Mount Nyiragongo - wikipedia Mount Nyiragongo This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( January 2010 ) Mount Nyiragongo An aerial view of volcanic peak Highest point Elevation 3,470 m ( 11,380 ft ) Coordinates 1 ° 31 ′ S 29 ° 15 ′ E ﻿ / ﻿ 1.517 ° S 29.250 ° E ﻿ / - 1.517 ; 29.250 Coordinates : 1 ° 31 ′ S 29 ° 15 ′ E ﻿ / ﻿ 1.517 ° S 29.250 ° E ﻿ / - 1.517 ; 29.250 Geography Mount Nyiragongo Democratic Republic of the Congo Parent range Virunga Mountains Geology Mountain type Stratovolcano Last eruption 2002 to 2015 Mount Nyiragongo is an active stratovolcano with an elevation of 3,470 metres ( 11,380 ft ) in the Virunga Mountains associated with the Albertine Rift. It is located inside Virunga National Park, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, about 20 km ( 12 mi ) north of the town of Goma and Lake Kivu and just west of the border with Rwanda. The main crater is about two kilometres wide and usually contains a lava lake. The crater presently has two distinct cooled lava benches within the crater walls -- one at about 3,175 m ( 10,417 ft ) and a lower one at about 2,975 m ( 9,760 ft ). Nyiragongo 's lava lake has at times been the most voluminous known lava lake in recent history. The depth of the lava lake varies considerably. A maximum elevation of the lava lake was recorded at about 3,250 m ( 10,660 ft ) prior to the January 1977 eruption -- a lake depth of about 600 m ( 2,000 ft ). A recent very low elevation of the lava lake was recorded at about 2,700 m ( 8,900 ft ). Nyiragongo and nearby Nyamuragira are together responsible for 40 % of Africa 's historical volcanic eruptions. Contents 1 Geology 1.1 Active history 2 1977 Eruption 3 2002 Eruptions 4 Ongoing threat 5 Monitoring 6 See also 7 References 8 External links Geology Nyamuragira ( left ) and Nyiragongo ( right ). Vertical scale exaggerated ( 1.5 x ). The volcano partly overlaps with two older volcanoes, Baratu and Shaheru, and is also surrounded by hundreds of small volcanic cinder cones from flank eruptions. The lava emitted in eruptions at Nyiragongo is often unusually fluid. Nyiragongo 's lavas are made of melilite nephelinite, an alkali - rich type of volcanic rock whose unusual chemical composition may be a factor in the unusual fluidity of the lavas there. Whereas most lava flows move rather slowly and rarely pose a danger to human life, Nyiragongo 's lava flows may race downhill at up to 100 km / h ( 60 mph ). This is because of the extremely low silica content ( the lava is mafic ). Hawaiian volcanic eruptions are also characterized by lavas with low silica content, but the Hawaiian volcanoes are broad, shallow - sloped shield volcanoes in contrast to the steep - sided cone of Nyiragongo, and the silica content is high enough to slow most Hawaiian flows to walking pace. Active history Not much is known about how long the volcano has been erupting, but since 1882, it has erupted at least 34 times, including many periods where activity was continuous for years at a time, often in the form of a churning lava lake in the crater. The existence of the lava lake had been suspected for some time, but was not scientifically confirmed until 1948. At that time, it was measured at nearly 120,000 square metres ( 1,300,000 sq ft ). Subsequent expeditions showed that the lake fluctuated in size, depth, and temperature over time. The lava lake activity continued through 2010. At present, the lake is mostly confined within a broad, steep - sided cinder cone on the crater floor, roughly 60 feet high by 600 feet wide. Teide Nyiragongo Vesuvius Etna Santorini Unzen Sakurajima Taal Merapi Ulawun Mauna Loa Colima Santa María Avachinsky Koryaksky Galeras Rainier Mount Nyiragongo is one of the 16 Decade Volcanoes. 