Arturo Andrade / AFP - Getty Images
A cloud of ash belches out of Mexico's Popocatepetl volcano, some 55 km from Mexico City, as seen from Paso de Cortes, in the Mexican central state of Puebla, on May 20. Authorities have raised the alert level to "Yellow Phase Three," the fifth of a seven-stage warning system, restricting access to an area of 12 km around the volcano while preparing evacuation routes and shelters.
Arturo Andrade / AFP - Getty Images
Theo Chesley / Alaskan Volcano Observatory via AP
The Pavlof volcano erupts on May 16, 2013, as seen from the air from the southwest in Cold Bay, Alaska.
Rachel Kremer / Alaskan Volcano Observatory via AP
Lava fountaining is visible near the summit of the Pavlof Volcano on May 16, 2013, and steam and ash clouds rise from the northwest flank where a lava flow advances down the slope.
A remote Alaska volcano continues to erupt, spewing lava and ash clouds.
The Alaska Volcano Observatory said Thursday a continuous cloud of ash, steam and gas from Pavlof Volcano has been seen 20,000 feet above sea level.
John Power, the U.S. Geological Survey scientist in charge at the observatory, estimates the lava fountain rose several hundred feet into the air.
Onsite seismic instruments are picking up constant tremors from the eruption at Pavlof, located about 625 miles southwest of Anchorage. Read the full story.
Carlos Campana / AFP - Getty Images
Lava spurts out from the Tungurahua volcano in Pelileo, Ecuador, on May 8.
Rhaydz Barcia / Reuters
Ash rises after an eruption of the Mayon volcano in in Albay province in central Philippines on May 7, 2013.
Nelson Salting / AP
Police and rescuers carry Nicas Mabao Jr. to a waiting ambulance after he survived a steam-driven explosion of Mayon volcano on May 7, 2013.
Manila, Philippines — One of the Philippines' most active volcanoes rumbled to life Tuesday, spewing room-sized rocks toward nearly 30 surprised climbers, killing five and injuring others that had to be fetched with rescue helicopters and rope.
The climbers and their Filipino guides had spent the night camping in two groups before setting out at daybreak for the crater of Mayon volcano when the sudden explosion of rocks, ash and plumes of smokes jolted the picturesque mountain, guide Kenneth Jesalva told ABS-CBN TV network by cellphone. Read the full story.
Alex Sallan / EPA
Filipino survivor Nicas Mabao, left, is reunited with his mother, center, as a rescuer assists, on May 7, 2013.
Kit Recebido / EPA
Filipino mountaineers Bernard Hernandez, left, and Calixto Balunzo, right, receive medical attention from nurses at a hospital in Legazpi City on May 7, 2013. Hernandez and Balunzo were with a group of climbers when the Mayon volcano spewed ash.
AFP - Getty Images
Filipino tour guide Keneth Gesalva rests inside a car in Legazpi on May 7, 2013 after he was rescued from the mountain.
Redemptoristine Monastery of Legaspi City via EPA
Mayon volcano spews ash during a phreatic explosion as seen from Legazpi city on May 7, 2013.
Antonio Parrinello / Reuters
Italy's volcanic Mount Etna spews lava during an eruption on the southern Italian island of Sicily on April 11, 2013. Mount Etna is Europe's tallest and most active volcano.
Antonio Parrinello / Reuters
Antonio Parrinello / Reuters
A round circle of smoke coming from the mouth of Etna is seen in the sky during an eruption on the southern Italian island of Sicily on April 11, 2013.
Antonio Parrinello / Reuters
Antonio Parrinello / Reuters
See more photos of Mount Etna's eruptions on PhotoBlog.
EPA
Mount Lokon spews volcanic ash more than a mile into the air as it erupts in Tomohon, North Sulawesi province, Indonesia March 25. Residents were advised to keep a safe distance after the early morning eruption. Indonesia has about 500 volcanoes, 128 of them classified as active and 65 listed as dangerous. Mount Lokon has been erupting since July 2011, including just a few days ago.
Chris Hadfield / CSA via Twitter
Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield snapped this photo of Italy's Mount Etna from the International Space Station.
By Becky Oskin
Our Amazing Planet
Astronaut Chris Hadfield, the planet's most popular space shutterbug, snapped a spectacular photo of Italy's Mount Etna volcano streaming ash toward the sea early Thursday.
The volcano experienced the latest in a series of strong paroxysms, or short violent bursts, on Wednesday. For the first time, explosions and ash spewed into the air from Mount Etna's Voragine crater, while webcams trained on the fiery summit showed activity at Bocca Nuova crater as well.
Mount Etna's current eruption started with a stunning dawn lava fountain on Feb. 19, caught on video, followed in quick succession by three more paroxysms over the next two days. Then, on Feb. 23, lava fountains shot out from Bocca Nuova crater to a height of more than 2,600 feet (800 meters).
