Eruptive activity at Mount St Helens,Washington, USA, 1984–1988: a gas geochemistry perspective

The results from two different types of gas measurement, telemetered in situ monitoring of reducing gases on the dome and airborne measurements of sulfur dioxide emission rates in the plume by correlation spectrometry, suggest that the combination of these two methods is particularly effective in detecting periods of enhanced degassing that intermittently punctuate the normal background leakage of gaseous effluent from Mount St Helens to the atmosphere. Gas events were recorded before lava extrusion for each of the four dome-building episodes at Mount St Helens since mid-1984. For two of the episodes, precursory reducing gas peaks were detected, whereas during three of the episodes, COSPEC measurements recorded precursory degassing of sulfur dioxide. During one episode (October 1986), both reducing gas monitoring and SO₂ emission rate measurements simultaneously detected a large gas release several hours before lava extrusion. Had both types of gas measurements been operational during each of the dome-building episodes, it is thought that both would have recorded precursory signals for all four episodes. Evidence from the data presented herein suggests that increased degassing at Mount St Helens becomes detectable when fresh upward-moving magma is between 2 km and a few hundred meters below the base of the dome and between about 60 and 12 hours before the surface extrusion of lava.     

Volcano hazards program in the United States

Volcano monitoring and volcanic-hazards studies have received greatly increased attention in the United States in the past few years. Before 1980, the Volcanic Hazards Program was primarily focused on the active volcanoes of Kilauea and Mauna Loa, Hawaii, which have been monitored continuously since 1912 by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. After the reawakening and catastrophic eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980, the program was substantially expanded as the government and general public became aware of the potential for eruptions and associated hazards within the conterminous United States. Integrated components of the expanded program include: volcanic-hazards assessment; volcano monitoring; fundamental research; and, in concert with federal, state, and local authorities, emergency-response planning.In 1980 the David A. Johnston Cascades Volcano Observatory was established in Vancouver, Washington, to systematically monitor the continuing activity of Mount St. Helens, and to acquire baseline data for monitoring the other, presently quiescent, but potentially dangerous Cascade volcanoes in the Pacific Northwest. Since June 1980, all of the eruptions of Mount St. Helens have been predicted successfully on the basis of seismic and geodetic monitoring.The largest volcanic eruptions, but the least probable statistically, that pose a threat to western conterminous United States are those from the large Pleistocene-Holocene volcanic systems, such as Long Valley caldera (California) and Yellowstone caldera (Wyoming), which are underlain by large magma chambers still potentially capable of producing catastrophic caldera-forming eruptions. In order to become better prepared for possible future hazards associated with such historically unpecedented events, detailed studies of these, and similar, large volcanic systems should be intensified to gain better insight into caldera-forming processes and to recognize, if possible, the precursors of caldera-forming eruptions.     

Some regularity in the process of re-awakening of andesite and dacite volcanoes: specific features of the 1982 El Chichón volcano,México reactivation

El Chichón volcano is an andesite stratovolcano in southern México. It erupted in March 1982, after about 550 years of quiescence. The 1982 eruption of El Chichón has not been followed by the growth of a lava dome within the newly formed crater. This is rather anomalous since the construction of a new dome after the destruction of an old one is a common process during the eruptions at andesite and dacite volcanoes. To discuss this anomalous aspect of the El Chichón eruption, some regularity in the process of re-awakening of dormant (here defined as a period of quiescence of more than 100 years) andesite and dacite volcanoes are studied based on the seismic activity recorded at the volcanoes Bezymianny, Mount St. Helens, El Chichón, Unzen, Pinatubo and Soufrière Hills. Three stages were identified in the re-awakening activity of these volcanoes: (1) preliminary seismic activity, leading up to the first phreatic explosion; (2) activity between the first and the largest explosions; (3) post-explosion dome-building process. The eruptions were divided into two groups: low-VEI (Volcanic Explosivity Index) and the long duration stage-1 events (Unzen, 1991 and Soufrière Hills volcano, 1995) and high-VEI and the short duration stage-1 events (Bezymianny, 1956; Mount St. Helens, 1980; El Chichón, 1982 and Pinatubo, 1992). The comparative analysis of the seismo-eruptive activity of two eruptions of the second group, the 1980 of Mt. St. Helens and the 1982 of El Chichón, produced an explanation the absence of new dome building during the 1982 eruption of El Chichón volcano. It may be explained in terms of the unusually rapid emission of gas and water from the magmatic and hydrothermal system beneath the volcano during a relatively short sequence of large explosions that could have sharply increased the viscosity of the magma making impossible its exit to the surface.     

