Yemen forms the southwest corner of the Arabian Peninsula and is located at the triple junction between 3 rifts: Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea and the Eastern African Rift. This is one of the most active tectonic plate boundaries. Volcanic eruptions in the region are related to the Afar hot spot and the rifting process.

Red Sea (4 volcanoes)

Hanish | Jebel al-Tair | Jebel Zubair | Zukur

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Significant volcanic eruptions: Yemen

In historic times, at least 4 volcanoes have been active in Yemen, including Jebel Zubair, Jebel al-Tair, and Harra es-Sawâd volcanoes. A total of 10 eruptions have been witnessed and documented since around 500 AD.
The table below lists volcanic eruptions, significant eruptive episodes or related events in Yemen during geologically recent times.

Date	Volcano	VEI	Region	Deaths
2013 Sep 28 - Nov 20	Jebel Zubair Jadid Island	2	Yemen
2011 Dec 18 - 2012 Jan 12	Jebel Zubair Sholan Island	2	Yemen
2007 Sep 30 - 2008 Jun 16 ±15 d.	Jebel al-Tair	3?	Yemen
2007 Sep 30	Jebel al-Tair	0	Yemen	7	Info
A volcano erupted on a Yemeni Red Sea island late on Sunday, September 30, 2007, killing at least seven soldiers and spewing lava and ash hundreds of meters into the air. A government official said seven bodies had been recovered, along with one survivor, all soldiers stationed on Jabal al-Tair island, some 80 miles (130 km) off Yemen's mainland. A Defense Ministry official on the island, which has been home to a military base since Yemen's 1996 conflict with Eritrea, said its western part had "collapsed" into the sea. Naval ships were searching the surrounding waters for missing soldiers. The island has no civilian inhabitants. Two weeks prior to the eruption, the area around the island had seen light earthquakes between magnitude 2-3.6 on the Richter scale, with three larger ones yesterday reaching magnitude 4.3. Cited references #3454 Reuters (2007): Reuters AlertNet Article retrieved October 1, 2007 from http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L01042408.htm #3455 National Association of Radio-Distress Signaling and Infocommunications, Havaria Emergency and Disaster and Information Service (2007): National Association of Radio-Distress Signaling and Infocommunications (RSOE), Havaria Emergency and Disaster Information Services (EDIS), Budapest, Hungary retrieved October 1, 2007 from http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/woalert_read.php?cid=13576〈=eng Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), Global Significant Earthquake Database. doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K
1883	Jebel al-Tair	2	Yemen
1863	Jebel al-Tair	2	Yemen
1833 Dec 31 ±365 d.	Jebel al-Tair	2	Yemen
1824	Jebel Zubair Saddle Island	2	Yemen
1750 ±50 y.	Jebel al-Tair	2	Yemen
1253 AD	Harra es-Sawâd	3	Yemen
500 ±100 y. AD	Harra of Arhab South flank of Kaulet Hattab	?	Yemen

Remark:

Our list of volcanic eruptions closely follows the database of eruptions of the Smithsonian's Global Volcanism Project (GVP), the internationally most recognized data source for volcanic eruptions, but also includes significant eruptive episodes or related volcano events. "Volcanic eruptions" are usually to be understood as sequences of individual eruptive episodes that can follow each other, or even overlap (if several vents are involved), and can last many years, decades or even longer. For example, the current activity of Stromboli volcano is understood as a single eruption that has been ongoing since 1934.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), Global Significant Volcanic Eruptions Database. doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K | Global Volcanism Project / Smithsonian Institution

Yemen FAQ

+When was the last volcanic eruption in Yemen?

The last volcanic eruption in Yemen was from Jebel Zubair volcano in 2013.

+When was the first documented volcanic eruption in Yemen?

The first historically documented eruption occurred around 500 AD from Harra of Arhab volcano.

+How often do volcanoes in Yemen erupt?

Since 500 AD, Yemen has seen at least 10 historically documented eruptions. This means that a volcano erupts on average every 153 years.

+How active are the volcanoes in Yemen?

Yemen is volcanically occasionally active: Since 1900, at least 2 volcanoes in Yemen have been active.Since 1900, Yemen has had 3 volcanic eruptions from 2 individual volcanoes. Volcanic eruptions have been recorded erupted during 5 years out of 126 as of now. This means, at least one volcano in Yemen has been in eruption in one in 25.2 years on average. The last volcano to erupt in Yemen was Jebel Zubair volcano, which erupted in 2013, 11 years ago.

+When was the largest volcanic eruption in Yemen?

The largest eruption in Yemen in historic times was from Jebel al-Tair volcano. It occurred during 2007 - 2008. It ranks as a "vulcanian" eruption with a magnitude 3 on the VEI (Volcanic Explosivity Index) scale.

Significant Earthquakes in Yemen since 1900

The deadliest earthquake in Yemen since 1900 was the magnitude 6.0 earthquake in

Yemen, Muhafazat Dhamar on Dec, 13, 1982. It resulted in 2,800 fatalities and 1,500 injured people. This was the most disastrous quake in Yemen ever recorded. This was also the most damaging earthquake that occurred in this time: total economic losses were estimated to the equivalent of $2 billion US Dollars. More than 1,000 houses and other buildings were destroyed and an unknown number damaged.

