By the end of 2017,Mount Agung has been much talked about. Located in Bali, this volcano has indeed shown signs of activity letting fear an imminent eruption. He has thus evacuated the most threatened populations living at his feet. So, are there other volcanoes like him that you have to worry about? The answer is yes, of course. Our planet has hundreds of volcanoes, a number of which remains to be discovered in the depths of the oceans ...

In Indonesia alone, 18 of the 139 active volcanoes in 2017 "have triggered warnings for more than normal seismic activity, soil deformation or gas emissions," three experts write in a report. article on volcanoes to watch for in 2018. They add that between 14 and 27 volcanoes erupted in the world each week last year. Fortunately, for many of them, they are nice effusions or small explosions (or moderates). Nothing to do with the eruption of Mount Tambora in 1815, still in Indonesia, considered the most powerful in recent history.

And even though it killed more than 92,000 people and had an impact on the climate, it "does not weigh against the super-eruptions of the geological past," the researchers say. The most formidable of these last 25 million years was that of Toba, a supervolcan of Sumatra erupted 74,000 years ago. But Ralf Gertisser (University of Keele), Katie Preece (University of Glasgow) and Sylvain Charbonnier (University of South Florida) are reassuring: "There is little chance that a similar disaster will happen again soon."Some of them have already had activity so far in 2018.

1. Mount Shinmoe, Japan

The Kirishima Mountains in Japan have several volcanoes. But the most feared of these is Mount Shinmoe, which not so long ago, in 2011, was at the origin of one of the largest eruptions on Earth in fifty years. Erupted again last October, the alert level in early 2018 remains high (you can see it live here).

2. The Merapi, Indonesia

The Merapi in Indonesia is much better known, probably for its more frequent eruptions. It is considered one of the most dangerous in the world and, to date, the deadliest of the twenty-first century (400 deaths in 2010). He is rather sleepy right now, "there is no sign that a new volcanic activity is coming." Nevertheless, the scientists do not leave the eyes, being wary of this giant who sleeps ...

3. Öræfajökull, in Iceland

Everyone has heard about Eyjafjöll in Iceland, lurking beneath the Eyjafjallajökull Glacier, when it woke up in 2010. But a few hundred kilometers away, to the east, the Öræfajökull is giving signs of activity for about six months. Seismic shocks were recorded and the glacier covering the main crater collapsed. For volcanologists, it's a clue that the temperature goes up inside. Its Icelandic name meaning "glacier of desolate (or abandoned) lands" recalls the catastrophic eruption of 1362; this was followed by floods which pushed the inhabitants to leave the region.

4. The Popocatepetl, Mexico

Located 70 kilometers south of the Mexican capital, Mexico City, Popocatépetl ("the smoking mountain" in Nahuatl) is a monster reaching 5,426 meters in activity since 2005. Its most powerful eruption in modern times is produced in 1996. As can be seen through the webcams that observe it, the volcano experiences eruptions intermittently "which are accompanied by a magnification of the lava dome, explosions, plumes of ashes" rising a few kilometers high and more minor ash fallout in the vicinity. "

5. The Villarrica, Chile

Let's stay on the American continent, but this time in South America, Chile, where the Villarrica, one of the three largest stratovolcano in the Andes, shows a revival of activity. Since November 2017, lava fountains erupt up to 150 meters in height, say researchers.

6. Kilauea, Hawaii

In the middle of the Pacific Ocean, on the Big Island of the Hawaiian Islands, Kilauea has been throwing up lava for thirty-five years and "there is no reason for it to 'stop soon,' say the authors. It flows from its five-kilometer-long crater and, above all, from the eruptive mouth of Pu'u'Ō'ō.