Taal Volcano continuously exhibited a swelling trend in seismicity. In fact, there have been 64 volcanic earthquakes registered over the last day. The Philippines Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) registered dozens of tremors a day and excessive gas emissions from the volcano’s main crater. This increase continues a trend of increased volcano activity worldwide.
From April 8 to April 9 Taal Volcano recorded five volcanic tremors lasting one to two minutes. Phivolcs defines these volcanic earthquakes as those “generated by magmatic processes or magma-related processes beneath or near an active volcano.” This classification illustrates just how unique these seismic events are when compared with tectonic earthquakes, which are produced through faulting.
The volcano blasted an astonishing 1,213 metric tonnes of sulfur dioxide (SO₂) into the atmosphere from its primary crater. This is a huge increase from yesterday’s release of 672 mt. Phivolcs classified the emissions as “weak vog,” which is short for volcanic smog caused by the release of sulfur-rich gases.
Between April 8 and April 26, Taal Volcano registered 126 volcanic earthquakes. It crashed through 34 individual tremor episodes, demonstrating a clear rhythmic pattern of activity. On April 27, Taal volcano registered 37 volcanic earthquakes and eight short-lived volcanic tremors. Just the day before, on April 26, they had 56 earthquakes and 14 aftershocks. This spike in seismic activity is confirmed by the seismic data from PHIVOLCS, which recorded 53 volcanic earthquakes and 13 volcanic tremor episodes on just April 29 alone.
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“Unlike tectonic earthquakes that are produced by faulting, volcanic earthquakes are directly produced by many processes and are therefore much more varied in characteristics.” – Phivolcs
They started seeing an uptick in seismic activity. They observed that the tremors can be the result of various internal processes occurring inside the volcano. In this case, magma and magmatic gas flowing through cracks and vents can resonate. Furthermore, superimposed low-frequency earthquakes and uprising of magma help the process.
“Tremors can be caused by different processes inside the volcano.” – Phivolcs
As Taal continues to become increasingly more active, renewed eruptions remain a threat to millions. Just to be safe, authorities are monitoring the situation very closely. They remind residents to continue to stay up-to-date with guidance and to adhere to health guidelines.
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