Date	Mag	Region	Deaths	Damage
1991 Nov 22	4.7	Western Arabian Peninsula	11	moderate	Info
1982 Dec 13	6.0	Dhamar	2,800	catastrophic	Info
1941 Jan 11	5.9	Razih	1,200	very heavy	Info

Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), Global Significant Earthquake Database. doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K

Map

Oldest quakes (until 1960) are shown in yellow, most recent (from 2000) in red.

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Significant Earthquakes in Yemen FAQ

+Which was the deadliest earthquake in Yemen since 1900?

The deadliest earthquake in Yemen since 1900 was the magnitude 6.0 earthquake in Yemen, Muhafazat Dhamar on Dec, 13, 1982. It resulted in 2,800 fatalities and 1,500 injured people. This was the most disastrous quake in Yemen ever recorded.

+How many people were killed by earthquakes in Yemen since 1900?

Since 1900, at least 3 earthquakes claimed an estimated total of 4,011 fatalities in Yemen.

+How much damage did earthquakes cause in Yemen since 1900?

There were 3 damaging or deadly quakes during this period that caused economic losses of approx. $2.1 billion US Dollars combined.

Volcano List

Bir Borhut

(volcanic field ca. 600 m / 1,800 ft)

NASA Landsat7 image (worldwind.arc.nasa.gov) showing the darker lava flows of Borhut volcano south and west of the Wadi al Masilah in eastern Yemen

Bir Borhut volcano is an active, but almost unknown volcano in eastern Yemen near the Gulf of Aden. Old documents tell of volcanic activity in the 10th century, and it was reported to have still been "smoking" in 1813. [more info]

Harra es-Sawâd

(volcanic field 1737 m / 5,699 ft)

Harra es-Sawâd volcano (also spelled Shuqra) is a volcanic field in southern Yemen. It contains about 100 cones that have produced young lava flows.
There are reports about an eruption in 1253 AD, but it's possible that there were more recent eruptions that went unnoticed.... [more info]

Harra of Arhab

(volcanic field 3100 m / 10,170 ft)

Harra of Arhab volcano is an active volcanic field ca 30 km north of the Yemen's capital Sana'a. Harra of Arhab lava field contains a few small stratovolcanoes and about 60 scoria cones, that cover an area of about 1500 sq km.
At least two eruptions occurred in historical ... [more info]

Harra of Bal Haf

(volcanic field 233 m / 764 ft)

Harra of Bal Haf volcano is a small volcanic field about 100 km SW of the city of Al Mukalla in southern Yemen along the along the coast of the Gulf of Aden.
At least one basaltic lava flow is probably of historical age. [more info]

Harras of Dhamar

(volcanic field 3500 m / 11,483 ft)

Harras of Dhamar volcano has its name from a large lava field around the town Dhamar 100 km SE of Yemen's capital Sana'a. The lava flows belong to a large volcanic field, stretches 80 km to the east and consists of young stratovolcanoes, cones, and basaltic lava flows overlying o... [more info]

Jabal el-Marha

(tuff cone 2506 m / 8,222 ft)

Jabal el-Marha volcano is an isolated ca. 250 m high tuff cone 11 km south of the capital Sana'a in Yemen. Little is known about this small volcano. [more info]

Jabal Haylan

(volcanic field 1550 m / 5,085 ft)

Jabal Haylan volcano is a 75 km long chain of volcanic vents, cinder cones and lava flows, located about 70 km east of Yemen's capital Sana'a.
The latest eruption from Jabal Haylan must have occurred less than about 3000 years ago. [more info]

Hanish

(shield volcano 422 m / 1,384 ft)

Hanish volcano forms a group of islands in the Red Sea between Eritrea and Yemen. These include the 20 km long Great Hanish, Little Hanish, and many other small islands and submarine shoals.
The volcano contains a number of volcanic vents aligned NE-SW and consists of lava... [more info]

Jebel al-Tair

(stratovolcano 244 m/ 801 ft)

Jebel al-Tair ("bird mountain") volcano is the northernmost active volcano rising above sea level on the rift axis of the south-central part of the Red Sea.
Its western spelling varies from Jebel at Tair to Jebel al Tair, Djebel Teyr, Jabal al Tayr,, Jibbel Tir and other v... [more info]

Jebel Zubair

(shield volcano 191 m / 627 ft)

Jebel Zubair volcano is a shield volcano forming the island of the same name in the Red Sea. Measuring 5 km in length, it is the largest of a group of 10 small volcanic islands and shoals known as the Zubair archipelago, which includes the Zubair, Centre Peak, Saba, and Haycock i... [more info]

Zukur

(shield volcano 624 m / 2,047 ft)

Zukur (Zugar) volcano forms the northernmost large island of the Zukur-Hanish island group in the southern Red Sea between Eritrea and Yemen.
It consists of young basaltic pahoehoe lava flows and cinder cones, but there are no known historic eruptions.
Zukur and the o... [more info]

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Jebel Zubair (Red Sea, Jemen): volcanic activity at the new island might have ended

Comparison google earth image and Landsat satellite image from 24 Nov, where the new island can be seen (Blog Culture Volcan)

Satellite images show signs of ongoing activity (steam plume, discolored water) at the new island at least until 20 November. A satellite image from 24 November shows no such signs any more, suggesting that the activity has stopped or paused. ... Read all

Thu, 14 Nov 2013, 11:24

Jebel Zubair (Red Sea, Jemen): weak eruptive activity resumes on new island

MODIS / Terra satellite image 11 Nov showing the gas plume and discolored water plume

Signs of weak continuing or renewed activity could be spotted again on recent satellite data after few weeks with no evidence of activity. ... Read all