Vanuatu: Tanna Island – Mount Yasur Volcanic Crater

Mount Yasur is a stratovolcano, rising to 361 m (1,184 ft) high above sea level in the middle of the roughly round island of Tanna. Its summit crater is roughly 400 m in diameter and can be reached on foot after a long truck drive across the ash plains and then a half hour or less climb up to the crater’s rim. The volcano has been erupting continually for several hundred years, having Strombolian eruptions – lava fountains and explosions. As you stand on the rim, the ground shakes under your feet and explosions rocket down below with clearly visible lava fountains even during the day time, then toxic plumes of sulphuric smoke rise up and make you turn around and face away. It’s exhilarating, a bit scary, awe-inspiring, and intoxicating (like literally intoxicating).
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