Taupō Volcano, Dormant volcano in North Island, New Zealand
Taupō Volcano is a dormant volcano beneath Lake Taupō on New Zealand's North Island, with a wide caldera formed by past eruptions. The calm water over the crater conceals fumaroles and hot springs on the lakebed that signal ongoing geothermal activity.
The structure formed roughly 300,000 years ago and experienced its last major eruption around the year 232, which was visible across much of the Pacific region. Smaller events later shaped the present lake until eruptions subsided around the 13th century.
The lake carries the name Taupō-nui-a-Tia, honoring the navigator Tia who sailed from the ancestral Polynesian homeland. Local communities live along its shores and maintain a careful respect for its waters and surrounding land.
Visitors can explore the area through public paths and park areas along the lakeshore that remain accessible throughout the year. GeoNet provides current information about seismic and geothermal conditions in the region.
The 3rd-century eruption sent up an ash cloud that Roman and Chinese chroniclers noted in their records. Pumice stones from that eruption drifted thousands of kilometers across the Pacific and reached shores as distant as South America.
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