Out of an estimated 1,350 active volcanoes worldwide, about 45 have continuing eruptions, and about 80 erupt each year, spewing steam, ash, toxic gases, and lava. In 2024, erupting volcanoes included the Villarrica volcano in Chile, Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki in Indonesia, the Sundhnúksgígar crater chain in Iceland, Popocatepetl volcano in Mexico, Mount Etna in Sicily, Shiveluch volcano in Russia, and more. Collected below are scenes from the wide variety of volcanic activity on Earth over the past year.
People watch lava fountains from the old lava fields around an eruption site on the Reykjanes peninsula, in Iceland, on August 28, 2024.
An eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki, as seen from Lewolaga village in East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia, on November 7, 2024
Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki spews volcanic materials during an eruption, as seen from Konga, Titehena, East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia, on November 12, 2024.
Molten lava flows near the Blue Lagoon, Grindavik, after a volcanic eruption that started the day before, on the Reykjanes Peninsula, in Iceland, on November 21, 2024.
A view of lava crossing the main road to Grindavík and flowing on the road leading to the Blue Lagoon, in Grindavík, Iceland, on February 8, 2024. A volcano in southwestern Iceland has erupted for the third time since last December and sent jets of lava into the sky.
An eruption from Mount Ruang volcano is seen from Tagulandang island, in Sitaro, North Sulawesi, on April 30, 2024.
Field crews with the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory reported small fountains and lava flows erupting from one of Kīlauea’s western fissures on September 20, 2024.
An eruption is viewed in Kīlauea’s east rift zone in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii, during a helicopter flyover on September 17, 2024.
Two steam rings called volcanic vortex rings, generated by the southeast crater of Mt. Etna, photographed on April 6, 2024, in Catania, Italy. The formation of steam rings is a very rare phenomenon that occurs only when there is a constant venting of vapor and gas from the volcano.
The southeast crater of Mt. Etna emits gases and volcanic vortex rings on April 6, 2024, seen from Catania, Italy.
A night view of the Villarrica volcano, as seen from Pucón, Chile, on May 12, 2024
Lava fountains erupt from a fissure in Grindavik, Iceland, on May 29, 2024.
Lightning strikes are seen within a column of gas and ash during an eruption of the Shiveluch volcano, reportedly caused by a large earthquake about 100 kilometers east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, on Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula, on August 18, 2024.
Residents watch the eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki from Lewolaga village in East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara, on November 9, 2024.
Lava runs down from the crater of Mount Merapi as volcanic activity increases, as seen from Turgo village in Sleman Regency, Yogyakarta Province, Indonesia, on September 6, 2024.
Popocatepetl volcano spews ash into the air outside Mexico City on February 28, 2024. The ash cloud led to the cancellation of about two dozen flights in and out of the city, authorities said.
Gas and steam rise above flowing lava during a volcanic eruption on the outskirts of the evacuated town of Grindavik, in western Iceland, on January 14, 2024.
A person watches ash and lava erupting from Mount Etna, in Sicily, on July 15, 2024.
An aerial view of an eruption of Mount Etna on July 4, 2024, in Sicily
A view of an eruption and lava-flow area, with the northern lights dancing above, seen near the town of Grindavik, Iceland, on April 16, 2024