Merapi Volcano, Java, Indonesia
Location: 7.5S, 110.4E
Elevation: 9,548 feet (2,911 m)
Merapi is a stratovolcano in central Java. Merapi has had 68 historic eruption since 1548. The current eruption began in 1987. Because of Merapi’s violent past and its close proximity to Yogyakarta it was designated a Decade Volcano and is the target of increased research efforts.
Merapi is a stratovolcano with an active summit lava dome. It is located ~30 km immediately north of Yogyakarta, a city with a population of 500,000. Merapi has the unfortunate distinction of producing more nuee ardentes than any other volcano on Earth. The nuee ardentes result from collapse of the lava dome at the summit. Of the 67 historic eruptions 32 have had nuee ardentes associated with them. Eleven of these eruptions resulted in fatalities. Merapi is closely monitored by the Volcanological Survey of Indonesia. Shortly before this photograph was taken Merapi was generating up to 40 nuee ardentes per day.