DEtermining VOlcanic Risk in Auckland-DEVORA

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DEtermining VOlcanic Risk in Auckland-DEVORA

DEtermining VOlcanic Risk in Auckland (DEVORA) programme page. Maintained by programme researchers. This page is maintained by DEVORA researchers.

New Zealand's biggest city, Auckland, sits atop the Auckland Volcanic Field, and could also be impacted by ash fall from eruptions at Central North Island volcanoes. The DEtermining VOlcanic Risk in Auckland (DEVORA) project aims to quantitatively understand the risk posed by future eruptions, and provide expert advice so that authorities may prepare for and mitigate the risk. Our funding and rese

arch partners are the Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake, Auckland Council, Earth Sciences New Zealand (formerly GNS Science) and The University of Auckland/ Researchers from the University of Auckland, University of Canterbury, Victoria University of Wellington, Earth Sciences New Zealand, Joint Centre for Disaster Research, Geomarine Research, and many more organisations contribute expert knowledge to the project. This page was created to share new research, publications, news, and outreach events associated with the project, and to provide up-to-date information to the public regarding the Auckland Volcanic Field. Opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the project partners.

01/06/2026

Kia ora! I hope you have all enjoyed the series. Today will be our last one 😢

To wrap up the series, let's explore Maungarei / Mount Wellington!
Located in the eastern part of the AVF near the shores of the Tāmaki Estuary, Maungarei stands 100 m tall. At 10,000 years old, it is the second youngest volcano in the AVF (behind Rangitoto), making it the youngest onshore volcano. Fire-fountaining eruptions produced a large scoria cone with an almost perfectly circular base and a flattish summit, with three overlapping craters. A 16-meter-deep surge chamber, known as Te Rua-a-Pōtaka, funnelled swirling lava into western flows. These filled a deep valley before topography channelled them across Ellerslie toward Penrose.

Human history 🧍🏽🧍🏻
Maungarei means "the watchful mountain" or "the mountain of Reipae", a Tainui ancestress who travelled to Northland in the form of a bird. The eastern side of the cone is covered in terraced house sites and food storage pits that attest to the Māori fortification of the maunga. The quarry located on the lava flows to the northwest of Maungarei was once the largest aggregate quarry in Aotearoa New Zealand, throughout the late 20th century, before its closure in 2008. The vast pit formed by this quarry has since transformed into the residential suburb of Stonefields.

Fun facts 🌋
- Maungarei erupted right after Te Tauoma / Purchas Hill, a tiny volcano less than 500m north that is now mostly destroyed by quarrying. Because they were so close in time and space, geologists believe they form a pair that shared the same magma conduit to the surface.
- The slopes of Maungarei were the only known home of Tokea orthostichon, the first native earthworm formally named in the Australasian region (in 1861). Unfortunately, recent searches found no trace of it, and the species is now presumed extinct.

Acknowledgements
📖 'Volcanoes of Auckland' by Bruce W Hayward
📖 Blakemore, R.J., 2019. Redescription of extinct New Zealand earthworm: Tokea orthostichon (Schmarda, 1861) (Annelida, Oligochaeta, Megadrilacea, Megascolecidae). Bulletin of the Kanagawa Prefectural Museum (Natural Science) 48, 61-68, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.11205442

29/05/2026

Please join us in welcoming Sophie Bialostocki to the DEVORA team! 💥🌋

Sophie is currently completing her MSc in Earth Sciences and working with DEVORA to catalogue how our eight hypothetical eruption scenarios have been used in research and planning, and to figure out how to strengthen them for future use.

Sophie has always loved volcanoes. Her favourite holidays growing up were to Rotorua so she could hang out in the geothermal areas or hike around the central plateau. After working in the music industry for 6 years, she returned to NZ to complete her MSc while continuing to teach music.

