 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2016) |
| Mount Yasur | |
|---|---|
 Mount Yasur | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 361 m (1,184 ft)[1] |
| Coordinates | 19°31′42″S 169°26′54″E / 19.52833°S 169.44833°E |
| Geography | |
| Geology | |
| Mountain type | Stratovolcano |
| Last eruption | 1774 (possibly earlier) to 2024 (ongoing)[2] |
Mount Yasur is a volcano on Tanna Island, Vanuatu, 361 m (1,184 ft) high above sea level,[2] on the coast near Sulphur Bay, northeast of the taller Mount Tukosmera, which was active in the Pleistocene. It has a largely unvegetated pyroclastic cone with a nearly circular summit crater 400 m in diameter.[1]
It is a stratovolcano, caused by the eastward-moving Indo-Australian Plate being subducted under the westward-moving Pacific Plate. It has been erupting nearly continuously for several hundred years, although it can usually be approached safely. Its eruptions, which often occur several times an hour, are classified as Strombolian or Vulcanian. A large lava plain creeps across the valley at the base.[3]
The glow of the volcano was apparently what attracted Captain James Cook on the first European journey to the island in 1774. Today, the mountain is a sacred area for the John Frum cargo cult. Members of the cult revere John Frum, a deified messenger who foretold the bringing of wealth to the island by American forces, and believe he resides in Mount Yasur with his countrymen.[4] The village of Sulphur Bay, the center of the movement, claims the volcano as part of their territory.
- ^ a b "Yasur". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
- ^ a b "Yasur volcano". volcanodiscovery. 19 February 2018.
- ^ Robyn Harbour (5 August 2014). Beyond the Palm Trees. Ark House Press. p. 30. ISBN 9780992519292.
- ^ "Mount Yasur". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 2018-08-02.