1977 eruption Nirogongo, 1975 Nyiragongo 's lava lake Between 1894 and 1977 the crater contained an active lava lake. On 10 January 1977, the crater walls fractured, and the lava lake drained in less than an hour. The lava flowed down the flanks of the volcano at speeds of up to 60 km / h ( 40 mi / h, the fastest lava flow recorded to date ) on the upper slopes, overwhelming villages and killing at least 70 people. The hazards posed by eruptions like this are unique to Nyiragongo. Nowhere else in the world does such a steep - sided stratovolcano contain a lake of such fluid lava. Nyiragongo 's proximity to heavily populated areas increases its potential for causing a natural disaster. The 1977 eruption raised awareness of the unique dangers posed by Nyiragongo, and because of this it was designated a Decade Volcano, worthy of particular study, in 1991. The 1977 eruption was preceded by the creation of a new small volcano, Murara, a short distance away on the slopes of Nyamuragira. 2002 eruptions Satellite image of the eruption plume from Nyiragongo in July 2004 Lava lakes reformed in the crater in eruptions in 1982 -- 1983 and 1994. Another major eruption of the volcano began on January 17, 2002, after several months of increased seismic and fumarolic activity. A 13 km fissure opened in the south flank of the volcano, spreading in a few hours from 2800 m to 1550 m elevation and reaching the outskirts of the city of Goma, the provincial capital on the northern shore of Lake Kivu. Lava streamed from three spatter cones at the end of the fissure and flowed in a stream 200 to 1000 m wide and up to 2 m deep through Goma. Warnings had been given and 400,000 people were evacuated from the city across the Rwandan border into neighbouring Gisenyi during the eruption. Lava covered the northern end of the runway at Goma International Airport, leaving the southern two - thirds usable, and reached Lake Kivu. This raised fears that the lava might cause gas - saturated waters deep in the lake to suddenly rise to the surface, releasing lethally large amounts of carbon dioxide and methane -- similar to the disaster at Lake Nyos in Cameroon in 1986. This did not happen, but volcanologists continue to monitor the area closely. About 147 people died in the eruption from asphyxiation by carbon dioxide and buildings collapsing due to the lava and earthquakes. At least 15 % of Goma comprising 4,500 buildings were destroyed, leaving about 120,000 people homeless. Immediately after the eruption stopped, a large number of earthquakes were felt around Goma and Gisenyi. This swarm activity continued for about three months and caused the collapse of more buildings. Six months after the start of the 2002 eruption, Nyiragongo volcano erupted again. Activity at Nyiragongo is ongoing, but currently confined to the crater, where another lava lake has formed about 250 metres below the level of the 1994 lava lake. Ongoing threat Localized carbon dioxide toxicity, known locally as ' mazuku ', has killed children even more recently. In locations where the gas seeps from the ground in relatively high levels, without the dispersing effects of wind, its effects can be deadly. On March 8, 2016, Goma Volcano Observatory discovered a new vent that opened in the northeast edge of the crater, following local reports of rumblings coming from the volcano. Some fear that this could lead to a flank eruption. Monitoring The volcano is monitored by a team of scientists at the Goma Volcanic Observatory. It is monitored 24 / 7 365 days a year with seismic data produced every four minutes and temperature data produced every ten minutes. See also List of volcanoes in the Democratic Republic of the Congo List of volcanic eruptions by death toll References Notes Jump up ^ `` Nyiragongo ''. Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 13 February 2016. ^ Jump up to : `` Nyiragongo ''. Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Jump up ^ `` Virunga National Park ''. World Heritage List. UNESCO. Retrieved 13 February 2016. ^ Jump up to : Scheffel, Richard L. ; Wernet, Susan J., eds. ( 1980 ). Natural Wonders of the World. United States of America : Reader 's Digest Association, Inc. pp. 272 -- 273. ISBN 0 - 89577 - 087 - 3. Jump up ^ Glenday, Craig ( 2013 ). Guinness Book of World Records 2014. The Jim Pattison Group. p. 015. ISBN 978 - 1 - 908843 - 15 - 9. ^ Jump up to : `` Cooperative Observations at Nyiragongo Volcano in D.R. of Congo '' ( PDF ). Earthquake Research Institute, University of Tokyo. Retrieved 2007 - 09 - 03. Jump up ^ Sanders, Edmund ( 2008 - 05 - 23 ). `` ' Killer Lake ' Could Power Rwanda ''. Los Angeles Times. Jump up ^ `` Volcano Under the City ''. PBS. 2005 - 11 - 01. Retrieved 2013 - 08 - 18. Jump up ^ `` Nyiragongo volcano ( DR Congo ) : fracture opens new vent inside crater -- precursor of possible flank eruption ? ''. Volcano Discovery. 2016 - 03 - 08. Jump up ^ `` ' I monitor Congo 's deadliest volcano ' ''. BBC News. Retrieved 2017 - 10 - 19. Bibliography Tazieff Haroun ; Bichet Pierre ( 1979 ). Nyiragongo : The Forbidden Volcano. Barron 's. p. 288. ISBN 0 - 8120 - 5296 - X. OCLC 4114550. Allard P, Baxter P, Halbwachs M, Kasareka M, Komorowski JC, Joron JL ( 2003 ). `` The most destructive effusive eruption in modern history : Nyiragongo 2003 ''. Geophysical Research Abstracts. 5 : 11970. Demant A, Lestrade P, Lubala RT, Kampunzu AB, Durieux J ( 1994 ). `` Volcanological and petrological evolution of Nyiragongo volcano, Virunga volcanic field, Zaire ''. Bulletin of Volcanology. 56 ( 1 ) : 47 -- 60. Bibcode : 1994BVol... 56... 47D. doi : 10.1007 / s004450050016. Rosbøg Sanne ( 2007 - 07 - 07 ). `` Kvinde overlevede fald på 100 meter '' ( in Danish ). Favalli M, Chirico GD, Papale P, Pareschi MT, Coltelli M, Lucaya N, Boschi E ( 2006 ). `` Computer simulations of lava flow paths in the town of Goma, Nyiragongo volcano, Democratic Republic of Congo ''. Journal of Geophysical Research. 111 ( B6 ) : B06202. Bibcode : 2006JGRB... 11106202F. doi : 10.1029 / 2004JB003527. External links Find more aboutMt. Nyiragongoat Wikipedia 's sister projects Media from Wikimedia Commons Travel guide from Wikivoyage Data from Wikidata The Big Picture : Nyiragongo Crater Nyiragongo Volcano Video on France 24 TV / ( no longer available ) Tourism at Nyiragongo Volcano Photos of Nyiragongo lava lake in January 2011 BBC News pictures of the destruction of Goma by the 2002 Eruption PBS Nova : `` Volcano under the City '' Stromboli Online 's expedition to Nyiragongo in May, 2005 Alkali Basalt Association of the Continents Google Earth view Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mount_Nyiragongo&oldid=831233492 '' Categories : Active volcanoes Decade Volcanoes Volcanoes of the Great Rift Valley Mountains of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Virunga Mountains Stratovolcanoes of the Democratic Republic of the Congo 21st - century volcanic events Lake Kivu Goma Geological type localities Hidden categories : Articles using GVP links in vnum format Articles needing additional references from January 2010 All articles needing additional references Coordinates on Wikidata All articles with vague or ambiguous time Vague or ambiguous time from February 2016 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from February 2016 CS1 Danish - language sources ( da ) Pages using div col with deprecated parameters Talk Contents About Wikipedia Afrikaans Azərbaycanca Български Brezhoneg Català Cebuano Čeština Dansk Deutsch Eesti Ελληνικά Español Esperanto Euskara فارسی Français 한국어 हिन्दी Bahasa Indonesia Íslenska Italiano עברית ქართული Latina Lietuvių Lingála Magyar Македонски मराठी Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Occitan Polski Português Română Русский Slovenčina Suomi Svenska Українська 中文 34 more Edit links This page was last edited on 19 March 2018, at 14 : 33. 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Question: when was the last time mount nyiragongo erupted
Answer: 2002 to 2015