Volcano in Tonga
West Mata volcano: eruption status today
Updated
No eruption of West Mata is being reported right now Last eruption: 1964 or later (NOAA NCEI).
Live status of West Mata: whether it is erupting now, satellite hot spots, earthquakes around it, and what an eruption would mean for nearby cities and flights.
- Status now
- No open report
- Last eruption
- 1964 or later
- Elevation
- -1,174 m -3,852 ft
- Type
- Submarine volcano
- Earthquakes within 50 km
- 3 past 30 days (USGS)
- Hot spots within 10 km
- 0 latest NASA FIRMS VIIRS data
- Nearest city
- Suva 899 km WSW
Is West Mata erupting right now?
There is no open NASA EONET event for West Mata right now. NOAA NCEI dates its most recent eruption to 1964 or later. Volcano observatories can raise alert levels before an eruption starts, so check the national observatory for the current alert level.
No satellite thermal hot spot was detected within 10 km of the summit in the latest NASA FIRMS data, so there is no sign of lava at the surface large enough for VIIRS to see (clouds can hide it).
Earthquakes near West Mata
USGS located 3 earthquakes within 50 km of West Mata in the past 30 days, 1 of them in the last week. The largest was M5.2 on Oct 15, 2026, 49 km ESE of the summit at 10 km depth.
0 of them were shallower than 10 km. Swarms of shallow quakes can mean magma or gas is moving, but most swarms end without an eruption; observatories combine them with ground deformation and gas data.
| Time (UTC) | Magnitude | Distance | Depth | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 22, 19:06 UTC | M4.9 | 45 km E | 23 km | 104 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga |
| Oct 15, 13:29 UTC | M5.2 | 49 km ESE | 10 km | 92 km NNE of Hihifo, Tonga |
| Oct 10, 08:38 UTC | M4.5 | 33 km S | 79 km | 61 km N of Hihifo, Tonga |
About West Mata
West Mata is a submarine volcano in Tonga-SW Pacific, Tonga, rising to -1,174 m (-3,852 ft). NOAA NCEI classes its eruptive history as "Historical".
Submarine volcanoes erupt under the sea; shallow ones can produce steam explosions, pumice rafts and discoloured water.
The volcano is remote: the nearest city in our list is Suva, 899 km away.
Flights and volcanic ash
No major hub airport is within 400 km (the closest is Auckland, 2687 km away), but ash clouds from explosive eruptions can drift for thousands of kilometres along flight routes.
Volcanic Ash Advisory Centres (VAACs) issue the official ash advisories that airlines and air traffic control follow.
Other volcanoes in Tonga
Tonga has 15 volcanoes on this site that erupted since 1900 or are active now. The closest other one is Curacoa, 58 km away.
Nearby volcanoes
Volcanoes in Tonga
More
Data: NOAA NCEI Volcano Locations, NASA EONET (open volcano events), USGS earthquakes, NASA FIRMS (VIIRS hot spots), Smithsonian Global Volcanism Program.