What is Whakaari/White Island and why does it keep erupting?

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1. 1

   Phreatic eruptions at Whakaari Volcano driven by hydrothermal mineralisation and magmatic gas input.

   Communications earth & environment (Pearson-Grant et al.)Published Dec 16, 2025Checked Oct 21, 2026

   “Phreatic eruptions are a potentially lethal type of volcanic activity that is notoriously difficult to forecast. Understanding the complex processes that make eruptions more likely is a key step towards detecting precursory signals. Here, we employ 3-dimensional numerical models of heat and fluid flow based on field and laboratory data from Whakaari/White Island Volcano in New Zealand to explore the thermal, hydraulic, and geologic conditions that promote phreatic eruptions. Our results show that hydrothermally mineralised low-permeability seals can trap rising steam and magmatic gases until the pressure exceeds the tensile strength of the rock within days to months. Changes in persistent degassing through secondary vents can provide valuable insights into when the main sealed conduit is building to eruption. This study provides new insights into the timescales and mechanisms promoting phreatic eruptions, and a starting point to quantitatively interpret volcanic signals in terms of subsurface activity and eruptive potential.”

2. 2

   Phreatic and Hydrothermal Eruptions: From Overlooked to Looking Over

   Bulletin of Volcanology (Montanaro et al.)Published Jun 1, 2022Checked Oct 21, 2026

   “Over the last decade, field investigations, laboratory experiments, geophysical exploration and petrological, geochemical and numerical modelling have provided insight into the mechanisms of phreatic and hydrothermal eruptions. These eruptions are driven by sudden flashing of ground- or hydrothermal water to steam and are strongly influenced by the interaction of host rock and hydrothermal system. Aquifers hosted in volcanic edifices, calderas and rift environments can be primed for instability by alteration processes affecting rock permeability and/or strength, while magmatic fluid injection(s), earthquakes or other subtle triggers can promote explosive failure. Gas emission, ground deformation and seismicity may provide short- to medium-term forerunner signals of these eruptions, yet a definition of universal precursors remains a key challenge. Looking forward in the next 10 years, improved warning and hazard assessment will require integration of field and experimental data with models combining case studies, as well as development of new monitoring methods integrated by machine learning approaches.”

3. 3

   Insights into the 9 December 2019 eruption of Whakaari/White Island from analysis of TROPOMI SO2 imagery.

   Science advances (Burton et al.)Published Jun 18, 2021Checked Oct 21, 2026

   “Small, phreatic explosions from volcanic hydrothermal systems pose a substantial proximal hazard on volcanoes, which can be popular tourist sites, creating casualty risks in case of eruption. Volcano monitoring of gas emissions provides insights into when explosions are likely to happen and unravel processes driving eruptions. Here, we report SO2 flux and plume height data retrieved from TROPOMI satellite imagery before, during, and after the 9 December 2019 eruption of Whakaari/White Island volcano, New Zealand, which resulted in 22 fatalities and numerous injuries. We show that SO2 was detected without explosive activity on separate days before and after the explosion, and that fluxes increased from 10 to 45 kg/s ~40 min before the explosion itself. High temporal resolution gas monitoring from space can provide key insights into magmatic degassing processes globally, aiding understanding of eruption precursors and complementing ground-based monitoring.”

4. 4

   Experimental constraints on phreatic eruption processes at Whakaari (White Island volcano)

   Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (Mayer et al.)Published Jul 5, 2015Checked Oct 21, 2026

   “Ejection speeds of unconsolidated samples are higher than ejection speeds of cemented tuffs, as less energy is consumed by fragmentation. Fragmentation dominated by steam flashing results in increased fragmentation energy and a higher proportion of fine particles. Particle shape analyses before and after fragmentation reveal that both steam flashing and pure gas expansion produce platy or bladed particles from fracturing parallel to the decompression front. Neither fragmentation mechanisms nor sample type show a significant influence on the shape. Our results emphasize that, under identical pressure and temperature conditions, eruptions accompanied by the process of liquid water flashing to steam are significantly more violent than those driven simply by gas expansion. Therefore, phase changes during decompression and cementation are both important considerations for hazard assessment and modeling of eruptions in hydrothermally active environments.”

5. 5

   A quest for unrest in multiparameter observations at Whakaari/White Island volcano, New Zealand 2007–2018

   Earth Planets and Space (Caudron et al.)Published Oct 21, 2021Checked Oct 21, 2026

   “For the last 15 years, seismic data have been continuously archived providing potential insight into this frequently active volcano. Here we take advantage of this unusually long time series to retrospectively process the seismic data using ambient noise and tremor-based methodologies. We investigate the time (RSAM) and frequency (Power Spectral Density) evolution of the volcanic tremor, then estimate the changes in the shallow subsurface using the Displacement Seismic Amplitude Ratio (DSAR), relative seismic velocity (dv/v) and decorrelation, and the Luni-Seismic Correlation (LSC). By combining our new set of observations with the long-term evolution of earthquakes, deformation, visual observations and geochemistry, we review the activity of Whakaari/White Island between 2007 and the end of 2018. Our analysis reveals the existence of distinct patterns related to the volcano activity with periods of calm followed by cycles of pressurization and eruptions. We finally put these results in the wider context of forecasting phreatic eruptions using continuous seismic records.”

6. 6

   Phreatic eruption dynamics derived from deposit analysis: a case study from a small, phreatic eruption from Whakāri/White Island, New Zealand

   Earth Planets and Space (Kilgour et al.)Published Apr 1, 2019Checked Oct 21, 2026

   “Vent locations and directionality of the eruption are constrained by the ballistic modelling, suggesting that the vent/s were angled towards the east. Using these data, a model is developed that comports with the field and geophysical data. One of the main factors modifying the dispersal of the eruption deposits is the inner crater wall, which is ~ 20 m high. This wall prevents some of the pyroclastic surge and ballistic ejecta from being deposited onto the main crater floor but also promotes significant inflation of the surge, generating a semi-buoyant plume that deposits ash high on the crater walls. While the eruption is small volume, the complexity determined from the deposits provides a case study with which to assess the relatively frequent hazards posed by active volcanoes that host hydrothermal systems. The deposits of this and similar eruptions are readily eroded, and for complete understanding of volcanic hazards, it is necessary to make observations and collect samples soon after these events.”