Taal Volcano recorded three minor eruptions at its main crater on Sunday morning, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).
At 2:55 a.m. a minor phreatic eruption occurred, lasting only one minute, Phivolcs said.
Then, from 8:13 a.m to 8:15 a.m., a minor phreatomagmatic eruption produced plumes that rose to 1,200 meters above the main crater.
Shortly after, another minor phreatomagmatic eruption occurred from 8:20 a.m. to 8:24 a.m., generating plumes that soared 2,100 meters above the crater.
The volcano also logged a phreatomagmatic eruption that lasted for three minutes on Saturday, October 25, and a phreatomagmatic eruption that lasted for one minute on October 20.
A phreatomagmatic eruption occurs when magma interacts with water, resulting in explosive events that produce a mixture of steam, ash, and fragmented volcanic materials.
Phivolcs explained that a phreatic eruption, locally called ‘pusngat,’ occurs when ‘water beneath the ground or on the surface is heated by magma, lava, hot rocks, or new volcanic deposits.’
In its Sunday morning bulletin, Phivolcs reported that the volcano logged nine volcanic earthquakes in the past 24 hours.
The series of earthquakes were accompanied by two volcanic tremors that lasted 47 to 96 minutes.
The volcano has been recording almost daily earthquakes this month. No seismic activities were recorded on October 1, 5, 20, and 23, the Phivolcs data showed.
From October 1 to 26, a total of 229 volcanic earthquakes and 13 tremor episodes were recorded. In comparison, Phivolcs documented 189 volcanic earthquakes and 129 tremors in September.
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.
In its latest update, Phivolcs reported the emission of 436 metric tons (MT) of sulfur dioxide, which rose 600 meters tall.
During the latest observation period, no upwelling of hot volcanic fluids was reported in the main crater lake of Taal Volcano Island, which sits at the center of Taal Lake.
No volcanic smog, or ‘vog,’ was also observed.
Taal Volcano is still under alert level 1 (low level of volcanic unrest), Phivolcs said.
‘At Alert Level 1, sudden steam-driven or phreatic or minor phreatomagmatic eruptions, minor ashfall and lethal accumulations or expulsions of volcanic gas can occur and threaten areas within Taal Volcano Island,’ the agency warned.