Active volcano explained

An active volcano is a volcano that is currently erupting, or has the potential to erupt in the future.[1] Conventionally it is applied to any that have erupted during the Holocene (the current geologic epoch that began approximately 11,700 years ago). A volcano that is not currently erupting but could erupt in the future is also known as a dormant volcano. Volcanoes that will not erupt again, or are thought to never erupt again, are known as extinct volcanoes.

Overview

There are 1,650 potentially active volcanoes around the world, 500 of which have erupted in historical time.[2] Many active volcanoes are located along the Pacific Rim, also known as the Pacific Ring of Fire. An estimated 500 million people live near active volcanoes.[3]

Historical time (or recorded history) is another timeframe for active.[4] The span of recorded history differs from region to region. In China and the Mediterranean, it reaches back nearly 3,000 years, but in the Pacific Northwest of the United States and Canada, it reaches back less than 300 years, and in Hawaii and New Zealand it is only around 200 years.[5] The incomplete Catalogue of the Active Volcanoes of the World, published in parts between 1951 and 1975 by the International Association of Volcanology, uses this definition, by which there are more than 500 active volcanoes.[5] [6], the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program recognizes 560 volcanoes with confirmed historical eruptions.[7]

Countries with the most Holocene volcanoes, according to the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program :[8]

  1. United States: 165
  2. Japan: 122
  3. Russia: 117
  4. Indonesia 117
  5. Chile: 91

Countries with the most volcanoes active since 1960 :[9]

  1. Indonesia: 55
  2. Japan: 40
  3. US: 39 (mostly volcanic areas in and around Hawaii, Alaska, California, Oregon, Washington State and Pacific territories)
  4. Russia: 27
  5. Chile: 19
  6. Papua New Guinea: 13
  7. Ecuador: 12

As of 2025, the following are considered Earth's most active volcanoes:[10]

Other highly active volcanoes include:

Holocene volcanoes with large populations within 5km (03miles):

Michoacan-Guanajuato volcano in Mexico and Tatun Volcanic Group in Taiwan both have more than 5 million people living within 5km (03miles) of the volcano. Campi Flegrei in Italy and Ilopango in El Salvador both have populations of over 2 million people living within 5km (03miles) of the volcanoes. Hainan Volcanic Field in China, San Pablo Volcanic Field in the Philippines, Ghegham Volcanic Ridge in Armenia, Dieng Volcanic Complex, in Indonesia, and Auckland Volcanic Field in New Zealand all have over 1 million people living within 5km (03miles) of each volcano.[12]

By country

Argentina

Argentina is part of the Andes Mountains volcanic belt along the western South American Pacific coast. These volcanoes are a result of subduction, where the Nazca Plate is subducting below the South American Plate. The following list are active/dormant volcanoes in Argentina:

Bolivia

Chile

Colombia

Costa Rica

Ecuador

The Galapagos Islands (Ecuador)

Greece

El Salvador

Ethiopia

Guatemala

Source:[13]

Honduras

Iceland

Source:[14]

Indonesia

Source:[15] [16]

Sumatera Island

Sunda Strait and Java

Lesser Sunda Islands

Sumbawa

Sulawesi and Sangihe Islands

Banda Sea

Halmahera


Italy

Source:[17]

Japan

See list of volcanoes in Japan for more information

Hokkaido

Honshū

Izu Islands

Kyūshū

Ryūkyū Islands

Mexico

Source:[18]

Nicaragua

New Zealand

Peru

Philippines

Source:[19]

Turkey

United States

Arizona

Colorado

Hawaii

Source:[20]

Idaho

Oregon

New Mexico

Washington

California

Wyoming

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Poland . Michael . 2022-10-10 . Active, dormant, and extinct: Clarifying confusing classifications U.S. Geological Survey . 2023-11-14 . United States Geological Survey.
  2. Web site: How many active volcanoes are there on Earth? U.S. Geological Survey . November 2023 . 2023-11-28 . United States Geological Survey.
  3. Web site: Volcanoes . 2009 . European Space Agency . August 16, 2012.
  4. Book: Tilling, Robert I. . Volcanoes . 1997 . U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey . Denver, Colorado . August 16, 2012 . Volcano environment. https://pubs.usgs.gov/gip/volc/environments.html . There are more than 500 active volcanoes (those that have erupted at least once within recorded history) in the world.
  5. Book: Mountains of Fire: The Nature of Volcanoes . Decker . Robert Wayne . Decker . Barbara . 1991 . Cambridge University Press . 978-0-521-31290-5 . 7 .
  6. Web site: Catalogs of Active Volcanoes . Dartmouth College . The Electronic Volcano . 14 November 1997 . 16 April 2021 . B. . DeFelice . D.R. . Spydell . R.E. . Stoiber . https://web.archive.org/web/20200119001556/https://www.dartmouth.edu/~volcano/EvA.html . 2020-01-19.
  7. Web site: How many active volcanoes are there? . . Global Volcanism Program Volcanoes of the World (version 4.9.4) . Venzke . E. . 2013 . 2 April 2021.
  8. Web site: Global Volcanism Program Which countries have the most volcanoes? . 2023-12-05 . Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program . en.
  9. Web site: 2023-11-15 . Infographic: The Countries With the Most Active Volcanos . 2023-12-05 . Statista Daily Data . en.
  10. Web site: The most active volcanoes in the world. VolcanoDiscovery.com. September 26, 2025.
  11. Web site: Where is the largest active volcano in the world? U.S. Geological Survey . 9 January 1985 . 2023-12-01 . United States Geological Survey.
  12. Web site: Global Volcanism Program What volcanoes have the most people living nearby? . 2023-11-29 . Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program . en.
  13. Web site: Global Volcanism Program Guatemala Volcanoes . 2024-04-07 . Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program . en.
  14. Web site: Global Volcanism Program Iceland Volcanoes . 2023-11-23 . Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program . en.
  15. Web site: Global Volcanism Program Indonesia Volcanoes . 2024-04-07 . Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program . en.
  16. Web site: List of volcanoes in Indonesia . List of volcanoes in Indonesia - Wikipedia.
  17. Web site: Global Volcanism Program Italy Volcanoes . 2023-11-23 . Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program . en.
  18. Web site: Global Volcanism Program Mexico Volcanoes . 2023-11-28 . Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program . en.
  19. Web site: Global Volcanism Program Philippines Volcanoes . 2023-12-06 . Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program . en.
  20. Web site: Active Volcanoes of Hawaii U.S. Geological Survey . 2023-11-14 . United States Geological Survey.

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