An analysis of the earthquake time series at Mount St. Helens, Washington, in the framework of recent volcanic activity

The analysis of the earthquake time distribution at Mount St. Helens reveals a good correlation between the physical state of the volcano and statistical parameters of earthquake sequence. There are three main seismic phases in the whole 1980–1986 period. The first one precedes the main eruption of May 18, 1980. It begins with a sudden increase of the seismicity level in late March and continues with an Utsu (1961) type decay of the seismic occurrence rate, characterized by a small value of the decay coefficient, β. The second phase lasts from the cataclysmic eruption on May 18, 1980 until the continuous dome building episode in 1983 and is characterized by a very slow exponential increase of the background level of seismicity. The third phase covers the remaining part of the sample and is characterized by a stationary earthquake clustering process episodically interrupted by peaks of activity related to eruptions. The trends in seismic occurrence rate within each phase, as well as the statistical parameter variations at each transition, are analyzed and discussed in the framework of volcanic activity. This leads to the conclusion that statistical techniques may give a significant contribution in understanding changes in volcanic processes such as those at Mount St. Helens.     

Summary of pre-1980 tephra-fall deposits erupted from Mount St. Helens,Washington State,USA

Mount St. Helens has been a prolific source of tephra-fall deposits for about 40 000 years. These tephra deposits (1) record numerous explosive eruptions, (2) form important regional time-stratigraphic marker beds, and (3) record repeated changes in composition within and between eruptive periods.Recognized tephra strata record more than 100 explosive eruptive events at Mount St. Helens; those tephra strata are classified as beds, layers, and sets. Tephra sets, each of which consists of a group of beds and layers, define in part the nine eruptive periods recognized at the volcano. Individual tephra sets are distinguished from stratigraphically adjacent sets by differences in composition or by evidence of clapsed time.Several tephra units from Mount St. Helens form important marker beds at distances of hundreds of kilometers downwind from the volcano. Cummingtonite phenocrysts, which are known in ejecta from only Mount St. Helens in the Pacific Northwest, characterize some marker beds and readily identify their source.The tephra sequence also records eruption of the mafic andesites that mark the appearance of the modern Mount St. Helens and numerous changes in composition among dacite, basalt, and andesite since that time.     

Generation of pyroclastic flows and surges by hot-rock avalanches from the dome of Mount St. Helens volcano,USA

Several hot-rock avalanches have occurred during the growth of the composite dome of Mount St. Helens, Washington between 1980 and 1987. One of these occurred on 9 May 1986 and produced a fan-shaped avalanche deposit of juvenile dacite debris together with a more extensive pyroclastic-flow deposit. Laterally thinning deposits and abrasion and baking of wooden and plastic objects show that a hot ash-cloud surge swept beyond the limits of the pyroclastic flow. Plumes that rose 2–3 km above the dome and vitric ash that fell downwind of the volcano were also effects of this event, but no explosion occurred. All the facies observed originated from a single avalanche. Erosion and melting of craterfloor snow by the hot debris caused debris flows in the crater, and a small flood that carried juvenile and other clasts north of the crater. A second, broadly similar event occured in October 1986. Larger events of this nature could present a significant volcanic hazard.     

