List of volcanoes in Indonesia
, East Java.
. Seven active volcanoes are visible: 5 in East Java, Agung in Bali and Rinjani in Lombok.
The geography of Indonesia is dominated by volcanoes that are formed due to subduction zones between the Eurasian plate and the Indo-Australian plate.
Volcanoes in Indonesia are part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. The 150 entries in the list below are grouped into six geographical regions, four of which belong to the volcanoes of the Sunda Arc trench system. The remaining two groups are volcanoes of Halmahera, including its surrounding volcanic islands, and volcanoes of Sulawesi and the Sangihe Islands. The latter group is in one volcanic arc together with the Philippine volcanoes.
The most active volcanoes are Kelud and Merapi on Java island which have been responsible for thousands of deaths in the region. Since AD 1000, Kelud has erupted more than 30 times, of which the largest eruption was at scale 5 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index, while Mount Merapi has erupted more than 80 times. The International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior has named Mount Merapi as a Decade Volcano since 1995 because of its high volcanic activity.
As of 2012, Indonesia has 127 active volcanoes and about 5 million people active within the danger zones. It has been conjectured that the earthquake and tsunami event of 26 December 2004 could trigger eruptions, with Mount Sinabung erupting in 2010 as a possible example.
The word for Mount in Indonesian and many regional languages of the country is Gunung. Thus, Mount Merapi may be referred to as Gunung Merapi.
Scope
There is no single standard definition for a volcano. It can be defined from individual vents, volcanic edifices or volcanic fields. Interior of ancient volcanoes may have been eroded, creating a new subsurface magma chamber as a separate volcano. Many contemporary active volcanoes rise as young parasitic cones from flank vents or at a central crater. Some volcanic cones are grouped into one volcano name, for instance, the Tengger caldera complex, although individual vents are named by local people. The status of a volcano, either active or dormant, cannot be defined precisely. An indication of a volcano is determined by either its historical records, radiocarbon dating, or geothermal activities.The primary source of the list below is taken from the Volcanoes of the World book, compiled by two volcanologists Tom Simkin and Lee Siebert, in which active volcanoes in the past 10,000 years are listed. Particularly for Indonesia, Simkin and Siebert used a catalogue of active volcanoes from the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior publication series. The Simkin and Siebert list is the most complete list of volcanoes in Indonesia, but the accuracy of the record varies from one region to another in terms of contemporary activities and fatalities in recent eruptions. Complementary sources for the latest volcanic data are taken from the Volcanological Survey of Indonesia, a governmental institution which is responsible for volcanic activities and geological hazard mitigation in Indonesia, and some academic resources.
Geographical groups
Sumatra
The geography of Sumatra is dominated by a mountain range called Bukit Barisan. The mountain range spans nearly from the north to the south of the island, and it was formed by movement of the Australian tectonic plate. The plate moves with a convergence rate of 5.5 cm/year which has created major earthquakes on the western side of Sumatra including the 2004 Sumatra–Andaman earthquake. The tectonic movement has been responsible not only for earthquakes, but also for the formation of magma chambers beneath the island.Only one of the 35 active volcanoes, Weh, is separated from the Sumatran mainland. The separation was caused by a large eruption that filled the lowland between Weh and the rest of the mainland with sea water in the Pleistocene epoch. The largest volcano of Sumatra is the supervolcano Toba within the × Lake Toba, which was created after a caldera collapse. The eruption is estimated to have been at level eight on the VEI scale, the largest possible for a volcanic eruption. The highest peak of the mountain range is Mount Kerinci with an elevation of 3,800 m.
