The grey cone
Above the bay.
Taro Taylor edit by Richard Bartz — CC BY 2.0 · Dr Peter James Chisholm — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Dr Peter James Chisholm — CC BY-SA 4.0 · U.S. Geological Survey from Reston, VA, USA — Public domain · Taro Taylor from Sydney, Australia — CC BY 2.0 · Taro Taylor from Sydney, Australia — CC BY 2.0
Tavurvur is an active volcano near the town of Rabaul on New Britain in Papua New Guinea. A grey cone of ash rises 223 m on the edge of a wide bay, sometimes trailing smoke, with ground of black ash and volcanic rock around it. Tavurvur is the most active vent of the Rabaul caldera, a large volcano whose floor the sea has flooded. In 1994 Tavurvur and nearby Vulcan erupted and destroyed most of Rabaul town, but people were prepared and only five died. Their joint eruption in 1937 led to the founding of the Rabaul Volcano Observatory. Tavurvur's last major eruption was on 29 August 2014. You see the volcano from the bay and beaches, its grey cone above blue water. You walk the ash plain at its foot with a guide, seeing steam, pits and lava fragments. The area has hot springs on the shore. The volcano is about 13 km in a straight line north of Kokopo. Visits are with a local guide, and villages may ask a small fee. Check the volcano observatory's warnings before going and keep away from the crater.
Above the bay.
Steam and lava.
On the shore.
Eastern rim of the Rabaul caldera, Gazelle Peninsula, East New Britain
With a guide and current warnings; keep away from the crater.
By car or boat from Kokopo.