Mount Nyiragongo

Mount Nyiragongo
Mount Nyiragongo viewed aerially in 2014
Highest point
Elevation	3,470 m (11,385 ft)[1]
Prominence	1,443 m (4,734 ft)
Coordinates	1°31′09″S 29°15′15″E / 1.51917°S 29.25417°E / -1.51917; 29.25417[1]
Geography
Mount Nyiragongo Mount Nyiragongo
Location	Democratic Republic of the Congo
Parent range	Virunga Mountains
Geology
Mountain type	Stratovolcano
Last eruption	22 February 2024 – present[1]

Mount Nyiragongo (/ˌnɪərəˈɡɒŋɡoʊ, -ˈɡɔːŋ-/ neer-ə-GONG-go) is an active stratovolcano with an elevation of 3,470 m (11,385 ft)^[1] in the Virunga Mountains associated with the Albertine Rift. It is located inside Virunga National Park, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, about 12 km (7.5 mi) north of the town of Goma and Lake Kivu and just west of the border with Rwanda. The main crater is about two kilometres (1 mi) wide and usually contains a lava lake. The crater presently has two distinct cooled lava benches within the crater walls – one at about 3,175 m (10,417 ft) and a lower one at about 2,975 m (9,760 ft).

Nyiragongo's lava lake has at times been the most voluminous known lava lake in recent history. The depth of the lava lake varies considerably. A maximum elevation of the lava lake was recorded at about 3,250 m (10,660 ft) prior to the January 1977 eruption – a lake depth of about 600 m (2,000 ft). Following the January 2002 eruption, the lava lake was recorded at a low of about 2,600 m (8,500 ft), or 900 m (3,000 ft) below the rim.^[2] The level has gradually risen since then.^[3] Nyiragongo and nearby Nyamuragira are together responsible for 40% of Africa's historical volcanic eruptions.^[4]