Volcanoes current events

1. What’s actually erupting now — and how serious is it?

Kīlauea on Hawaiʻi’s Big Island is in an ongoing eruption sequence that began 23 December 2024 and has produced frequent lava-fountaining episodes roughly once per week; episode 36 produced fountains over the crater floor and SO2 emissions that create vog downwind, with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) currently listing the volcano at ALERT: WATCH / Aviation Color Code: ORANGE ^{[2] [5]}. In Alaska, the USGS Alaska Volcano Observatory reports lava continuing to erupt within Great Sitkin’s summit crater and lists that volcano at WATCH/ORANGE as well ^[3]. These are active but locally contained eruptions — Kīlauea’s flows have been described as largely within closed park areas and the main hazards so far have been ash/tephra near vents and volcanic gases ^{[6] [7]}.

2. How many eruptions has 2025 produced so far?

The Smithsonian’s Global Volcanism Program tallied 63 confirmed eruptions at some point during 2025 from 58 volcanoes, with 21 of those eruptions beginning during the year, based on data through 19 September 2025 ^[1]. Independent media compendia and visual summaries from NASA and news outlets have also cataloged multiple eruptive events worldwide, from Kamchatka to East Africa, underscoring elevated global activity ^{[8] [9]}.

3. High‑profile volcanoes people ask about: Axial and Yellowstone

Axial Seamount, an undersea volcano off Oregon, is highlighted by researchers because it is “the most well‑instrumented submarine volcano on the planet,” and scientists predicted it was likely to erupt sometime in 2025 — not as an existential threat but as an important, testable forecast for eruption science ^[4]. Media pieces have paired Axial with public questions about Yellowstone; reporting notes that while Axial shows signs pointing toward possible eruption, Yellowstone does not present the same single, shallow, world‑altering reservoir implied by some sensational headlines — peer observations emphasize distributed magma storage rather than one huge chamber ^[10]. Available sources do not claim a high probability of a catastrophic Yellowstone event in 2025 ^{[10] [4]}.

4. Aviation, health and local impacts — what to watch for

Volcanic ash advisories (VAAC notices) continue for multiple volcanoes, and ash plumes can reach flight levels that concern aviation (for example, Taal and Indonesian vents have triggered VAAC alerts) ^[11]. At Kīlauea, continuous SO2 emissions produce vog that can cause respiratory problems at high concentrations, and tephra (e.g., Pele’s hair) can fall tens of kilometers downwind — these are the proximate public‑health and infrastructure issues authorities are monitoring ^{[2] [7]}.

5. Why 2025 seems “busy” — measurement, context, and risk framing

Part of the perception of an unusually active year reflects better monitoring (Axial’s instrumentation), continued activity at persistently active volcanoes like Kīlauea and Etna, and concentrated media attention; the Smithsonian’s 63 eruptions through September quantifies that activity without implying global catastrophe ^{[1] [9] [8]}. Scientists quoted in reporting stress that observing an eruption in a well‑instrumented system like Axial provides scientific value and does not equate to heightened societal risk beyond regional impacts ^[4].

6. Conflicting narratives and where to be cautious

Some popular outlets have paired Axial and Yellowstone in alarmist headlines; the scientific coverage emphasizes Axial’s data‑driven forecast and notes that Yellowstone’s magma plumbing is more complex and not indicative of imminent supereruption ^{[10] [4]}. Readers should favor direct observatory updates (USGS, Smithsonian) for status and avoid extrapolating single‑event probabilities to global disaster scenarios — authoritative sources cited here focus on monitoring updates and local hazard communication ^{[3] [2] [1]}.

Limitations: this summary uses the provided sources only; it does not include USGS weekly reports beyond cited notices nor any eyewitness social‑media posts. For immediate safety or travel decisions consult local observatory updates and VAAC advisories directly ^{[3] [5] [11]}.