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Graham Leonard Photo: Jeff McEwan, Capture Studios
About 1800 years ago a powerful super-eruption of the Taupō volcano resulted in a plume of ash that coated lakeside areas in tens of metres of pumice and ash and a lava flow that spread up to 90 kilometres.
Last year a volcanic alert for Taupō was issued for the first time. The supervolcano has entered a period of unrest with ground deformation and swarms of earthquakes including a M5.7 earthquake in November. A large eruption is not likely, but the small possibility of a minor one remains.
GNS volcanologist Graham Leonard joins us to share the history of eruptions and rumbles under the lake and what the unrest means for people living near Taupō.
Photo: Dougal_Townsend_GNS_Science