Australia's last eruption was 5,000 years ago so could extinct volcanoes come back to life?

An aerial view of the crater at the top of Mt Quincan which is about 6 kilometres north of Malanda on the Atherton Tablelands.  (Supllied: Philip Warring from PhlipVids)

It has been about 5,000 years since the last volcanic eruption in Australia, but for the 4.5-billion-year history of Earth, it's like a second ago.

There is evidence of a dynamic volcanic past scattered across the country, where violent blasts, ash clouds and lava flows have resulted in the spectacular crater lakes, waterfalls, hilltops and caves we enjoy today.