Volcanic hazards from Bezymianny- and Bandai-type eruptions

Major slope failures are a significant degradational process at volcanoes. Slope failures and associated explosive eruptions have resulted in more than 20 000 fatalities in the past 400 years; the historic record provides evidence for at least six of these events in the past century. Several historic debris avalanches exceed 1 km³ in volume. Holocene avalanches an order of magnitude larger have traveled 50–100 km from the source volcano and affected areas of 500–1500 km². Historic eruptions associated with major slope failures include those with a magmatic component (Bezymianny type) and those solely phreatic (Bandai type). The associated gravitational failures remove major segments of the volcanoes, creating massive horseshoe-shaped depressions commonly of caldera size. The paroxysmal phase of a Bezymianny-type eruption may include powerful lateral explosions and pumiceous pyroclastic flows; it is often followed by construction of lava dome or pyroclastic cone in the new crater. Bandai-type eruptions begin and end with the paroxysmal phase, during which slope failure removes a portion of the edifice. Massive volcanic landslides can also occur without related explosive eruptions, as at the Unzen volcano in 1792.The main potential hazards from these events derive from lateral blasts, the debris avalanche itself, and avalanche-induced tsunamis. Lateral blasts produced by sudden decompression of hydrothermal and/or magmatic systems can devastate areas in excess of 500km² at velocities exceeding 100 m s^–1. The ratio of area covered to distance traveled for the Mount St. Helens and Bezymianny lateral blasts exceeds that of many pyroclastic flows or surges of comparable volume. The potential for large-scale lateral blasts is likely related to the location of magma at the time of slope failure and appears highest when magma has intruded into the upper edifice, as at Mount St. Helens and Bezymianny.Debris avalanches can move faster than 100 ms^–1 and travel tens of kilometers. When not confined by valley walls, avalanches can affect wide areas beyond the volcano's flanks. Tsunamis from debris avalanches at coastal volcanoes have caused more fatalities than have the landslides themselves or associated eruptions. The probable travel distance (L) of avalanches can be estimated by considering the potential vertical drop (H). Data from a catalog of around 200 debris avalanches indicates that the H/L rations for avalanches with volumes of 0.1–1 km³ average 0.13 and range 0.09–0.18; for avalanches exceeding 1 km³, H/L ratios average 0.09 and range 0.5–0.13.Large-scale deformation of the volcanic edefice and intense local seismicity precede many slope failures and can indicate the likely failure direction and orientation of potential lateral blasts. The nature and duration of precursory activity vary widely, and the timing of slope faliure greatly affects the type of associated eruption. Bandai-type eruptions are particularly difficult to anticipate because they typically climax suddenly without precursory eruptions and may be preceded by only short periods of seismicity.     

Holocene geomagnetic secular variation recorded by volcanic deposits at Mount St. Helens,Washington

A compilation of paleomagnetic data from volcanic deposits of Mount St. Helens is presented in this report. The database is used to determine signature paleomagnetic directions of products from its Holocene eruptive events, to assign sampled units to their proper eruptive period, and to begin the assembly of a much larger database of paleomagnetic directions from Holocene volcanic rocks in western North America. The paleomagnetic results from Mount St. Helens are mostly of high quality, and generally agree with the division of its volcanic deposits into eruptive episodes based on previous geologic mapping and radiocarbon dates. The Muddy River andesite's paleomagnetic direction, however, indicates that it is more likely part of the Pine Creek eruptive period rather than the Castle Creek period. In addition, the Two-Fingers andesite flow is more likely part of the Middle Kalama eruptive period and not part of the Goat Rocks period. The paleomagnetic data from Mount St. Helens and Mount Hood document variation in the geomagnetic field's pole position over the last ~2,500 years. A distinct feature of the new paleosecular variation (PSV) record, similar to the Fish Lake record (Oregon), indicates a sudden change from rapid clockwise movement of the pole about the Earth's spin axis to relatively slow counterclockwise movement at ~800 to 900 years B.P.     

Statistical analysis of intermittent volcanic tremor associated with the September 1989 summit explosive eruptions at Mount Etna, Sicily

The pattern of volcanic tremor accompanying the 1989 September eruption at the south-east summit crater of Mount Etna is studied. In specific, sixteen episodes of lava fountaining, which occurred in the first phase of the eruption, are analysed. Their periodic behaviour, also evidenced by autocorrelation, allows us to define the related tremor amplitude increases as intermittent volcanic tremor episodes. Focusing on the regular intermittent behaviour found for both lava fountains and intermittent volcanic tremors, we tried an a posteriori forecast using simple statistical methods based on linear regression and the Student’ t-test. We performed the retrospective statistical forecast, and found that several eruptions would have been successfully forecast. In order to focus on the source mechanism of tremor linked to lava fountains, we investigated the relationship between volcanic and seismic parameters. A mechanism based on a shallow magma batch ‘regularly’ refilled from depth is suggested.     

