Australia is a land of amazing landscapes, and some of these were shaped by volcanoes! This article will tell you about the volcanoes found across Australia and its island territories.
When we talk about volcanoes here, we mean not just single mountains, but sometimes groups of volcanoes or places where lava came out of the ground at similar times. We'll mostly look at volcanoes from the Cenozoic Era, which started about 66 million years ago. But we'll also mention some older ones.
It's interesting to know that no volcanoes on the Australian mainland have erupted since Europeans arrived. However, some volcanoes in Victoria, South Australia, and North Queensland might have been seen erupting by Aboriginal people thousands of years ago! The only truly active volcanoes in Australia's territories today are on the Heard and McDonald Islands.
Australian States
Queensland
Queensland has many volcanoes, some of which are quite old. Here are a few notable ones:
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
| Atherton Volcano |
— |
— |
17°30′S 144°30′E / 17.5°S 144.5°E / -17.5; 144.5 (Atherton Volcano) |
Less than 100,000 years ago |
| Lake Barrine |
730 |
— |
17°12′S 145°24′E / 17.2°S 145.4°E / -17.2; 145.4 (Lake Barrine) |
More than 17,000 years ago |
| Mount Quincan |
703 |
2,306 |
17°18′11″S 145°34′39″E / 17.30306°S 145.57750°E / -17.30306; 145.57750 (Mount Quincan) |
10,000 years ago |
| Chudleigh Volcano |
— |
— |
10°30′S 144°12′E / 10.5°S 144.2°E / -10.5; 144.2 (Chudleigh Volcano) |
250,000 years ago |
| Lake Eacham |
— |
— |
17°12′S 145°36′E / 17.2°S 145.6°E / -17.2; 145.6 (Lake Eacham) |
More than 9,000 years ago |
| Kinrara Volcano |
— |
— |
18°18′S 144°36′E / 18.3°S 144.6°E / -18.3; 144.6 (Kinrara Volcano) |
7,000 years ago |
| Nulla Volcano |
— |
— |
19°42′S 145°18′E / 19.7°S 145.3°E / -19.7; 145.3 (Nulla Volcano) |
13,000 years ago |
| Sturgeon Volcano |
— |
— |
20°18′S 144°12′E / 20.3°S 144.2°E / -20.3; 144.2 (Sturgeon Volcano) |
92,000 years ago |
| Toomba |
— |
— |
19°30′S 145°00′E / 19.5°S 145.0°E / -19.5; 145.0 (Toomba) |
21,000 years ago |
| Undara Crater |
1,020 |
3,345 |
18°15′S 144°45′E / 18.25°S 144.75°E / -18.25; 144.75 (Undara Crater) |
189,000 years ago |
| Glass House Mountains |
— |
— |
— |
26–27 million years ago |
New South Wales
New South Wales also has a history of volcanic activity, with many ancient volcanoes.
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
| Mount Canobolas |
1,395 |
— |
33°18′S 149°00′E / 33.3°S 149.0°E / -33.3; 149.0 (Mount Canobolas) |
12–13 million years ago |
| Mount Kaputar or Nandewar Volcano |
1,507 |
— |
30°12′S 150°06′E / 30.2°S 150.1°E / -30.2; 150.1 (Mount Kaputar) |
17–18 million years ago |
| Mount Warning or Tweed Volcano |
1,157 |
3,796 |
28°23′50″S 153°16′15″E / 28.39722°S 153.27083°E / -28.39722; 153.27083 (Mount Warning) |
23–24 million years ago |
| Warrumbungles inc The Breadknife |
— |
— |
31°18′S 149°00′E / 31.3°S 149.0°E / -31.3; 149.0 (Warrumbungles) |
13–17 million years ago |
Victoria
Victoria is home to some of Australia's youngest volcanoes. Some of these might have been active when Aboriginal people lived in the area.
