Taal Volcano Continues Seismic Unrest, Alert Level 1 Maintained

LUCENA CITY — Taal Volcano in Batangas continued to exhibit signs of unrest over the past 24 hours, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) reported on Sunday, July 5. In its morning bulletin, Phivolcs said the volcano recorded 75 episodes of volcanic tremor, each lasting one to three minutes. However, no volcanic earthquakes were detected during the monitoring period. The latest activity came a day after Taal logged 61 volcanic earthquakes and 60 volcanic tremors, indicating sustained seismic unrest. READ: Taal Volcano logs 61 quakes, 60 tremors in 24 hours The increase followed several days of relatively low activity, with only four volcanic earthquakes recorded on Friday and two on Thursday. On July 1, Phivolcs monitored 19 volcanic earthquakes and five volcanic tremors. According to Phivolcs, volcanic earthquakes are generated by processes within an active volcano and are distinguished by their unique seismic characteristics, including waveform patterns, amplitudes, and wave periods. Volcanic tremors, meanwhile, are continuous low-frequency seismic signals that may exhibit regular or irregular oscillations and are commonly associated with the movement of magma or volcanic gases beneath the volcano. The agency also reported a moderate sulfur dioxide (SO₂) emission rate of 829 metric tons per day during the monitoring period. No signs of upwelling hot volcanic fluids were observed in the main crater on Taal Volcano Island, at the center of Taal Lake. Likewise, no volcanic smog, or “vog,” was detected during the observation period. Taal Volcano remains under Alert Level 1, indicating low-level volcanic unrest. However, Phivolcs emphasized that Alert Level 1 does not mean the volcano has returned to normal conditions. It warned that Taal remains in an abnormal state and that the possibility of sudden phreatic eruptions or other volcanic activity persists. /mcm