Multiphase petrography of volcanic rocks using element maps: a method applied to Mount St. Helens, 1980–2005

Quantitative textural analyses including crystal size distributions (CSDs) provide insights into crystallisation kinetics of magmatic systems. Investigations of volcanic crystal textures often rely on greyscale variations on backscattered electron images to identify crystal phases, which must then be thresholded and/or traced manually, a laborious task, and investigations are typically restricted to a single crystal phase. A method is presented that uses energy-dispersive X-ray element maps to generate textural data. Each pixel is identified as a crystal phase, glass or vesicle according to relative chemical composition enabling concurrent acquisition of multiphase CSD, crystallinity and mineral mode data. Data processing is less time intensive for the operator but considerable instrument time is required to generate element maps. The method is applied to 17 dacite samples from the 1980–1986 and 3 from the 2004–2005 eruptive periods of Mount St. Helens volcano (USA) to provide quantitative insights into multiphase textural evolution. All of the CSDs are curved and concave-up in the standard CSD plot with curvature increasing with plagioclase content. To facilitate comparisons with previous studies, CSDs for microlites (<50?μm length crystals) are approximated as straight lines. The line intercepts and slopes provide information on n ⁰ (nucleation density) and characteristic length or Gτ (the product of growth rate (G) and residence time (τ)), respectively. These parameters, as well as the total groundmass crystallinity, show distinct differences between explosive deposits from summer 1980 and post-summer 1980 domes. Post-summer 1980 microlite n ⁰ values are mostly at the lower end of the range of those measured for summer 1980 samples. Total groundmass crystallinities during summer 1980 are between 10 and 30?vol.%, whereas post-summer 1980 crystallinity increases to between 39 and 51?vol.%. The range of n ⁰ values is similar to those previously published for Mount St. Helens but Gτ is consistently higher. Gτ of a May 1985 sample analysed in this study is approximately 2?μm higher compared with previously published data for the same sample when processed using similar methodologies. Groundmass crystallinity data show similar trends to those previously published for the 1980 to 1986 eruption, increasing sharply after summer 1980 then increasing more gradually during the dome-building phase of the eruption. The effects of varying L, the apparent crystal size, and crystal aspect ratio on resultant CSDs are also investigated. Whilst relative temporal variations in CSDs for a given dataset can be investigated, absolute values from different studies cannot be compared unless methods of data acquisition and processing are exactly the same.     

A prehistoric lahar-dammed lake and eruption of Mount Pinatubo described in a Philippine aborigine legend

The prehistoric eruptions of Mount Pinatubo have followed a cycle: centuries of repose terminated by a caldera-forming eruption with large pyroclastic flows; a post-eruption aftermath of rain-triggered lahars in surrounding drainages and dome-building that fills the caldera; and then another long quiescent period. During and after the eruptions lahars descending along volcano channels may block tributaries from watersheds beyond Pinatubo, generating natural lakes. Since the 1991 eruption, the Mapanuepe River valley in the southwestern sector of the volcano has been the site of a large lahar-dammed lake. Geologic evidence indicates that similar lakes have occupied this site at least twice before. An Ayta legend collected decades before Mount Pinatubo was recognized as a volcano describes what is probably the younger of these lakes, and the caldera-forming eruption that destroyed it.     

The prediction of large explosions of andesitic volcanoes

During the large explosions of the Bezymianny (1956), Shiveluch (1964) and Mount St. Helens (1980) volcanoes, 4.8·10¹², 3.0·10¹² and 8.2·10¹² kg of resurgent and magmatic material were ejected respectively. The eruptions were preceded and accompanied by significant crustal deformations and by a great number of volcanic earthquakes. In all three cases, earthquakes with an energy of E = 10⁹ J occurred 8–11 days before the eruption; their foci were at a distance of less than 5 km from the floor of the active crater and the power of earthquake swarms increased continuously and monotonously until the beginning of the eruption. The data obtained on deformations, earthquakes and volcanic activity may be used for the prediction of the place, time, energy and hazards of large explosions of andesitic volcanoes.     

Effects of forest land management on erosion and revegetation after the eruption of Mount St. Helens

The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens covered soils with a tephra blanket and killed the forest tree cover in a 550 km² area. After the eruption, rates of sheetwash and rill erosion, and plant cover were measured on tephra-covered hillslopes which had been subject to three land-management practices: grass seeding; scarification, and salvage logging. On rapidly-eroding hillslopes subject to grass seeding, limited plant covers were established only after erosion had declined sharply. Logging of trees downed by the eruption and scarification of previously logged surfaces slowed erosion, although the effect was small because erosion rates had already slowed substantially by the time these two practices were implemented. The factors controlling erosion, revegetation, and their relative timing at Mount St. Helens are similar to those following explosive volcanic eruptions elsewhere, suggesting that grass seeding is not likely to be effective at slowing erosion following most tephra eruptions, and that early mechanical disturbance could be an effective erosion-control measure. The results also indicate that even without deliberate conservation measures, processes which mechanically disturb a surface layer of low hydraulic conductivity (such as frost-action or trampling) can radically reduce runoff and erosion before revegetation has an important effect.     

