It may be that 2026 will be most famous for its Earth-caused disasters.
So far, there have been massive earthquakes in Indonesia, Colombia, and Venezuela that resulted in significant loss of life and billions of dollars in damage.
Last week, a collapse of bedrock in the Himalayas resulted in a landslide and flash flood in Nepal. As of the most current reports, over 1300 people are dead, and 5,000 remain missing.
Now I can add some fascinating volcano news into this mix. Six volcanoes in Indonesia erupted simultaneously on Aug. 31.
Indonesia’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) said the eruptions of six volcanoes this Monday were unrelated events, not the result of a shared geological process. The volcanoes (Mount Ibu, Semeru, Lewotobi Laki-laki, Ili Lewotolok, Anak Krakatau, and Sinabung) erupted during roughly the same period.
Each of these volcanoes has its own magma system. PVMBG said Indonesia’s location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, with 127 active volcanoes, makes simultaneous eruptions possible without implying that one volcano triggered another.
Sinabung produced an ash plume about 3,500 meters above its summit, with exclusion zones and lahar warnings issued for nearby communities.
Anak Krakatau erupted several times during this period. Legal Insurrection readers may recall my report in 2020 that sent an ash cloud 9 miles into the air. A 2018 eruption generated a tsunami that killed over 400 on the coasts of southeastern Sumatra and western Java.
Indonesian volcano spews ash and smoke during eruption https://t.co/J9a0odOkqi via @nbcnews
— Beatrice Lacy (@BeatriceLacy) August 31, 2026
Anak Krakatau translates to “the child of Krakatoa,” as it was formed after the Krakatoa erupted in 1883 with a massive explosion 10,000 times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
Therefore, the four eruptions reported from Anak Krakatau prompted alerts and precautions in the region.
The four evening eruptions added to a series of eruptions recorded throughout Monday as Anak Krakatau, located in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Sumatra and Java, erupted several times from morning through the afternoon, with the highest ash column reaching around 400 meters (1,312 feet) above the summit.
Authorities urged residents, tourists and visitors not to approach Mount Anak Krakatau and to avoid conducting any activities within a 3-kilometer (1.86-mile) radius of the active crater.
Anak Krakatau, or “Child of Krakatau,” emerged from the sea in the late 1920s within the caldera left by the catastrophic 1883 eruption of the original Krakatau volcano.
In 1883, in one of the most powerful volcanic events in recorded history, the eruption of Krakatau caused massive tsunamis and devastated coastal communities around the Sunda Strait, killing more than 36,000 people.
HAPPENING NOW: Large eruption at the Anak Krakatau volcano in Indonesia pic.twitter.com/gnz8fIsTQP
— BNO News Live (@BNODesk) September 4, 2026
Finally, to round out this week’s volcano news, geologists recently identified a 454.4 million-year-old volcano on England’s east coast.
Scientists have identified an ancient volcano on England’s east coast that is so eroded, it took researchers three decades to piece together its enormous size and explosive past. What remains of the caldera system is located beneath the English counties of Norfolk and Lincolnshire.
However, while the volcano undoubtedly produced at least one huge-scale eruption, some experts don’t think there is enough evidence for the structure to be called a supervolcano.
“It obviously must have been a very large eruption, but it would be very difficult to calculate the volume of the eruption given the poor preservation of the deposits,” said Michael Poland, a research geophysicist with the Cascades Volcano Observatory and the scientist-in-charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. “This is part of the reason I really hate the term ‘supervolcano,’” Poland, who was not involved in the discovery, told Live Science in an email.
Geologists recently identified a 454.4 million-year-old volcano on England’s east coast, but whether the structure can be considered a “supervolcano” remains an open question. https://t.co/QgTxHvcouz
— Live Science (@LiveScience) September 3, 2026
The Earth is offering a timely reminder that it remains very much in charge, regardless of how many climate summits, emergency declarations, and government programs humanity devises.
Indonesia’s six near-simultaneous eruptions are a vivid illustration of life on the geologically active Pacific Ring of Fire. Their eruptions have the potential to create very rapid local climate change, no matter what utopian program is enacted by money-hungry NGOs.
Meanwhile, the discovery of England’s long-buried ancient volcano underscores that our planet has been reshaping itself through robust geologic upheavals for hundreds of millions of years, and it is not about to stop now… no matter how many accords are signed.
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