Volcanic eruption

Mount Merapi, located between Yogyakarta and Central Java, erupted again early Monday, producing two pyroclastic flows that traveled up to 1.6 kilometers toward the southwest, according to Indonesian officials.
Agus Budi Santoso, head of the Yogyakarta Geological Disaster Technology Research and Development Center (BPPTKG), said the flows moved toward the Kali Krasak between midnight and 6 a.m. local time, News.Az reports, citing ANTARA.
“Two pyroclastic flows were observed toward the southwest (Kali Krasak) with a maximum run of 1,600 meters,” Agus said in a statement issued Monday in Yogyakarta.
Observations from BPPTKG recorded amplitudes of 18–33 mm for the flows, lasting between 175 and 188 seconds.
During the same monitoring period, the volcano also registered 49 avalanche earthquakes with amplitudes ranging from 2–41 mm and durations of 58–182 seconds. Another 14 hybrid earthquakes were detected with amplitudes of 2–30 mm lasting between 27 and 50 seconds.
BPPTKG also reported 20 lava avalanches moving southwest toward Kali Krasak with a maximum distance of 1.8 kilometers, as well as 13 avalanches toward the Kali Sat/Putih rivers reaching the same distance.
Visually, Mount Merapi appeared clear, emitting moderate to thick white smoke rising about 500 meters above the crater. Weather conditions around the volcano were partly cloudy to clear, with temperatures ranging from 17.2°C to 19.2°C.
A monitoring report covering March 6–12 noted morphological changes in the volcano’s southwest lava dome due to avalanches and shifts in lava volume, while the central dome remained largely unchanged.
Aerial photographs taken on Feb. 20, 2026, estimated the volume of the southwest dome at about 4,044,000 cubic meters and the central dome at roughly 2,368,800 cubic meters.
Authorities have maintained Mount Merapi at Level III (Alert).
Current hazards include potential lava avalanches and pyroclastic flows toward the south-southwest, affecting the Boyong River up to five kilometers and the Bedog, Krasak, and Bebeng rivers up to seven kilometers. In the southeast sector, hazards extend to the Woro River up to three kilometers and the Gendol River up to five kilometers.
Officials also warned that in the event of a larger explosive eruption, volcanic material could reach areas within a three-kilometer radius of the summit.
News.Az