The respiratory health hazards of volcanic ash: a review for volcanic risk mitigation

Studies of the respiratory health effects of different types of volcanic ash have been undertaken only in the last 40 years, and mostly since the eruption of Mt. St. Helens in 1980. This review of all published clinical, epidemiological and toxicological studies, and other work known to the authors up to and including 2005, highlights the sparseness of studies on acute health effects after eruptions and the complexity of evaluating the long-term health risk (silicosis, non-specific pneumoconiosis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) in populations from prolonged exposure to ash due to persistent eruptive activity. The acute and chronic health effects of volcanic ash depend upon particle size (particularly the proportion of respirable-sized material), mineralogical composition (including the crystalline silica content) and the physico-chemical properties of the surfaces of the ash particles, all of which vary between volcanoes and even eruptions of the same volcano, but adequate information on these key characteristics is not reported for most eruptions. The incidence of acute respiratory symptoms (e.g. asthma, bronchitis) varies greatly after ashfalls, from very few, if any, reported cases to population outbreaks of asthma. The studies are inadequate for excluding increases in acute respiratory mortality after eruptions. Individuals with pre-existing lung disease, including asthma, can be at increased risk of their symptoms being exacerbated after falls of fine ash. A comprehensive risk assessment, including toxicological studies, to determine the long-term risk of silicosis from chronic exposure to volcanic ash, has been undertaken only in the eruptions of Mt. St. Helens (1980), USA, and Soufrière Hills, Montserrat (1995 onwards). In the Soufrière Hills eruption, a long-term silicosis hazard has been identified and sufficient exposure and toxicological information obtained to make a probabilistic risk assessment for the development of silicosis in outdoor workers and the general population. A more systematic approach to multi-disciplinary studies in future eruptions is recommended, including establishing an archive of ash samples and a website containing health advice for the public, together with scientific and medical study guidelines for volcanologists and health-care workers.     

Using amphibole phenocrysts to track vapor transfer during magma crystallization and transport: An example from Mount St. Helens,Washington

In order to evaluate and further constrain models for volatile movement and vapor enrichment of magma stored at shallow levels, amphibole phenocrysts from 2004–2005 Mount St. Helens dacite were analyzed for major and selected trace elements (Li, Cu, Zn, Mn, and REE) and Li isotopes. Several recent studies have examined fluid-mobile trace element abundances in phencryst phases and melt inclusions as a means of tracking volatile movement within subvolcanic magmatic systems, and high Li contents in plagioclase phenocrysts from 1980 and 2004 Mount St. Helens dacites have been interpreted as evidence that shallow magma was fluxed by a Li-bearing vapor phase prior to eruption.     

Combined discrete and continuous gravity observations at Mount Etna

Systematic investigation of discrete gravity measurements has continued at Mount Etna since 1986. The network now covers an area of 400 km² with about 70 stations 0.5–3 km apart. Mass redistributions occurring at depths ranging between about 8 km below sea level and a few hundred metres below the surface (magma level changes within the shallower parts of the feeding conduits) have been identified from these data. Conventional (discrete) microgravity monitoring on a network of stations furnishes only instantaneous states of the mass distribution at continuously active systems. In order to obtain information on the rate at which the volcanic processes (and thus mass transfers) occur, three stations for continuously recording gravity where installed on Mount Etna in 1998. A 16-month long sequence from one of the continuously running stations (PDN, located 2 km from the active northeast crater at the summit of Etna volcano) is presented. After removing the effects of Earth Tide and tilt, the correlation of the residual gravity sequence with simultaneous recordings of meteorological parameters acquired at the same station was analysed. Once the meteorological effects have also been removed, continuous gravity changes are within 10 μGal of gravity changes measured using conventional microgravity observations at sites very close to the continuous station. This example shows how discrete and continuous gravity observations can be used together at active volcanoes to get a fuller and more accurate picture of the spatial and temporal characteristics of volcanic processes.     

