Sources: Smithsonian Institution / USGS Weekly Volcanic Activity Report (volcano.si.edu, updated every Thursday) and the USGS Hazard Notification System elevated-volcanoes feed (volcanoes.usgs.gov). Figures on this page are read directly from those feeds. This is a summary of significant reported activity, not a comprehensive list of every eruption, and alert levels describe a volcano's current state rather than forecasting future activity.
How this live tracker works
This page combines two authoritative feeds. The Smithsonian/USGS Weekly Volcanic Activity Report gives a global picture of which volcanoes have shown significant activity in the past week, updated every Thursday. The USGS elevated-volcanoes feed adds near-real-time alert levels and aviation color codes for United States volcanoes, which can change at any hour. We match each reported volcano to its page in our database of 1,491 volcanoes by its Smithsonian volcano number, so you can jump straight from “what is erupting today” to a volcano's full eruption history, VEI record and past disasters.
What the alert levels mean
USGS volcanoes use a four-step Volcano Alert Level — NORMAL, ADVISORY, WATCH and WARNING— alongside a four-color Aviation Color Code (GREEN, YELLOW, ORANGE, RED). Other countries run their own scales: Indonesia's PVMBG uses Levels 1–4, the Philippines' PHIVOLCS uses Alert Levels 0–5, and Japan's JMA uses a five-level scale. Because the scales differ, we show each volcano's status in the words its own monitoring agency uses, quoted from the source report rather than converted. For the science behind eruption size, see our guide to the Volcanic Explosivity Index.
Explore further
For background on the volcanoes most likely to appear here, read our active volcanoes overview, explore every eruption plotted in time on the eruption timeline, see which volcanoes have the most large eruptions on record in the most explosive volcanoes leaderboard, or browse the whole world on our interactive volcano map.