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Geological feature

Active volcano

Active volcano
World map of active volcanoes and plate boundaries
World map of active volcanoes and plate boundaries
Lava flows at Holuhraun, Iceland, September 2014
Lava flows at Holuhraun, Iceland, September 2014
2 images

An active volcano is a volcano that is currently erupting, or has the potential to erupt in the future. 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

Nyiragongo's lava lake
Nyiragongo's lava lake

There are 1,650 potentially active volcanoes around the world, 500 of which have erupted in historical time. 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.

Historical time (or recorded history) is another timeframe for active. 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. 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. As of March 2021, the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program recognizes 560 volcanoes with confirmed historical eruptions.

Countries with the most Holocene volcanoes, according to the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program (as of 2023):

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

Countries with the most volcanoes active since 1960 (as of 2023):

  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:

Other highly active volcanoes include:

Holocene volcanoes with large populations within 5 km (3.1 mi):

Michoacan-Guanajuato volcano in Mexico and Tatun Volcanic Group in Taiwan both have more than 5 million people living within 5 kilometers (3.1 mi) of the volcano. Campi Flegrei in Italy and Ilopango in El Salvador both have populations of over 2 million people living within 5 kilometers (3.1 mi) 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 5 kilometers (3.1 mi) of each volcano.

By country

The venting lava dome taken in 2008 during Chaitens' eruption.
The venting lava dome taken in 2008 during Chaitens' eruption.
Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica
Arenal Volcano, Costa Rica
Iceland's Fagradalsfjall volcano
Iceland's Fagradalsfjall volcano
Hekla, stratovolcano in Iceland
Hekla, stratovolcano in Iceland
A fissure eruption of the Svartsengi system on March 16, 2024 in Iceland.
A fissure eruption of the Svartsengi system on March 16, 2024 in Iceland.
View of Mount Kerinci from the Kayu Aro plateau, Kerinci Regency, Jambi, Indonesia
View of Mount Kerinci from the Kayu Aro plateau, Kerinci Regency, Jambi, Indonesia
Mount Rinjani on the Lombok Island, West Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia
Mount Rinjani on the Lombok Island, West Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia
Mount Semeru and Bromo Tengger Semeru Park, East Java, Indonesia
Mount Semeru and Bromo Tengger Semeru Park, East Java, Indonesia
Aerial image of Stromboli (view from the northeast)
Aerial image of Stromboli (view from the northeast)
Mount Etna in Italy
Mount Etna in Italy
Nantai volcano, Tochigi-Nikko, Japan in 2013
Nantai volcano, Tochigi-Nikko, Japan in 2013
Yotei Volcano on Hokkaido in Japan
Yotei Volcano on Hokkaido in Japan
12 images

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:

Honduras

Iceland

Source:

Indonesia

Source:

Sumatera Island

Sunda Strait and Java

Lesser Sunda Islands

Sumbawa

  • Mount Tambora, a stratovolcano, the 1815 eruption was the largest in recorded history.

Sulawesi and Sangihe Islands

Banda Sea

Halmahera


Italy

Source:

Japan

See list of volcanoes in Japan for more information

Hokkaido

Honshū

Izu Islands

Kyūshū

Ryūkyū Islands

Mexico

Source:

Nicaragua

New Zealand

Peru

Philippines

Source:

Turkey

United States

Colorado

Hawaii

Source:

Idaho

Oregon

New Mexico

Washington

California

Wyoming

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