Yellowstone (640,000 - 2.1 Million Years Ago), Wyoming
Image Source: Reddit
We probably all know by now that the entirety of the national park is actually a active volcano; we say active, but it hasn't actually erupted in 640,000 years! There were three eruptions in the time span mentioned and if it were to erupt again it could be horrific. Scientists found one (ONE!) blob of magma beneath the surface that could fill the entire Grand Canyon.
Mt Vesuvius (79 AD), Italy
Image Source: Reddit
This is probably the most popular volcanic eruption of all time, and it has featured in pop culture hundreds if not thousands of times. It's famous for burying the cities of Pompeii (mainly) and Herculaneum, killing more than 16,000 people. These cities remained buried for over 1000 years until they were rediscovered.
Ilopango (450AD), El Salvador
Image Source: Reddit
This is the first known and recorded eruption of the Ilopango volcano, and it's known to be the second largest eruption within the last 200,000 years. Not only did it destroy some Mayan cities but also it also killed more than 100,00 deaths and a period of global cooling that ruined crop growth.
Changbaishan Volcano (1000), China/North Korea
Image Source: Reddit
This volcano can be found alongside the mountain range that borders both China and North Korea. The waters you see above filled the large hole that was left following the eruption; this now holds Lake Tianchi. The volcano erupted again in 1702 but has remained dormant ever since!
Huaynaputina (1600), Peru
Image Source: IMCG
This Peruvian eruption is the largest recorded one on South American soil, causing mudflows to travel as far as 120 km away into the Pacific Ocean. It's even believed that it caused huge issues within the global climate, making the summers around the eruption colder than they'd been for centuries.
Mt. Thera (1610), Greece
Image Source: W. Sheppard Baird
It's actually believed that this island volcano in Greece erupted with more energy than HUNDREDS of atomic bombs in just a few seconds. As you can see, it blew a massive hole in the center of the island and it's eruption altered the climate. Fortunately, many of the islanders managed to evacuate as there were signs it was going to blow.
Laki (1783), Iceland
Image Source: Reddit
Laki's eruption, although not as dangerous as some of the other eruptions to feature on this list caused long-term issues around the world for years. The whole eruption continued for 8 months and ended up emitting toxic gasses that poisoned most of Iceland's crops and even killed 23,000 people in Britain! That's more than how many died in Iceland!
Mt. Unzen (1792), Japan
Image Source: Japan Guide
This Mt Unzen explosion was and still is the deadliest eruption in all of Japan's history. The dome of the volcano was forced to collapse and thus a huge landslide ended up smothering the city of Shimabara, pushing it into the ocean and then causing a massive 57m high tsunami. 15,000 people ended up losing their lives!
Mt. Tambora (1815), Indonesia
Image Source: Reddit
This has been recorded as the deadliest eruption in the recent history of our earth, as over 120,000 people are known to have lost their lives! Not only did the volcanic ash and lava cause huge problems on their own, the fact that the flow entered the ocean mean that huge tsunamis were formed. Effects were felt as far away as Europe as typhus spread.
Krakatoa (1883), Indonesia
Image Source: Reddit
Another Indonesian eruption features in this list, the 1883 eruption was one of the most violent in recent history; it completely destroyed the island on which it sat. In fact, 36,000 people were killed and whole villages were ruined. It was said that the final eruption was four times stronger than any human detonated bomb!
Mt Pelee (1902), Caribbean
Image Source: Earth.com
People around the volcano at the time believed that it wasn't actually dormant having not erupted in any of the recent generations. Therefore, the worst eruption of the 20th century took everyone by surprise, spewing volcanic debris and destroying the city of St. Pierre. Only 2 out of 28,000 people survived the eruption!
Santa Maria (1902), Guatemala
Image Source: AGU Blogosphere
The Santa Maria volcano was another that had remained dormant for generations and in the same year as the Mt. Pelee eruption it also erupted again. It was caused after earthquakes in the region forced the eruption, killing more than 5000 people and it's ash was causing problems as far away as California.
Taal (1911), Philippines
Image Source: Coconuts
This 1911 eruption is one of the worst in Philippines history, earthquakes were happening constantly during the original signs of an eruption. The entirety of the island (Volcano Island) was destroyed and the eruption created a shower of lava sand and mud, which was the cause of death for over 1000 local residents.
Novarupta (1912), USA
Image Source: Alaska Magazine
This eruption caused the largest blast of the 20th century, and is part of the notorious Pacific Ring of Fire. More than a foot's worth of ash began settling around a 7800 sq km area after the magma was put into the air. Supposedly the air was so thick with ash that anything within an arm's length of your body was invisible.
Mount Lamington (1951), Papua New Guinea
Image Source: Global Volcanism Program
At the time of the eruption it was actually believed to just be a mountain, and this eruption is the only one in recorded history. Part of the mountain was blown away and lava flows began streaming for more than 10 km towards Higaturu; the burning ash and dust from the explosion is believed to have killed more than 3000 people!