| Name | Shape | Elevation | Last eruption | Geolocation |
| Weh | stratovolcano | Pleistocene | ||
| Seulawah Agam | stratovolcano | |||
| Peuet Sague | complex volcano | 25 December 2000 | ||
| Geureudong | stratovolcano | |||
| Kembar | shield volcano | Pleistocene |
||
||
Sunda Strait and Java
The Sunda Strait separates the islands of Sumatra and Java with the volcanic island Krakatoa lying between them. Krakatau erupted violently in 1883, destroying two-thirds of the island and leaving a large caldera under the sea. This cataclysmic explosion was heard as far away as the island of Rodrigues near Mauritius. A new parasitic cone, called Anak Krakatau, rose from the sea at the centre of the caldera in 1930. The other Krakatau islets from the 1883 eruptions are known as Sertung, Panjang and Rakata.Java is a relatively small island compared to Sumatra, but it has a higher concentration of active volcanoes. There are 45 active volcanoes on the island excluding 20 small craters and cones in the Dieng volcanic complex and the young cones in the Tengger caldera complex. Some volcanoes are grouped together in the list below because of their close location. Mount Merapi, Semeru and Kelud are the most active volcanoes in Java. Mount Semeru has been continuously erupting since 1967. Mount Merapi has been named as one of the Decade Volcanoes since 1995. Ijen has a unique colourful caldera lake which is an extremely acidic natural reservoir. There are sulfur mining activities at Ijen, where miners collect highly concentrated sulfur rocks by hand.
| Name | Shape | Elevation | Last eruption | Geolocation |
| Krakatau | caldera | 2019 | ||
| Pulosari | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Gunung Karang | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Kiaraberes-Gagak | stratovolcano | 6 April 1939 | ||
| Perbakti | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Salak | stratovolcano | 31 January 1938 | ||
| Gede | stratovolcano | 13 March 1957 | ||
| Patuha | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Wayang-Windu | lava dome | unknown | ||
| Malabar | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Tangkuban Perahu | stratovolcano | 26 June 2019 | ||
| Papandayan | stratovolcano | 11 November 2002 | ||
| Kendang | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Kamojang | stratovolcano | Pleistocene | ||
| Guntur | complex volcano | 16 October 1847 | ||
| Tampomas | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Galunggung | stratovolcano | 9 January 1984 | ||
| Talagabodas | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Karaha | fumarole | unknown | ||
| Cereme | stratovolcano | |||
| Slamet | stratovolcano | |||
| Dieng | complex volcano | 2018 | ||
| Sundoro | stratovolcano | 29 October 1971 | ||
| Sumbing | stratovolcano | |||
| Ungaran | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Telomoyo | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Merbabu | stratovolcano | |||
| Merapi | stratovolcano | 2019 | ||
| Muria | stratovolcano | ± 30 years | ||
| Lawu | stratovolcano | 28 November 1885 | ||
| Wilis | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Kelud | stratovolcano | 13 February 2014 | ||
| Kawi-Butak | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Arjuno-Welirang | stratovolcano | 15 August 1952 | ||
| Penanggungan | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Malang Plain | maar | unknown | ||
| Semeru | stratovolcano | 2020 | ||
| Bromo | stratovolcano | 2019 | ||
| Lamongan | stratovolcano | 5 February 1898 | ||
| Lurus | complex volcano | unknown | ||
| Iyang-Argapura | complex volcano | unknown | ||
| Raung | stratovolcano | 29 June 2015 | ||
| Ijen | stratovolcano | 28 June 1999 | ||
| Baluran | stratovolcano | unknown |
Note: Height of Krakatau is of Rakata, not of the active Anak Krakatau
Lesser Sunda Islands
