Volcanic earthquakes have continued to shake Taal Volcano in Batangas province for the past 12 days, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) reported Friday.
In its morning bulletin, Phivolcs stated the volcano recorded three volcanic earthquakes in the past 24 hours. These were accompanied by an ongoing volcanic tremor event that began at 2:47 p.m. Thursday.
However, Phivolcs explained that the tremor at the volcano, which has persisted for more than a day, is not a ’cause for concern.’ Phivolcs has been recording volcanic earthquakes at Taal Volcano since Oct. 6.
From Oct. 1 to Oct. 17, a total of 181 volcanic earthquakes and five tremor episodes were recorded. In comparison, Phivolcs documented 189 volcanic earthquakes and 129 tremors in September.
The four tremors occurred during phreatic and phreatomagmatic eruptions on Oct. 2.
Volcanic earthquakes are those ‘generated by magmatic processes or magma-related processes beneath or near an active volcano.’
Volcanic tremors, meanwhile, are ‘continuous seismic signals with regular or irregular sine wave appearance and low frequencies (0.5-5 Hz),’ the Phivolcs explained.
During the latest observation period, no upwelling of hot volcanic fluids was reported in the main crater lake of Taal Volcano Island (TVI), which sits at the center of Taal Lake.
No volcanic smog, or ‘vog,’ was also observed.
Phivolcs reiterated that Taal Volcano remains under Alert Level 1, ‘which means that it is still in an abnormal condition and should not be interpreted to have ceased unrest or the threat of eruptive activity.’
Entry to the island, boating on Taal Lake, and flying aircraft near the volcano remain strictly prohibited, the agency stressed