Mount Ibu Erupts on Wednesday Night, Status Raised to Highest Alert Level

Mount Ibu in North Maluku erupted again on Wednesday, January 15, 2025, at 7:17 PM WIT. In the last week, Mount Ibu has erupted 56 times.

Based on eruption information from the Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) via the MAGMA Indonesia application, the height of the ash column was observed to be approximately 2,000 meters above the peak or 3,325 meters above sea level.

The ash column was observed to be gray with thick intensity towards the west. The eruption was recorded on a seismograph with a maximum amplitude of 28 millimeters and a duration of 122 seconds.

According to the MAGMA Indonesia volcano activity report, Mount Ibu's activity level is at Level IV (Alert). Observations of seismic activity on January 15, 2025, from 6:00 AM to 12:00 PM WIT showed 10 eruption quakes with amplitudes of 8-28 millimeters and durations of 42-131 seconds.

Furthermore, there were 84 tremor events with amplitudes of 2-28 millimeters and durations of 14-65 seconds, and 4 harmonic tremors with amplitudes of 2-8 millimeters and durations of 41-95 seconds.

PVMBG urges the public around Mount Ibu and visitors/tourists not to conduct any activities, climb, or approach Mount Ibu within a 5-kilometer radius and a 6-kilometer sectoral radius from the crater opening in the northern part of Mount Ibu's active crater.

During 2025, MAGMA Indonesia has recorded 374 volcanic eruptions throughout Indonesia. Mount Semeru in East Java had the most eruptions (220 times), while Mount Ibu erupted 139 times.