SEATTLE — A powerful underwater volcano deep beneath the Pacific Ocean is showing signs of stirring once again — and researchers believe it could erupt before the end of 2025.
Axial Seamount, located about 300 miles off the Oregon coast and sitting roughly 4,900 feet below the ocean’s surface, is the most volcanically active seamount in the Pacific Northwest. Scientists at the University of Washington are closely monitoring the site as new seismic and geological data suggest that magma pressure is steadily building.
The last eruption occurred in 2015, but continuous real-time monitoring via the Ocean Observatories Initiative’s Regional Cabled Array has allowed researchers to detect early warning signs. This advanced network includes 150 instruments spread across the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate, delivering detailed insight into the volcanic activity happening miles beneath the sea.
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“This volcano is shaped by the very forces that created most of our planet’s surface,” said Maya Tolstoy, a marine geophysicist and dean of the UW College of the Environment. “Axial Seamount sits on a mid-ocean ridge, where volcanic eruptions are not only common but also central to Earth’s development.”
Axial is known for its large caldera — a sunken depression formed when the volcano’s magma chamber collapses. William Wilcock, a professor in UW’s School of Oceanography, described the site as a “true hotspot” for scientific discovery.
Though the volcano’s remote underwater location means it poses no threat to coastal communities, the eruptions offer valuable insights into both geological processes and deep-sea ecosystems.
Deborah Kelley, director of the Regional Cabled Array, emphasized the biological importance of the area. “The hydrothermal vent fields around the volcano are teeming with unique life,” she said. “Axial Seamount isn’t just a geological feature — it’s an underwater oasis.”
When eruptions occur, they are typically preceded by a spike in seismic activity and are followed by lava flows and the release of microbial-rich warm fluids — phenomena researchers call “snowblowers.”
Scientists are particularly interested in understanding how external forces like tides and gravitational pull may influence volcanic behavior. The Axial Seamount serves as a natural laboratory for testing these ideas, making it one of the most closely observed underwater volcanoes in the world.
