Alayta
Afar Rift Volcanic Province, Ethiopia. This page separates the permanent volcano catalogue, historical eruption records, and selective weekly activity reports.
- Coordinates
- 12.89° N, 40.57° E
- Elevation
- 1,496 m
- Last recorded eruption
- 1915 CE
- Historical eruption records
- 2
- Primary type
- Shield
- Evidence
- Eruption Observed
- GVP database
- 5.4.0
- Catalogue revision
- Revision 2
Volcano profile
- Volcanic landform
- Shield
- Tectonic setting
- Rift zone / Intermediate crust (15-25 km)
- Geologic epoch
- Holocene
- Major rock type
- Basalt / Picro-Basalt
- Region
- Eastern Africa Volcanic Regions
- Subregion
- Afar Rift Volcanic Province
Geological summary
The massive Alayta shield volcano covers an area of 2700 km2 in the western Danakil depression SW of Lake Afrera. A series of very recent craters is aligned along the NNW-trending axis of the basaltic-to-trachytic shield. The lava field, covered by very fresh flows, was erupted from N-S fissures along the east side of the shield volcano and laps up against the western flank of Afderà volcano. Two historical eruptions that were formerly attributed to Afderà actually originated from Alayta. One of those eruptions, in 1907, produced a large lava flow from a SE-flank vent. Fumarolic activity occurs at two locations in the southern part of the complex.
Separate activity dataset
Weekly volcanic activity reports
Smithsonian/USGS weekly reports are selective and preliminary. They are not a comprehensive list of all eruptions or volcanic activity.
No weekly report appears on this page. Absence from the weekly report does not establish an absence of volcanic activity.
Historical catalogue records
Eruption history
Dates can be approximate, incomplete, or BCE. These are historical catalogue observations, not a statement about present activity.
| Start | End | Activity | Confirmation | VEI | Evidence | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1915-07-02 CE (day uncertainty +/- 182) | Not supplied | Confirmed Eruption | Confirmed | 2 | Observations: Reported | GVP 13941Database 5.4.0 |
| 1907-06-16 CE (day uncertainty +/- 15) | 1907-08-04 CE (day qualifier >) | Confirmed EruptionSE flank | Confirmed | 2 | Observations: Reported | GVP 13940Database 5.4.0 |
Source and attribution
Source: Data: Smithsonian Institution Global Volcanism Program, Volcanoes of the World.
View the original Smithsonian GVP recordGlobal Volcanism Program, 2026. Volcanoes of the World 5.4.0.
The GVP database is scientific documentation that changes as evidence is reviewed. Historical dates may be approximate or uncertain. This platform is not an official emergency-warning service.
Read the GVP terms of useData freshness
- Source updated
- Not supplied
- Retrieved
- 11 Oct 2026, 13:07 UTC
- GVP database version
- 5.4.0
- Catalogue revision
- 2
Source-update and retrieval times describe this catalogue record. Each weekly report carries its own publication date and preliminary status.