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
| Budj Bim, in Budj Bim National Park |
— |
— |
38°04′S 141°55′E / 38.07°S 141.92°E / -38.07; 141.92 (Mount Eccles) |
About 36,900 years ago |
| Mount Elephant |
395 |
— |
37°58′S 143°12′E / 37.96°S 143.20°E / -37.96; 143.20 (Mount Elephant) |
5,000–20,000 years ago |
| Mount Franklin |
635 |
— |
— |
470,000 years ago |
| Mount Leura |
311 |
— |
38°06′S 143°06′E / 38.1°S 143.1°E / -38.1; 143.1 (Mount Leura) |
5,000–20,000 years ago |
| Mount Napier |
440 |
1,440 |
37°48′S 142°30′E / 37.8°S 142.5°E / -37.8; 142.5 (Mount Napier) |
32,000 years ago |
| Mount Noorat |
310 |
— |
38°10′37″S 142°55′39″E / 38.1769267°S 142.9276341°E / -38.1769267; 142.9276341 (Mount Noorat) |
5,000–20,000 years ago |
| Mount Porndon |
278 |
— |
38°11′S 143°10′E / 38.18°S 143.17°E / -38.18; 143.17 (Mount Porndon) |
300,000 years ago |
| Tower Hill, in Tower Hill State Game Reserve |
103 |
338 |
38°19′16″S 142°21′35″E / 38.3212°S 142.3597°E / -38.3212; 142.3597 (Tower Hill) |
About 36,800 years ago |
| Mount Warrnambool |
216 |
— |
38°11′S 142°26′E / 38.18°S 142.44°E / -38.18; 142.44 (Mount Warrnambool) |
5,000–20,000 years ago |
South Australia
South Australia has some of the youngest volcanoes in Australia. They are all found in the Limestone Coast region. These volcanoes are considered dormant, which means they are sleeping but could erupt again one day.
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
| Mount Burr |
187 |
614 |
37°33′S 140°28′E / 37.55°S 140.46°E / -37.55; 140.46 (Mount Burr) |
4,750 years ago |
| Mount Gambier |
190 |
623 |
37°50′S 140°47′E / 37.84°S 140.78°E / -37.84; 140.78 (Mount Gambier) |
4,500 years ago |
| Mount Schank |
158 |
518 |
37°56′S 140°44′E / 37.94°S 140.74°E / -37.94; 140.74 (Mount Schank) |
5,000 years ago |
| Mount Muirhead |
130 |
427 |
37°34′S 140°25′E / 37.56°S 140.41°E / -37.56; 140.41 (Mount Muirhead) |
5,000 years ago |
Western Australia
Western Australia doesn't have any active or dormant volcanoes. However, it does have some extinct ones, which means they won't erupt again. For example, there are nineteen small extinct volcanoes in the valley of the Fitzroy River in the Kimberley region.
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
| Argyle diamond mine |
— |
— |
16°36′S 128°18′E / 16.6°S 128.3°E / -16.6; 128.3 (Argyle Diamond Pipe) |
1.58 million years ago |
Tasmania
Tasmania has some very old volcanoes, showing its long geological history.
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
|
| Table Cape |
181 |
594 |
40°57′S 145°44′E / 40.95°S 145.73°E / -40.95; 145.73 (Table Cape) |
12 million years ago |
| The Nut |
143 |
469 |
40°46′S 145°18′E / 40.76°S 145.3°E / -40.76; 145.3 (The Nut) |
25-70 million years ago |
Territories
Australia Capital Territory
The Australian Capital Territory has one notable ancient volcano.
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
| Mount Stromlo |
770 |
2,530 |
35°19′0″S 149°1′0″E / 35.31667°S 149.01667°E / -35.31667; 149.01667 (Mount Stromlo) |
Silurian period (very old!) |
Heard and McDonald Islands
These remote islands are home to Australia's only currently active volcanoes!
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
| Big Ben (Mawson Peak) |
2,745 |
9,006 |
53°6′0″S 73°31′0″E / 53.10000°S 73.51667°E / -53.10000; 73.51667 (Big Ben) |
2004/2019 |
| McDonald Islands |
230 |
755 |
53°02′S 72°36′E / 53.03°S 72.60°E / -53.03; 72.60 (McDonald Islands) |
2005 |
Lord Howe Island
Lord Howe Island is a beautiful place that was also formed by ancient volcanic activity.
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
| Ball's Pyramid |
562 |
1,844 |
31°45′07″S 159°15′05″E / 31.75194°S 159.25139°E / -31.75194; 159.25139 (Ball's Pyramid) |
— |
| Mount Gower |
875 |
2,870 |
31°34′51″S 159°04′54″E / 31.58083°S 159.08167°E / -31.58083; 159.08167 (Mount Gower) |
— |
Norfolk Island
Norfolk Island and its nearby islands, Nepean Island and Phillip Island, are actually the tops of a very old shield volcano.
| Name |
Elevation |
Location |
Last eruption |
| metres |
feet |
Coordinates |
| Norfolk Island |
315 |
1,033 |
29°S 168°E / 29°S 168°E / -29; 168 (Norfolk Island) |
2.4 million years ago |
