A volcano is likely erupting deep beneath the Pacific Ocean in the US Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, though scientists are unable to confirm it due to the location’s inaccessibility. All indications are that the Ahyi Seamount began erupting in mid-October, the US Geological Survey said on Monday.
The Northern Marianas are about 3,800 miles west of Honolulu. Scientists are looking to see if the activity is shallow earthquakes or if material exploded from the crater, said USGS research geophysicist Matt Haney.
Satellite observations show the water is discoloured, which suggests material is coming out of the volcano, he said. "There’s nothing right now that suggests that this eruption will intensify and become a large eruption," Mr Haney added.
Mariners should avoid the immediate area, he said. Activity from an undersea volcanic source was picked up last month by hydroacoustic sensors some 1,400 miles away at Wake Island. With help from the the Laboratoire de Geophysique in Tahiti and data from seismic stations in Guam and Japan, scientists analysed the signals to determine the source of the activity was likely Ahyi Seamount, the USGS said in a statement.
Activity has been declining in recent days, the statement added. Ahyi Seamount is a large conical submarine volcano.
Its highest point is 259 feet (79 metres) below the surface of the ocean and it is located about 11 miles south-east of the island of Farallon de Pajaros, also known as Uracas. "There are no local monitoring stations near Ahyi Seamount, which limits our ability to detect and characterise volcanic unrest there," the agency said.
“We will continue to monitor available remote hydrophonic, seismic, and satellite data closely.” The seamount is part of the Mariana Volcanic Arc, which is a chain of more than 60 active volcanoes stretching over 600 miles west of and parallel to the Mariana Trench, the world’s deepest point.
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