El Chichon (1982), Mexico
Image Source: Wired
Before this eruption, El Chichon hadn't seen any activity in more than 500 years; huge flows of lava and smoke ended up smothering and totally destroying 9 villages. Nearly 2000 people were known to have lost their lives and it supposedly cost around $55m worth of damage to the economy.
Nevado Del Ruiz (1985), Columbia
Image Source: EARTH Magazine
Although Nevado del Ruiz's eruption wasn't as large as some of the others to feature on this list it has been recorded as the most expensive eruption in history, causing more than $1bn worth of damage. The eruption caused a number of lahars (mudslides) which ended in the town of Armero being buried and 20,000 people dying.
Mt. Pinatubo (1991), Philippines
Image Source: Reddit
This was the second largest eruption in the 20th century and much of it's issues came as a result of the ash cloud it released instead of its lava flow. The ash cloud ended up reaching more than 35 km in the air and forced the temperatures around the world to fall. It cost the world upwards of $200 million and killed over 700 civilians.
Miyake-Jima (2000), Japan
Image Source: Atlas Obscura
In the year 2000, Mount Oyama erupted and forced the entire island to be evacuated. It took four (yes FOUR) years for the residents to be allowed to return home permanently. Despite this, many residents were forced to carry gas masks around with them as since the eruption sulfur dioxide has constantly been flowing from the volcano.
Mt. Nyiragongo (2002), DR Congo
Image Source: Mount Nyiragongo
Months of activity led to the eruption of Nyiragongo in early 2002, eventually shooting lava towards the city of Goma. At some points, the lava was spreading along a 1000m wide stream; 13% of the whole city became engulfed in the lava, including the airport. Ultimately, 250 people died as a result of asphyxiation and collapsed buildings.
Eyjafjallajokull (2010), Iceland
Image Source: Hit Iceland
This eruption gained a lot of traction around the world, as despite it not causing any fatalities, it did cost the airline industry nearly $2bn worth of losses as a result of the amount of flights that had to be cancelled. The smoke clouds were causing issues as far as here in the US and Europe hadn't seen this much disruption since WW2.
Mt. Merapi (2010), Indonesia
Image Source: Daily Mail
Towards the backend of 2010, Mt. Merapi began showing signs of an eruption, and it actually continually erupted between October and the end of November. People were told to evacuate, but some refused to leave and ultimately the death toll from this eruption ended at around 320.
Mt. Ontake (2014), Japan
Image Source: Reddit
In 2014, Mount Ontake erupted with very little warning, this meant that many of the people living around the area were left rushing to escape. Unfortunately, it's a popular tourist destination for hikers, especially around the period that the volcano erupted. 60 people were killed in the eruptions.
Mt. Sinabung (2014), Indonesia
Image Source: BBC
There were actually three separate volcanic eruptions in Indonesia during 2014, but this was the worst one. In fact, Mt. Sinabung erupted multiple times itself across the months. The worst part about the February eruption is that 16 people were killed. Unbelievably, they actually evacuated but were told it was safe to come back due to 'lack of recent activity'.
Volcan de Fuego (2018), Guatemala
Image Source: Reddit
The Volcan de Fuego is one of the most active volcanoes around the world, and is unfortunately close to a number of cities. Out of nowhere in 2018, it produced its strongest eruption in decades and buried numerous villages in the local area. All in all, at least 400 people lost their lives although the actual number could have hit 1000.
Krakatoa (2018), Indonesia
Image Source: Reddit
This wasn't anywhere near as destructive as the eruption during the 1800's but it still caused devastation in Indonesia. This time, the eruption actually caused a massive tsunami that killed more than 400 residents and injured more than 12,000 people. The volcano's landslide resulted in the volcano losing nearly 200m of height.
Taal (2020), Philippines
Image Source: NBC News
In early 2020, Taal (again) spewed ash in the direction of the Philippines capital, Manilla. Fortunately, the damages weren't nearly as severe as the 2011 eruption, but volcanic thunderstorms were recorded and there were even fears of a tsunami. Eventually, magma began erupting and killed 39 people, most of which refused to evacuate.
Mt. Semeru (2021), Indonesia
Image Source: The Hindu
Semeru has been semi-regularly erupting since the 1800's although rarely resulting in huge problems. Right at the end of 2021, Semeru had its largest eruption of the last 100 years as more than 50 people ended up losing their lives, 23 people were never found and tens of thousands of people were left homeless.
Fukutoku-Okanoba (2021), Japan
Image Source: Global Volcanism Program
This submarine volcano has been showing signs of eruption for over 20 years, and finally blew in August 2021. The seafloor erupted more than 56,000 ft in the air and it's the largest explosion in the country since WW2. It formed a new island in the ocean, Niijima, which has already half disappeared.
Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai (2022), Tonga
Image Source: BBC
Just last year, the country of Tonga was home to one of the biggest eruptions in history. This volcano is unique as its found beneath the surface of the South Pacific Ocean. Although signs were first seen at the end of 2021 it wasn't until midway through Jan 2022 it erupted. It caused 45 million metric tons of water to be forced into the atmosphere.