Mount Yasur - Vanuatu

Mount Yasur is an active volcano standing 361 metres high above sea level, located on the Tanna Island in the South Pacific country of Vanuatu.

Vanuatu is a tropical archipelago consisting of several active and inactive volcanoes, among which the most attractive is the Mount Yasur.

It is believed that the volcano was formed by movement in the Indo-Australian and the Pacific Plates.

The Mount Yasur was first discovered by Captain James Cook in 1774. Probably the glow of the volcano in the night sky was what most impressed the captain although he was not allowed to visit the volcano since it is considered taboo by locals.

The volcano crater reaches 400 metres in diameter, erupting lava almost constantly.

The activity of volcano is quite different and varies. For the safety of visitors, the government of Vanuatu has set a station on the volcano which takes into account strength of activity.

There are four levels of specific activity of volcano.

The Level 0 and the Level 1 are considered for the levels with the lowest activity and then access to the volcano is allowed.

When the activity reaches level 3 the access is prohibited because then the lava erupts hundreds of metres out of the crater, creating a large cloud of smoke and ash.

Level 4 is the level with the highest eruption activity, causing serious damage not only to certain areas of the island but also to neighbouring islands.

Although the volcano is nearly constantly erupting it is one of the most visited and famous tourist sites.

The view when the volcano is erupting is truly remarkable and deserves to be seen.

Today the Mount Yasur area is a sacred place for the John Frum cargo cult. It is a kind of a religious cult whose followers believe that all the manufactured western goods have been created by some ancestral spirits mainly for Melanesian people but white people are unfairly appropriated the goods.

Mount Yasur is situated in the eastern side of the island, about an hours drive from White Grass airport and Lenakel town. There are flights every 45 minutes and boats every 2 or 3 days.