On the eruptions, deformation, and seismicity of Klyuchevskoy Volcano, Kamchatka in 1986–2005 and the mechanisms of its activity

The eruptions, seismicity, and deformations, the properties of the magma feeding, and the mechanism of the activity of Klyuchevskoy, a giant basaltic volcano in Kamchatka, are considered. Twenty-eight author’s papers on the above subjects, published from 1985 to 2006, are reviewed. The activity of Klyuchevskoy the adventive and summit eruptions of Klyuchevskoy from 1986 to 2005 is described. The seismicity of Klyuchevskoy from 1986 to 2005 and its relation to eruptions are considered. It was inferred from geodetic measurements that the center of the magmatic pressure beneath the volcano moved in the depth range from 3 to 25 km during the period from 1979 to 2005. Based on previously developed models and observations from 1986 to 2005, the main properties of the Klyuchevskoy magma feeding system and the magma ascent in five major parts of the system are described and characterized: near the top of the plunging Pacific plate (with a depth of approximately 160 km), in the asthenosphere (160 to 40 km), in the region of the intermediate magma chamber where the magmas coming from below are accumulated (40 to 20 km), in the crust (20 to 5 km), and in the upper part of the system (from a depth of 5 km under the volcanic edifice to the crater at an altitude of 4.75 km). A comparison between the outputs from the summit and adventive eruptions on Klyuchevskoy as functions of time for the period from 1978 to 2005 shows that the probability of adventive eruptions should increase in the future.     

TOMS measurement of the sulfur dioxide emitted during the 1985 Nevado del Ruiz eruptions

The eruptions of Nevado del Ruiz in 1985 were unusually rich in sulfur dioxide. These eruptions were observed with the Nimbus 7 Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) which can quantitatively map volcanic sulfur dioxide plumes on a global scale. A small eruption, originally believed to be of phreatic origin, took place on September 11, 1985. However, substantial amounts of sulfur dioxide from this eruption were detected with TOMS on the following day. The total mass of SO₂, approximately 9 ± 3 × 10⁴ metric tons, was deposited in two clouds, one in the upper troposphere, the other possibly at 15 km near the stratosphere.The devastating November 13 eruptions were first observed with TOMS at 1150 EST on November 14. Large amounts of sulfur dioxide were found in an arc extending 1100 km from south of Ruiz northeastward to the Gulf of Venezuela and as an isolated cloud centered at 7°N on the Colombia-Venezuela border. On November 15 the plume extended over 2700 km from the Pacific Ocean off the Colombia coast to Barbados, while the isolated mass was located over the Brazil-Guyana border, approximately 1600 km due east of the volcano. Based on wind data from Panama, most of the sulfur dioxide was located at 10–16 km in the troposphere and a small amount was quite likely deposited in the stratosphere at an altitude above 24 km.The total mass of sulfur dioxide in the eruption clouds was approximately 6.6 ± 1.9 × 10⁵ metric tons on November 14. When combined with quiescent sulfur dioxide emissions during this period, the ratio of sulfur dioxide to erupted magma from Ruiz was an order of magnitude greater than in the 1982 eruption of El Chichon or the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens.     

火山地震监测在火山喷发预测中的应用

火山地震学是火山监测的一种重要方法,同时也是预测火山喷发最有效的方法。本文首先回顾了火山地震监测的历史,分析汇总了火山地震的类型和特征,并介绍了各类地震的形成机理。然后,对近年来发展起来的火山地震学方法进行了简要介绍,如地震活动性分析、实时振幅比测量、地震波速度变化和重复地震等,同时列举了具体的应用实例。最后,介绍了火山地震学方法在中国大陆火山监测中的应用。     

Seismic activity of Erebus volcano,antarctica

Mount Erebus is presently the only Antarctic volcano with sustained eruptive activity in the past few years. It is located on Ross Island and a convecting anorthoclase phonolite lava lake has occupied the summit crater of Mount Erebus from January 1973 to September 1984. A program to monitor the seismic activity of Mount Erebus named IMESS was started in December 1980 as an international cooperative program among Japan, the United States and New Zealand. A new volcanic episode began on 13 September, 1984 and continued until December.Our main observations from the seismic activity from 1982–1985 are as follows: (1) The average numbers of earthquakes which occurred around Mount Erebus in 1982, 1983 and January–August 1984 were 64, 134 and 146 events per day, respectively. Several earthquake swarms occurred each year. (2) The averag number of earthquakes in 1985 is 23 events per day, with only one earthquake swarm. (3) A remarkable decrease of the background seismicity is recognized before and after the September 1984 activity. (4) Only a few earthquakes were located in the area surrounding Erebus mountain after the September 1984 activity.A magma reservoir is estimated to be located in the southwest area beneath the Erebus summit, based on the hypocenter distributions of earthquakes.