The Lesser Sunda Islands is a small archipelago which, from west to east, consists of Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, Sumba and the Timor islands; all are located at the edge of the Australian continental shelf. Volcanoes in the area are formed because of oceanic crusts and the movement of the shelf itself. Some volcanoes completely form an island, for instance, the Sangeang Api island. Mount Tambora, on Sumbawa island, erupted on 5 April 1815, with a scale 7 on the VEI and is considered the most violent eruption in recorded history.| Name | Island | Shape | Elevation | Last eruption | Geolocation |
| Merbuk | Bali | tba | unknown | - | |
| Bratan | Bali | caldera | unknown | ||
| Batur | Bali | caldera | 2000 | ||
| Agung | Bali | stratovolcano | 2019 | ||
| Samalas | Lombok | stratovolcano | |||
| Rinjani | Lombok | stratovolcano | 2016 | ||
| Tambora | Sumbawa | stratovolcano | ± 20 years | ||
| Sangeang Api | Sangeang | complex volcano | 2019 | ||
| Wai Sano | Flores | caldera | unknown | ||
| Poco Leok | Flores | unknown | unknown | ||
| Ranakah | Flores | lava dome | |||
| Inierie | Flores | stratovolcano | |||
| Inielika | Flores | complex volcano | 11 January 2001 | ||
| Ebulobo | Flores | stratovolcano | 27 February 1969 | ||
| Iya | Flores | stratovolcano | 27 January 1969 | ||
| Sukaria | Flores | caldera | unknown | ||
| Ndete Napu | Flores | fumarole | unknown | ||
| Kelimutu | Flores | complex volcano | 3 June 1968 | ||
| Paluweh | Palu'e | stratovolcano | 3 February 1985 | ||
| Egon | Flores | stratovolcano | 2008 | ||
| Ilimuda | Flores | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Lewotobi | Flores | stratovolcano | 30 May 2003 | ||
| Leroboleng | Flores | complex volcano | 26 June 2003 | ||
| Riang Kotang | Flores | fumarole | unknown | ||
| Iliboleng | Adonara Island | stratovolcano | |||
| Lewotolo | Lembata | stratovolcano | 15 December 1951 | ||
| Ililabalekan | Lembata | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Iliwerung | Lembata | complex volcano | 22 May 1999 | ||
| Batu Tara | Komba island | stratovolcano | 2007-15 | ||
| Sirung | Pantar Island | complex volcano | 2015 | ||
| Yersey | - | submarine | unknown |
Banda Sea
The Banda Sea in the south of the Molucca archipelago includes a small group of islands. Three major tectonic plates beneath the sea, Eurasian, Pacific and Indo-Australian plates, have been converging since the Mesozoic epoch. Volcanoes in the Banda Sea are mainly islands, but some are submarine volcanoes.| Name | Shape | Elevation | Last eruption | Geolocation |
| Emperor of China | submarine | unknown | ||
| Nieuwerkerk | submarine | unknown | ||
| Gunungapi Wetar | stratovolcano | |||
| Wurlali | stratovolcano | 3 June 1892 | ||
| Teon | stratovolcano | 3 June 1904 | ||
| Nila | stratovolcano | 7 May 1968 | ||
| Serua | stratovolcano | 18 September 1921 | ||
| Manuk | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Banda Api | caldera | 9 May 1988 |
Sulawesi and Sangihe Islands
Four peninsulas dominate the shape of Sulawesi island. The central part is a high mountainous area, but mostly non-volcanic. Active volcanoes are found in the northern peninsula and continuously stretch to the north to Sangihe Islands. The Sangihe Islands mark the border with the Philippines.| Name | Shape | Elevation | Last eruption | Geolocation |
| Colo | stratovolcano | 18 July 1983 | ||
| Ambang | complex volcano | ± 5 years | ||
| Soputan | stratovolcano | December 2018 | ||
| Sempu | caldera | unknown | ||
| Tondano | caldera | unknown | ||
| Lokon-Empung | stratovolcano | 2015 | ||
| Mahawu | stratovolcano | 16 November 1977 | ||
| Klabat | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Tongkoko | stratovolcano | |||
| Ruang | stratovolcano | 25 September 2002 | ||
| Karangetang | stratovolcano | 2019 | ||
| Banua Wuhu | submarine | 18 July 1919 | ||
| Awu | stratovolcano | 2 June 2004 | ||
| Submarine 1922 | submarine | unknown |
Halmahera