21/05/2026

🚨 RESEARCH ALERT! 🚨
How much toxic gas has the Auckland Volcanic Field actually produced? 🌋

Research from DEVORA Research Fellow Elaine Smid and colleagues has been released, revealing the first-ever estimates of past volcanic gas emissions in Auckland. This research marks the first step towards filling a critical gap in our hazard knowledge.

By analysing magma crystals and volcanic glass, the team found that over the Auckland Volcanic Field's lifetime (~200,000 years), it has released roughly 26,000 kilotonnes of CO2 and 9,000 kilotonnes of SO2, as well as HCl and HF gases. To put this into perspective, just the youngest and largest eruption, which formed most of Ngā Pona e Toru o Peretū / Rangitoto, released enough gas to fill roughly 3.5 million hot air balloons.

Importantly, the work also provides estimates of daily gas emissions for various Auckland eruption scenarios. These estimates are key for modelling potential volcanic gas impacts during future eruptions in Auckland.

While the chance of an Auckland eruption remains low in our lifetimes, the threat is not zero. Volcanic gas can travel far beyond the eruption vent area and could affect human health, especially people with respiratory illnesses such as asthma. These gases can also corrode metals, potentially damaging critical infrastructure such as bridges or buildings. Scientists are currently building on this research to explore where and how much volcanic gas may travel around the Auckland region during an Auckland eruption. This will help us understand and plan for the potential impacts.

Read more about this research below!
📰 https://www.1news.co.nz/2026/05/13/how-much-very-corrosive-volcanic-gas-has-erupted-over-auckland/

19/05/2026

Is there volcanic gas on Rangitoto Island? 🌋🔎
Scientists from the University of Auckland - Waipapa Taumata Rau and Earth Sciences New Zealand have been sampling naturally occurring gas on Rangitoto to determine its origin.

Led by DEVORA Research Fellow Elaine Smid, the team is analysing the chemical signatures of these gas samples. Whether the results point to a volcanic origin or just normal background soil CO2 emissions, the data is a win for Auckland:

🌋 If it's volcanic, it doesn't mean an eruption is imminent, but it will vastly improve how we monitor Auckland's volcanoes.
🌳 If it's not volcanic, it gives us a crucial baseline to better detect future magma movements.

Ultimately, this research helps us build a clearer picture of what's happening under Auckland's surface, keeping our city safe.

👉 Click the shared post below to see the team in action during their recent fieldwork and learn more about the science!

11/05/2026

Kia ora! Happy . Let's kick this week off by exploring Taurere / Taylors Hill. 🌋

Taurere, meaning 'loved one flown away', erupted roughly 30,000 years ago in present-day Glendowie, in the middle of a valley that drained east toward the Tāmaki River. The first phase of eruptions was wet and explosive, throwing out pulverised rock and volcanic ash, creating a 900-metre-wide crater partly surrounded by a tuff ring. No tuff ring built up on the south side of the volcano as ash mantled the existing sandstone ridge, which is now the site of Sacred Heart College.

Within the crater, a group of smaller mounds and cones formed as scoria bubbled up from at least five different vents. Lava oozed from the base of the eastern and western scoria cone complex. To the east, a small flow rafted away some of the scoria, while a narrow lava flow escaped the explosion crater and flowed down a narrow valley beneath present-day St Andrew's Village towards Glendowie Bay. To the west, lava flowed over the tuff ring rim and then north under present-day Glendowie College before coming to a stop near Riddell Rd. The eruptions blocked the east-flowing valley, creating a swampy wetland that we now know as Crossfield Reserve.

The remaining parts of the scoria cone have numerous pre-European terraces and pits, part of an extensive Māori pa site. Taylors Hill was given its European name in the 1850s after the then landowner Richard James Taylor and his Glen Taylor Farm. Taylors Hill Reserve, encompassing the main scoria cone area, was donated to the city by the estate of William Innes Taylor (Richard James' brother) in 1924. Quarrying began on the Taylors Hill scoria cones in the early 20th century, but most of the damage occurred in the 1950s and 1960s, when the cones and mounds on the south and east sides were removed.

