TheSmithsonian Institution'sGlobal Volcanism Program (GVP) documents Earth'svolcanoes and their eruptive history during theQuaternary Period of Earth's geologic history, with particular emphasis on volcanic activity during theHolocene Epoch (the last 11,700 years). The mission of the GVP is to document, understand, and disseminate information about global volcanic activity.
The GVP gathers information and reports on current eruptions from around the world, and maintains a database repository on active volcanoes, their eruptions and their eruption histories. In this way, a global context for the planet's activevolcanism is presented. Smithsonian reporting on current volcanic activity dates back to 1968, with theCenter for Short-Lived Phenomena (CSLP). The GVP is housed in the Department of Mineral Sciences, part of theNational Museum of Natural History, on theNational Mall inWashington, D.C.
During the early stages of an eruption, the GVP acts as a clearing house of reports, data, and imagery which are accumulated from a global network of contributors. The early flow of information is managed such that the right people are contacted as well as helping to sort out vague and contradictory aspects that typically arise during the early days of an eruption.
The Weekly Volcanic Activity Report[1] is a cooperative project between the Smithsonian's Global Volcanism Program and theUnited States Geological Survey'sVolcano Hazards Program. Notices of volcanic activity posted on the report website are preliminary and subject to change as events are studied in more detail. Detailed reports on various volcanoes are published monthly in theBulletin of the Global Volcanism Network[2]
The GVP also documents the last 10,000 years of Earth's volcanism. The GVP database includes all known volcanoes that have erupted within the past 10,000 years, and includes listings of eruption dates, and eruptive phenomena; and lists of named volcanoes and volcanic features, with synonyms where they exist. In recent years, the database has been extended to include links to digital imagery, and physical samples that are archived in theSmithsonian Institution Collections. The historic activity can guide perspectives on possible future events and on volcanoes showing activity. GVP's volcano and eruption databases constitute a foundation for all statistical statements concerning locations, frequencies, and magnitudes of Earth's volcanic eruptions during the last 10,000 years.
Three print editions ofVolcanoes of the World were published based on the GVP data in 1981,[3] 1994[4] and 2010.[5] The third and fourth editions were regularly updated at the Program's website. As of August 2024[update], the fifth edition is available at the GVP website.
