USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-AVO-2024-03-22T17:44:57+00:00

ALASKA VOLCANO OBSERVATORY WEEKLY UPDATE
U.S. Geological Survey
Friday, March 22, 2024, 10:41 AM AKDT (Friday, March 22, 2024, 18:41 UTC)

GREAT SITKIN (VNUM #311120)
52°4'35" N 176°6'39" W, Summit Elevation 5709 ft (1740 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: WATCH
Current Aviation Color Code: ORANGE

The eruption of lava within the summit crater of Great Sitkin Volcano continues. Partly cloudy satellite imagery showed steaming and elevated surface temperatures from the active lava flow. The active northwestern lava flow lobe that started in January 2024 is warm and mostly snow-free. Satellite radar data through March 19 showed growth of the northwest lava flow, as well as uplift of the lava flow surface above the vent region. Seismic activity remains relatively low with occasional small volcanic earthquakes.

The current prolonged period of lava eruption at Great Sitkin Volcano began in July 2021. No explosive events have occurred since a single event in May 2021.       

The volcano is monitored by local seismic, geodetic, and infrasound sensors and web cameras, as well as regional infrasound and lightning networks and satellite data.  

Great Sitkin Volcano is a basaltic andesite volcano that occupies most of the northern half of Great Sitkin Island, a member of the Andreanof Islands group in the central Aleutian Islands. It is located 26 miles (43 km) east of the community of Adak. The volcano is a composite structure consisting of an older dissected volcano and a younger parasitic cone with a ~1 mile (1.5 km)-diameter summit crater. A steep-sided lava dome, emplaced during the 1974 eruption, occupies the center of the crater. That eruption produced at least one ash cloud that likely exceeded an altitude of 25,000 ft (7.6 km) above sea level. A poorly documented eruption occurred in 1945, also producing a lava dome that was partially destroyed in the 1974 eruption. Within the past 280 years a large explosive eruption produced pyroclastic flows that partially filled the Glacier Creek valley on the southwest flank.

SHISHALDIN (VNUM #311360)
54°45'19" N 163°58'16" W, Summit Elevation 9373 ft (2857 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: ADVISORY
Current Aviation Color Code: YELLOW

Low-level unrest continues at Shishaldin Volcano. Seismicity was at low levels throughout the week with small earthquakes and weak tremor observed. Very weak infrasound was detected on a couple days in quiet conditions and records gas bubbles bursting deep within the volcanic crater. A persistent steam and gas plume was observed when views were clear in webcam and satellite imagery, as well as by several pilots flying near the volcano. There is no evidence that this plume contains ash. Weakly elevated surface temperatures and possible minor sulfur dioxide emissions were observed in clear views on March 16. Minor rock falls or collapse events from the unstable ground in and near the summit crater remain likely. These events may generate very small clouds of fine-grained ash that dissipate quickly in the immediate vicinity of the summit.

No significant eruptive activity has occurred since November 2023. 

Local seismic and infrasound sensors, web cameras, and a geodetic network are used to monitor Shishaldin Volcano. In addition to the local monitoring network, AVO uses nearby geophysical networks, regional infrasound and lighting data, and satellite images to monitor the volcano.

Shishaldin volcano, located near the center of Unimak Island in the eastern Aleutian Islands, is a spectacular symmetric cone with a base diameter of approximately 10 miles (16 km). It is one of the most active volcanoes in the Aleutian volcanic arc, with at least 54 episodes of unrest including over 28 confirmed eruptions since 1824. Most eruptions are relatively small, although the April-May 1999 event generated an ash column that reached 45,000 ft. (14 km) above sea level.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Matt Haney, Scientist-in-Charge, USGS mhaney@usgs.gov (907) 786-7497

David Fee, Coordinating Scientist, UAFGI dfee1@alaska.edu (907) 378-5460

The Alaska Volcano Observatory is a cooperative program of the U.S. Geological Survey, the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, and the Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys.