Volcanologists are closely monitoring Mount Spurr in Alaska as a series of small, shallow volcanic earthquakes continue beneath the volcano, indicating ongoing activity. Overflight video from Feb 7, 2025, shows small lake nestled in snowy crater. Follow USGS Volcanoes for the latest updates. Courtesy of Alaska Volcano Observatory / U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | U.S. Department of the Interior

Explosive eruption at Alaska's Shishaldin Volcano sends ash cloud to nearly 30,000 feet

The eruption of Augustine Volcano in Alaska nearly 20 years ago is stilll leading to new discoveries. The latest comes from graduate student researcher Valerie Wasser at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute. She analyzed extremely small crystal clots, each polished to the thickness of a human hair or thinner, to determin that the addition of hot new magma into Augustine’s reservoir of cooler, older magma increased the pressure enough to trigger the 2006 eruption. Wasser’s ana