Te Wai ā-moe (Ruapehu Crater Lake) is now heating again. Since mid-July the lake temperature has been rising and is now 16 °C. Earthquake, volcano gas, lake chemistry and volcanic tremor data are all within typical ranges, and no unusual changes have been observed. The Volcanic Alert Level remains at 1 and the Aviation Colour Code at Green.

GeoNet has installed a new tsunami gauge at Port Taranaki, strengthening New Zealand’s ability to monitor and respond to tsunami threats along the west coast of the North Island.

Over the past week, two unrelated small clusters of earthquakes have caught the attention of locals. While none of the quakes were large, they offer fascinating insights into the dynamic forces at work beneath our feet. Let’s take a closer look at what triggered these recent shakes and what they tell us about Aotearoa New Zealand’s restless geology.

On Wednesday 30 July at 11:25am (New Zealand Time) a magnitude 8.8 earthquake occurred off the east coast of Kamchatka in the far east of Russia. We take a look at the impacts one of the largest earthquake events recorded, on modern seismic equipment, had on Aotearoa New Zealand.

When we hear the word “tsunami,” we often imagine towering waves crashing onto shorelines. However, tsunami behave more like fast-flowing tides than regular ocean waves, carrying water and debris in and offshore and generating strong currents as they do so. While a small tsunami is unlikely to sweep over people and structures, they still pose serious risks to people in the water or on small boats.

The national tsunami advisory has now been cancelled following the M8.8 Kamchatka Russia Earthquake that occurred on Wednesday 30 July.

Welcome, haere mai to another GeoNet Data Blog. Today’s blog is about how you can visualise data in spreadsheets.

Since last week’s update, Te Wai ā-moe (Ruapehu Crater Lake) seems to have stopped cooling, with daily temperatures remaining at around 11°C. Sulphur dioxide gas emissions rose briefly to 800 tonnes per day (t/day) before declining again to ~200 t/day, and a swarm of very small earthquakes occurred beneath the volcano, although these were too small to be precisely located. Together, these minor changes suggest that a new heating episode could be starting at the crater lake.

A swarm of small, relatively deep, earthquakes lasting two days occurred east of Ruapehu early last week. However, there have been no significant changes to the volcano observed following the earthquakes. Te Wai ā-moe (Ruapehu Crater Lake) temperature remains stable at about 12°C. We continue to record emissions of volcanic gas indicating heat and gas flow from depth is occurring. The Volcanic Alert Level remains at 1 and the Aviation Colour Code at Green.

Based on observations from a recent observation flight, webcam and satellite imagery, we can confirm no further ash emissions have been detected at Whakaari/White Island. Emissions are limited to steam and gas emissions. The Volcanic Alert Level remains at level 2 and the Aviation Colour Code remains Yellow.