Our Volcanoes
New Zealand's volcanoes, their most recent activity, and how we monitor them.
Tongariro and Ngauruhoe from the air.
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Auckland Volcanic Field
The Auckland Volcanic Field is made up of 49 separate volcanoes scattered across New Zealand's largest city.
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Kermadec Islands
The Kermadec Island chain includes Raoul Island, located 1,000 km north-east of New Zealand.
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Mayor Island
Lying 50 km north of Tauranga, Mayor Island is the smallest caldera volcano in New Zealand.
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Ngauruhoe
Ngauruhoe is a young cone that has grown on the south end of the Tongariro complex.
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Northland
Northland includes the Kaikohe-Bay of Islands, Puhipuhi and Whangarei volcanic centres.
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Okataina
The Okataina Volcanic Centre includes Tarawera, source of the most lethal eruption in New Zealand's recorded history.
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Rotorua
Formed about 220,000 years ago, Rotorua caldera is today a lake next to one of New Zealand's major tourist destinations.
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Ruapehu
In addition to the usual volcanic hazards, Ruapehu's Crater Lake ejects frequent lahars.
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Taupo
The Taupo volcano last erupted over 1,800 years ago and is today filled by New Zealand's largest lake.
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Tongariro
The Tongariro complex contains multiple volcanic cones; the largest and most famous, Ngauruhoe, last erupted in 1975.
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Taranaki/Egmont
Taranaki's (Egmont Volcano) last recorded eruption occurred around 1854; the mountain dominates the productive farmland of the Taranaki region.
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White Island
New Zealand's most active volcano, White Island, was in a state of frequent eruption from 1976 to 2000.
