List of volcanoes in Indonesia facts for kids

Mahameru (Semeru) above Mount Bromo, East Java.

East Indonesia Islands from ISS. Seven active volcanoes are visible: 5 in East Java, Agung in Bali and Rinjani in Lombok.

Indonesia is a country with many volcanoes. These volcanoes are formed because huge pieces of the Earth's crust, called tectonic plates, are always moving and crashing into each other. Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a horseshoe-shaped area known for lots of earthquakes and volcanoes.

Some of Indonesia's volcanoes are very famous for their powerful eruptions. For example, Krakatoa erupted in 1883, causing effects all over the world. The Lake Toba Caldera had a super-huge eruption about 74,000 years ago, which even caused a "volcanic winter" for six years! Mount Tambora had the strongest eruption ever recorded in 1815.

Indonesia has about 127 active volcanoes. Around 5 million people live close to these volcanoes, in areas that could be dangerous. The word for Mount or Mountain in Indonesia is Gunung. So, Mount Merapi is often called Gunung Merapi.

Indonesia's Volcanoes: A Closer Look

Indonesia's many volcanoes are grouped into six main areas. Four of these groups are part of the Sunda Arc, which is a long chain of volcanoes. The other two groups are found in Halmahera and the islands around it, and in Sulawesi and the Sangihe Islands.

The most active volcano in Indonesia is Mount Merapi on the island of Java. Since the year 1000 AD, another volcano called Kelut has erupted more than 30 times. Mount Merapi has erupted over 80 times! Because it's so active, Mount Merapi was named a "Decade Volcano" in 1995. This means scientists are watching it very closely.

Volcanoes of Sumatra

Map showing the location of volcanoes and geological fault lines of Sumatra

The island of Sumatra has a long mountain range called Bukit Barisan. This mountain range stretches for about 1,700 kilometers (1,050 miles) from north to south. It was formed by the movement of the Australian tectonic plate. This plate moves about 5.5 centimeters (2.2 inches) each year, causing big earthquakes on Sumatra's western side. This movement also creates the magma chambers that feed the volcanoes.

Sumatra has 35 active volcanoes. Only one, Weh, is separated from the main island. It became an island after a huge eruption in the past filled the lowlands with sea water. The largest volcano in Sumatra is the supervolcano Toba. It sits inside a giant crater, or caldera, that is 100 km (60 mi) long and 30 km (20 mi) wide. This caldera was formed after a massive eruption about 74,000 years ago. That eruption was a level 8 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI), which is the highest level! The tallest volcano in Sumatra is Mount Kerinci, standing at 3,800 meters (12,467 feet).

Volcanoes of Sunda Strait and Java

The Sunda Strait is a body of water that separates the islands of Sumatra and Java. The famous volcanic island Krakatoa sits right in the middle of this strait. Krakatoa had a super violent eruption in 1883. It destroyed two-thirds of the island and left a huge underwater crater. The sound of this explosion was heard thousands of miles away! A new volcano, called Anak Krakatau (meaning "Child of Krakatau"), started growing from the sea in 1930.

Java is a smaller island than Sumatra, but it has even more active volcanoes. There are 45 active volcanoes on Java, plus many smaller craters and cones. Mount Merapi, Semeru, and Kelud are the most active ones. Mount Semeru has been erupting almost non-stop since 1967. Another volcano, Ijen, has a unique, colorful lake in its crater. This lake is extremely acidic, like strong battery acid! People even mine sulfur by hand from around this lake.

Note: The height of Krakatau listed is for Rakata, which is one of the islands left after the 1883 eruption, not the active Anak Krakatau.

Volcanoes of the Lesser Sunda Islands

The Lesser Sunda Islands are a group of smaller islands to the east of Java. They include Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Flores, Sumba, and the Timor islands. These islands are located on the edge of the Australian continental shelf. The volcanoes here are formed by the movement of the Earth's oceanic crust. Some volcanoes are so big they make up an entire island, like Sangeang Api. Mount Tambora, on Sumbawa island, erupted in 1815. This eruption was a VEI 7, making it the most powerful eruption in recorded history!

Volcanoes of the Banda Sea

The Banda Sea is located south of the Molucca archipelago. Underneath this sea, three major tectonic plates have been pushing against each other for millions of years. The volcanoes in the Banda Sea are mostly islands, but some are submarine volcanoes, meaning they are completely underwater.

Volcanoes of Sulawesi and Sangihe Islands

The island of Sulawesi has a unique shape with four long peninsulas. While the central part is mountainous, most of the active volcanoes are found in the northern peninsula. This chain of volcanoes continues north to the Sangihe Islands, which are close to the Philippines.

Volcanoes of Halmahera

Halmahera island is located in the northern part of the Molucca archipelago. This island was formed by the movement of three tectonic plates, creating four rocky peninsulas. A chain of volcanoes stretches from north to south on the western side of Halmahera. Some of these volcanoes are islands themselves, like Gamalama and Tidore. Gamalama is on the island of Ternate, which was a very important center for the spice trade hundreds of years ago. Because of this, we have old records of volcanic eruptions in Halmahera going back to the early 1500s!

Major Eruptions in Indonesia

Here is a list of some of the biggest volcanic eruptions in Indonesia. These are chosen because they were very powerful (VEI 3 or higher) or caused many deaths. The VEI (Volcanic Explosivity Index) is a scale that measures how explosive an eruption is, from 0 (not explosive) to 8 (extremely explosive).

Images for kids

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  Explosive eruption of Sinabung on 9 June 2019.

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  Landsat image of Lake Toba

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  Marapi

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  Tangkuban Perahu, taken from above

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  A plinian eruption of Galunggung in 1982

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  Mount Merapi, one of the most famous volcanoes in Indonesia

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  The turquoise coloured sulfuric acid lake on Ijen caldera

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  The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa produced the loudest sound.

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  Mount Agung on Bali

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  Eruption of Rinjani in 1984

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  One of three different coloured lakes of Kelimutu

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  Vuurberg (Dutch: fire mountain, Gunung Api) in Bandanaira

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  Depiction of Gamalama erupting in the early 1700s with a Portuguese fort shown

See also

• List of earthquakes in Indonesia
• Lists of volcanoes
• List of disasters in Indonesia
• Volcanism of Indonesia
• Volcanism of Java
• List of Ultras of the Malay Archipelago