The Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency has reported a major series of eruptions on Mount Ruang, an island volcano at the southern tip of the Sangihe Islands, which has prompted the evacuation of both Ruang Island and the nearby Tagulandang Island, more than 12 800 people in total. The volcano erupted three times on Tuesday 30 April 2024, producing ash columns which rose to more than 5 km above sealevel, and drifted west as far as Borneo. Seven airports in Indonesia have been forced to close temporarily due to the dangers of ash from the volcano.
The Sangihe Island Arc is a chain of volcanic islands running between the northern tip of Sulawesi and the southern tip of Mindanao. The chain marks the boundary between the Molucca Plate to the east and the Sangihe Plate to the west, with the Molucca Plate being subducted beneath the Sangihe Plate. As the Molucca Plate sinks into the Earth it is heated by the friction and the heat of the planet's interior, causing it to partially melt. Some of the melted material then rises through the overlying Sangihe Plate as magma, fuelling the volcanoes of the Sangihe Arc.
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