Ash cloaks the volcano's snow-covered slopes, but not enough to deter skiers. Small lava flows have also emerged from the most active craters. The volcano has four distinct craters at its summit: the two central craters, Bocca Nuova and Voragine; the northeast crater; and a new southeast crater.
Hadfield, an astronaut for the Canadian Space Agency, is aboard the International Space Station. He regularly posts amazing images of Earth on his Twitter feed.
See more of astronaut Chris Hadfield's photos from the International Space Station, plus lots of other cosmic views, in the Month in Space Pictures slideshow for February.
Reach Becky Oskin at boskin@techmedianetwork.com. Follow her on Twitter @beckyoskin. Follow OurAmazingPlanet on Twitter @OAPlanet. We're also on Facebook and Google+.
Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Alexander Petrov / AP
Plosky Tolbachnik volcano erupts in Russia's Far Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula on Jan. 6, 2013.
A Russian volcano which started erupting in November continues to spew ash and smoke into the air, The Associated Press reports. The Plosky Tolbachik volcano, in the Kamchatka Peninsula, last erupted in 1976.
The unexpected eruption was named the most significant volcanic event of 2012 by Denison University volcanologist Erik Klemetti on his Eruptions blog.
Alexander Petrov / AP
The Plosky Tolbachnik volcano erupts on Jan. 6, 2013.
Related content:
Antonio Huglich / AFP - Getty Images
A woman takes a picture with her mobile phone of the Copahue volcano spewing ash on Dec. 22, in Caviahue, Neuquen province, Argentina.
Authorities in Chile and Argentina issued yellow alerts following the eruption of the Copahue volcano, which sits on the border between the two countries.
Antonio Huglich / AFP - Getty Images
Antonio Huglich / AFP - Getty Images
Antonio Huglich / AFP - Getty Images
Reuters
Mount Lokon spews volcanic ash during an eruption in Tomohon in Indonesia's North Sulawesi province on December 17, 2012.
Mount Lokon, which has erupted 800 times since July, spewed hot lava and volcanic ash as high as 10,000 feet on Monday, according to an Indonesian government official. -- Reuters
See more images of volcanic activity in Indonesia on PhotoBlog
NASA / EO-1 / USGS
This view of Tolbachik Volcano on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula was captured in infrared and visible light on Dec. 1 by the Advanced Land Imager on NASA's Earth Observing 1 satellite. The infrared readings in red highlight hot lava flows from the volcano.
Smoke and lava issue forth from Russia's Tolbachik Volcano in a pair of pictures from NASA's Earth Observing 1 satellite. What a difference in the perspectives!
The visible-light view from EO-1's Advanced Land Imager, captured on Dec. 1, shows billows of ash and steam, with a stream of dark lava cutting across the landscape.
In contrast, the infrared-plus-visible view reveals a nightmarish red river, running through a bilious green landscape. This version of the scene gets its eerie look from the false colors used to represent different wavelengths in the infrared part of the spectrum. The blood-red shade reflects the high surface temperatures of the lava, while the shades of green signify colder surroundings on the Kamchatka Peninsula.
A similar infrared-plus-visible image comes from the ASTER instrument aboard NASA's Terra satellite. The ASTER image, our third view of Tolbachik's hell, combines a picture of the volcano from July 19 with fresh infrared data from Dec. 3 showing the lava flow.
The outburst marked Tolbachik's return to active status after 36 years of dormancy. The lava flows reportedly destroyed two research camps and forced school closures in nearby villages. Some experts worry that Tolbachik could unleash an eruption as powerful as Eyjafjallajökull's Icelandic blast, which disrupted trans-Atlantic air traffic for weeks back in 2010.
In the past few days, Russian authorities have downgraded Tolbachik's alert status from red to orange. Nevertheless, the mountain bears watching: Denison University volcanologist Erik Klemetti is monitoring the situation on his Eruptions blog.
NASA / EO-1 / USGS
The visible-light view from NASA's EO-1 satellite shows Tolbachik's lava flow as a river of darkness cutting through the snowy scene.
NASA / GSFC / METI / ERSDAC / JAROS via AFP
A false-color view from the ASTER imager on NASA's Terra satellite shows the Tolbachik Volcano and its surroundings in infrared and visible wavelengths. A scene from July 19 provides the background, with vegetation in red, older lava flows in dark gray and snow in white. A nighttime thermal infrared image, acquired Dec. 3, has been overlaid on the earlier image and highlights the hot lava flows in bright yellow.
More vistas from space:
Yuri Demyanchuk / AP
Yuri Demyanchuk / AP
Plosky Tolbachik volcano erupted in Russia’s Far Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula on Nov. 29. The volcano, located on the peninsula's eastern coast, is erupting for the first time in 36 years, according to The Associated Press.
Editor's note: The Associated Press made these pictures available to NBC News on Dec. 4.
Related content:
Arno Balzarini / EPA
Ice and snow changes our environment, as winter engulfs our world.
E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSS