Alaska Guide

Alaska Volcanoes

The majority of US volcanoes are located in Alaska. In fact there are 53 volcanoes in the USA and 43 of those are in Alaska! The reason for this is that the Aleutian Islands, the Alaska Peninsula, and the Wrangell Mountains and part of the famous Ring of Fire which extends from the Pacific Ocean and through Hawaii.

The Alaska Volcano Observatory observes and monitors volcanoes in Alaska and is a good source of information if you are wanting to learn more about the volcanoes here.

In addition to these 43 historically active volcanoes there are another 80 or so volcanoes that could potentially become active again.

The biggest volcanic eruption in Alaska was in 1912 when the Novarupta/Katmai Volcano erupted. The eruption was so huge that the sky over the Northern Hemisphere was darkened for days due to all the ash and up to one foot thick of ash was deposited on the ground in some places.

One of the most active Alaska volcanoes is Pavlof Volcano. It has erupted more than 40 times since 1790.

The Novarupta Volcano is located in the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes which is now in the Katmai National Park.Other notable volcanoes in Alaska which have had recent eruptions include:

Mt.Spurr
Mt. Augustine
Mt. Makushin
Pavlof Volcano
Mt. Augustine
Mt. Redoubt
Mt. Spurr

Most of the large volcanoes are visible to you as you are traveling around Alaska. Detailed maps are available to outline exactly which volcano is which and if you are so inclined you can even conduct your own "volcano tour" by traveling the state to view all the major volcanoes (although many are visibly close together so do not require too much travel).

Alaska Cruises Information