Alaska’s Mount Spurr is an active volcano that has been showing signs that it might pop in the coming months or even in a matter of weeks. Located about 75 miles west of Anchorage, Mount Spurr has been emitting elevated levels of volcanic gases alongside increased seismic activity and ground deformations and has seen increased activity of fumaroles, aka gas vents.
According to volcanologists at the Alaska Volcano Observatory, all those signs point to an increased risk of eruption. In addition, over the past month, the site has experienced over 100 earthquakes a week. Scientists at the Observatory are monitoring Spurr’s activity, noting that new magma appears to have entered the Earth’s crust beneath the volcano.
Will Mount Spurr Erupt in 2025?
Mount Spurr’s eruption would mark one of the few times researchers can say that the volcano has erupted at all. It’s been 5,000 years since the last time Mount Spurr erupted from its summit. In the past century, it has twice erupted from the Crater Peak vent, situated about 2 miles south of the summit.
The first of those was in 1953, the other in 1992—both were explosive and dangerous but thankfully only lasted a few hours. The 1992 eruption carried ash clouds downwind for hundreds of miles, forcing the closure of the Anchorage airport for 20 hours.
Mount Spurr is an active volcano, as in its alive and kicking, but it’s definitely been a lazy one, which residents of nearby Anchorage are probably happy about. The Alaska Volcano Observatory has raised the volcano’s alert level to yellow, signifying increased unrest.
The Observatory will continue to provide updates should conditions shift toward an imminent eruption.
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