There are more and more signs of seismic activity at an Alaskan volcano that hasn’t erupted in more than 30 years. However, volcanologists say this doesn’t mean an eruption is about to happen.
An Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO) alert level for Mt. Spurr was raised from “green” to “yellow” this week because of a few small earthquakes that were found nearby.
But there aren’t any clear signs of an explosion yet.
According to the AVO’s Thursday report, “activity at Mount Spurr is still being closely watched for signs that the volcano is getting closer to erupting.”
Scientists say that quakes, ground deformation, and activity around summit lake got stronger before past eruptions, which could mean that magma was moving closer to the surface.
“Therefore, it is very likely that if an eruption were to occur, it would be proceeded by additional signals that would allow advance warning,” AVO said.
According to the AVO, Mt. Spurr last exploded in the summer of 1992, after being dormant for 39 years. It is just over 75 miles west of Anchorage. There were a lot of signs before that explosion.
To keep a close eye on the volcano, volcanologists use seismometers, web cams, lightning networks, and data from satellites, among other things.