island in the north of Molucca archipelago has been formed by the movement of three tectonic plates resulting in two intersecting mountain ranges, which form four rocky peninsulas separated by three deep bays. A volcanic arc stretches from north to south in the west side of Halmahera, some of which are volcanic islands, for instance, Gamalama and Tidore. Gamalama's island name is Ternate and it has been the centre for spice trading since the Portuguese Empire opened a fort in 1512. Due to its location as the centre for spice trading during the Age of Discovery, historical records of volcanic eruptions in Halmahera have been available as far back as the early 16th century.| Name | Shape | Elevation | Last eruption | Geolocation |
| Tarakan | pyroclastic cone | unknown | ||
| Dukono | complex volcano | 1933-2019 | ||
| Tobaru | unknown | unknown | ||
| Ibu | stratovolcano | 2008-19 | ||
| Gamkonora | stratovolcano | 9 July 2007 | ||
| Todoko-Ranu | caldera | unknown | ||
| Jailolo | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Hiri | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Gamalama | stratovolcano | 2018 | ||
| Tidore | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Mare | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Moti | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Makian | stratovolcano | 29 July 1988 | ||
| Tigalalu | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Amasing | stratovolcano | unknown | ||
| Bibinoi | stratovolcano | unknown |
erupting in the early 1700s with a Portuguese fort shown
Major eruptions
Below is a list of selected major eruptions of volcanoes in Indonesia, sorted chronologically by the starting date of the eruption. Only eruptions with scale 3 or above on VEI are given with known sources and fatalities, except if smaller scale eruptions resulted some fatalities.| Eruption date | Volcano | Cessation date | VEI | Characteristics | Tsunami | Tephra volume | Fatality | Sources |
| 21 December 2018 | Anak Krakatoa | 10 January 2019 | 4 | cv,se,pf,fa,lm,cc | 1-2 m | N/A | 437 | |
| 13 February 2014 | Kelut | 15 February 2014 | 4 | cv,cl,pf,ph,ld,lm | no | 0.16 km³ | 4 | |
| 3 November 2010 | Merapi | 8 November 2010 | 4 | cv,pf,ld,lm | no | N/A | 353 | |
| 10 February 1990 | Kelut | 4 | cv,cl,pf,ph,ld,lm | no | 0.13 km³ | 35 | ||
| 18 July 1983 | Colo | 4 | cv,pf,ph | no | N/A | 0 | ||
| 5 April 1982 | Galunggung | 8 January 1983 | 4 | cv,pf,lf,lm | no | 0.37 km³ + | 68 | |
| 6 October 1972 | Merapi | 2 | cv,pf,lf,ld,lm | no | 0.021 km³ | 29 | ||
| 26 April 1966 | Kelut | 27 April 1966 | 4 | cv,cl,pf,lm | no | 0.089 km³ | 212 | |
| 17 March 1963 | Agung | 27 January 1964 | 5 | cv,pf,lf,lm | no | 1 km³ | 1,148 | |
| 31 August 1951 | Kelut | 31 August 1951 | 4 | cv,cl,pf,lm | no | 0.2 km³ | 7 | |
| 25 November 1930 | Merapi | 3 | cv,rf,pf,lf,ld,lm | no | 0.0017 km³ | 1,369 | ||
| 19 May 1919 | Kelut | 20 May 1919 | 4 | cv,cl,pf,lm | no | 0.19 km³ | 5,110 | |
| 7 June 1892 | Awu | 12 June 1892 | 3 | cv,pf,lm | yes | N/A | 1,532 | |
| 26 August 1883 | Krakatoa | 6 | cv,se,pf,fa,lm,cc | 15-42 m | 5-8.5 km³ | 36,600 | ||
| 15 April 1872 | Merapi | 21 April 1872 | 4 | cv,pf | no | 0.33 km³ | 200 | |
| 2 March 1856 | Awu | 17 March 1856 | 3 | cv,pf,lm | yes | 0.51±0.50 km³ | 2,806 | |
| 8 October 1822 | Galunggung | 5 | cv,pf,ld,lm | no | 1 km³ + | 4,011 | ||
| 10 April 1815 | Mount Tambora | 15 July 1815 | 7 | cv,pf,cc | 1-2 m | 160 km³ | 71,000+ | |
| 6 August 1812 | Awu | 8 August 1812 | 4 | cv,pf,lm | no | 0.55±0.50 km³ | 963 | |
| 12 August 1772 | Papandayan | 12 August 1772 | 3 | cv,ph | no | N/A | 2,957 | |
| 4 August 1672 | Merapi | unknown | 3 | cv,pf,lm | no | N/A | 3,000 | |
| Kelut | unknown | 5 | cf,cl,lm | no | 1 km³ + | 10,000 | ||
| Samalas | unknown | 7 | ||||||
| ≈ 74,000 BP | Toba | unknown | 8 | pf,lf,cc | likely | 2,800 km³ | Possible near extinction of all the human population |
Notes: cv=central vent eruption, pf=pyroclastic flows, lf=lava flows, lm=lahar mudflows, cl=crater lake eruption, ph=phreatic eruption, ld=lava dome extrusion, cc=caldera collapse, se=submarine eruption, fa=fumarole activity, rf=radial fissure eruption.