USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-AVO-2022-04-12T12:25:13-08:00

ALASKA VOLCANO OBSERVATORY INFORMATION STATEMENT
U.S. Geological Survey
Wednesday, April 13, 2022, 12:09 PM AKDT (Wednesday, April 13, 2022, 20:09 UTC)

EDGECUMBE VOLCANO (VNUM #315040)
57°3'3" N 135°45'40" W, Summit Elevation 3202 ft (976 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: UNASSIGNED
Current Aviation Color Code: UNASSIGNED

A swarm of earthquakes has been detected in the vicinity of Mount Edgecumbe volcano, beginning at about 2 am AKDT on Monday, April 11, 2022. There have been hundreds of small quakes in the swarm, though the large majority are too small to locate. The National Earthquake Information Center reported that one of the largest earthquakes in the swarm occurred at 11:04 AKDT on April 11, with a magnitude of 2.8 at 10 km depth. The Alaska Earthquake Center reported another earthquake occurred at 3:44 pm AKDT on April 11, with a magnitude of 2.1 and depth of 4 km. As of this morning, the swarm continues, though the rate of earthquakes has declined over the past 24 hours.

The cause of this earthquake swarm is currently unknown. This swarm may be associated with volcanic processes, regional tectonic activity, or a combination of sources. AVO does not have local seismic instruments in the area, and the closest station is in Sitka, 24 km (15 miles) to the east of the volcano.

Retrospective analysis of earthquake data in the area shows that a small number of earthquakes started occurring under Edgecumbe in 2020. This week's activity is unusual in the number of events, however.

AVO will continue to monitor Edgecumbe using existing regional seismic stations and satellite data. Because there is no local monitoring network, no Aviation Color Code and Volcano Alert Level are typically assigned to the volcano; its status therefore remains Unassigned. Should activity increase, AVO will issue further notices and possibly increase the Aviation Color Code and Volcano Alert Level.

Mount Edgecumbe is a 976 m (3202 ft) high stratovolcano on Kruzof Island located 24 km (15 mi) west of Sitka, Alaska, and is part of a broader volcanic field of lava domes and craters on southern Kruzof Island and surrounding submarine vicinity. Mount Edgecumbe and the surrounding volcanic field lies within the Tongass National Forest. There are no written observations of eruptions from the volcanic field; Tlingit oral history describes small eruptions from about 800 years ago. Geologic investigations show that eruptions 13,000 to 14,500 years ago produced at least one widespread regional tephra layer around 1 m thick near Sitka and over 30 m thick on parts of Kruzof Island. The youngest eruption preserved in the geologic record was about 4,500 years ago. The volcanic field has erupted a wide range of basalt to rhyolite compositions from numerous vents over the past 600,000 years.

OTHER ALASKA VOLCANOES

Information on all Alaska volcanoes is available at: http://www.avo.alaska.edu.

For definitions of Aviation Color Codes and Volcano Alert Levels, see: http://www.avo.alaska.edu/color_codes.php

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CONTACT INFORMATION:

Michelle Coombs, Scientist-in-Charge, USGS, mcoombs@usgs.gov, (907) 786-7497

David Fee, Coordinating Scientist, UAFGI, dfee1@alaska.edu, (907) 322-4085

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.