Bali has two active volcanoes, Mount Agung and Mount Batur.
Mount Agung or Gunung Agung is a active volcano in Bali. This stratovolcano is the highest point on the island. It dominates the surrounding area influencing the climate. The clouds come from the west and Agung takes their water so that the west is lush and green and the east dry and barren.
Mount Agung or Gunung Agung is a mountain in Bali. This stratovolcano is the highest point on the island. It dominates the surrounding area influencing the climate. The clouds come from the west and Agung takes their water so that the west is lush and green and the east dry and barren.
Gunung Agung last erupted in 1963-64 and is still active, with a large and very deep crater which occasionally belches smoke and ash. From a distance, the mountain appears to be perfectly conical, despite the existence of the large crater.
From the peak of the mountain, it is possible to see the peak of Mount Rinjani on the island of Lombok, although both mountains are frequently covered in cloud.
The 1963 eruption of Agung volcano
After more than 100 years of slumber, Mt. Agung came back to life on February 18, 1963. Loud noises and a cloud rising from the crater were noticed, then the ejection of bombs and blocks.
On February 24, 1963, highly viscous lava flows began to travel down the northern flank of the volcano, reaching a length of 7 km in about 18 to 20 days and an elevation of 510 m above sea level. The flows were about 0.5-0.8 km wide and 30-40 m thick. Rough estimates indicate a total volume of these flows of about 50 million cubic meters.
After that phase, the eruption became more and more explosive, and on March 17, 1963, the paroxysmal sub-Plinian eruption took place, generating a eruptino column of 8-10 km height that collapsed to form devastating pyroclastic flows. These flows reached distances of up to 15 km from the crater following vallezs to the south and east, at speeds of about 60 km/hour. Many villages were destroyed and more than 1000 people lost their lives. Heavy tephra fall occurred in areas west of the volcano, where up to 50-70 cm of ash were deposited.
In May, the south peak of the crater wall collapsed, lowering its height for about 200 meters. The lowest crater wall at present is the upper end of Langon river (2600 m).
Batur is the most active volcano on the popular tourist island of Bali and one of Inondesia’s more active ones. During the past centuries, Batur has had a number of small eruptions every few years. Thanks to the scenic beauty of the caldera with its lake and the cone of Batur, it is one of Bali’s most popular destinations.
The volcano is located at the center of two concentric calderas NW of Agung volcano. The outer 10 x 13.5 km wide caldera was formed during eruption of the Bali (or Ubud) Ignimbrite about 29,300 years ago and now contains a caldera lake on its SE side, opposite the satellitic cone of 2152-m-high Gunung Abang, the topographic high of the Batur complex.
The inner 6.4 x 9.4 km wide caldera was formed about 20,150 years ago during eruption of the Gunungkawi Ignimbrite. The SE wall of the inner caldera lies beneath Lake Batur; Batur cone has been constructed within the inner caldera to a height above the outer caldera rim. The 1717-m-high Batur stratovolcano has produced vents over much of the inner caldera, but a NE-SW fissure system has localized the Batur I, II, and III craters along the summit ridge.
Historical eruptions have been characterized by mild-to-moderate explosive activity sometimes accompanied by lava emission. Basaltic lava flows from both summit and flank vents have reached the caldera floor and the shores of Lake Batur in historical time.
