2017 Volcanic Activity Review

In this transition moment 2017-2018, a review of major eruptions is needed, and without making predictions, which are the volcanoes to follow especially this year ?

I have not done any polls, but I quite agree with the results of Eric Klemetti's "2017 Pliny Award for Volcanic Event of the Year". He ranks in the top five Agung, Sinabung, Bogoslof, Sabancaya and Fuego.

The Agung wins the prize, since after a quiet period of 53 years, he keeps observers in suspense since September.

What will be the result of the eruption? Will the volcano silence the various politico-tourist controversies?

The Sinabung, tireless, enters its fifth year of continuous eruption, always punctuated by explosions and pyroclastic flows. The forbidden zone remains necessary as we saw last week ... the Sinabung destroyed villages during these years, and several thousand inhabitants had to find a permanent refuge outside the danger zone.

The Bogoslof, fortunately located in the remote archipelago of the Aleutians, after winning the first place in 2016, continued its work until the end of August, before returning to its basic alert level. We keep in memory a superb plume at more than 12,000 meters above sea level.

In Peru, the Sabancaya continues, since November 2016, a long series of explosions punctuated by plumes of ashes, which justify an exclusion zone of 12 km radius.

The Fuego, in Guatemala, showed regularity, with 12 paroxysmal episodes this year, and a varied activity, between Strombolian explosions, lava fountains, lava and pyroclastics flows. Violent rains have also generated some lahars ... all this activity fortunately without loss of life !

The volcanoes of Kamchatka, including Sheveluch, Klyuchevskoy, Bezymianny to name just a few, are not left out.

In Vanuatu, in addition to the usually active volcanoes, Ambae caused a total evacuation of the island.

Beautiful eruptions have also marked Fernandina in Galapagos archipelago, and Piton de La Fournaise on the island of Reunion.

Let's not forget our spectacular European volcanoes, Etna, and Stromboli, turbulent at the end of the year.

Without making any predictions, it will still be necessary, in 2018, to keep an eye on some volcanoes which mark instability, and which could hold us surprises: the Bárðarbunga and Öræfajökull in Iceland, the Kirishima in Japan, or still one or the other Chilean volcano, I think of Villarica, or Indonesian volcano, and there, they are legion.

Anyway, we will be entitled to show of Kilauea, Piton de La Fournaise, Etna and Stromboli.