Acknowledgements:
''Volcanoes of Auckland'' by Bruce Hayward

07/05/2026

A glimpse into the past at Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill 🌿

As we celebrate Archaeology Week, this aerial view shows the terraces carved into the Maunga — a clear reminder of how advanced Māori pā sites were. These were carefully engineered communities, designed for living, storage, and defence.

Each terrace reflects deep knowledge of the land and a highly organised society. Archaeology helps us preserve these stories for future generations.

Please remember the crater is wāhi tapu (a sacred site) — help protect its cultural significance by respecting all guidance when visiting.

Take a closer look next time you visit — the land tells the story.

🎥 Watch more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZKdotyVMn8

04/05/2026

Another week has flown by, which means it's time for . Moving into the heart of the city, we will explore Pukekawa / Auckland Domain.

The Auckland Domain sprawls over one of our older volcanoes in Auckland. It is thought to have erupted roughly 100,000 years ago through the older Grafton Volcano tuff ring.

Castle and moat 🏰
Auckland Domain has a simple castle-and-moat layout with a small central scoria cone inside a large, shallow explosion crater with a surrounding tuff ring. The moat in the crater between the scoria cone and the tuff ring is largely filled with a solidified lava lake, some of which may have overtopped a low point in the tuff ring at Carlton Gore Road.

Swampy past 🌧️
After the eruptions ceased, the highly fractured lava became saturated with groundwater. A swamp developed on its surface, particularly in the lower area in front of the grandstand, where up to 7 m of peat and clay accumulated over many thousands of years.

Human history 🧍🏽
Auckland War Memorial Museum is appropriately situated on Pukekawa, meaning the 'hill of bitter memories', referring to the many local Māori killed in the 1820s musket wars. The scoria cone, or castle, in the centre of the crater is named Pukekaroro, 'hill of the black-backed gull'. During WWII, the Domain lawn in front of the museum was covered with American barracks at Camp Hale from 1942 to 1944. A further cluster of barracks was located in the southwest corner of the lower playing fields. Several of these are still present near the Carlton Gore Road entrance.

Freshwater supply 🚰
The Domains duck ponds are fed by freshwater springs flowing from groundwater beneath the fractured lava and scoria that fill the crater, which gradually eroded away the soft tuff ring on its northern side. In 1865, when Auckland's population was 12,000, the first piped water supply came from the Domain ponds to the 'downtown' area. However, the supply could not keep up with the demand of the growing population during dry summer periods, and Domain water was replaced by Western Springs water.

Acknowledgements
''Volcanoes of Auckland'' by Bruce Hayward
📸 Les Kermode (1990) & Bruce W. Hayward (2018)

27/04/2026

Kia ora whānau! This week, we turn our attention to the northern Auckland Volcanic Field (AVF) to Maungauika/North Head.

Maungauika is one of our older volcanoes, having erupted roughly 90,000 years ago, when sea level may have been a few tens of metres lower than today. It began life with a series of pulsating wet explosive eruptions interspersed with drier eruptions of scoria. This ash and scoria built up a small tuff cone around the central explosion crater, which was completely filled by the scoria cone. As the final scoria and lava bombs were erupted, a small stream of lava flowed westwards and now lies hidden beneath the house on Takarunga Road. The outward sloping tuff beds form the shore platform around the southern, eastern and most of the northern sides of the headland.

Māori history
North Head was traditionally known as Maunga a Uika, 'the mountain of Uika', named after an ancestor who lived roughly 800 years ago. He was a young relative of the famous Māori voyager Toi-te-hua-tahi, an important early ancestor of Māori people. Archaeologists uncovered one of the oldest Māori occupation sites in Auckland. This former coastal campsite had cooking ovens, charcoal, moa bones, and a shell midden, all buried by an earthflow and later reclamation. Today, this site lies beneath a new tarseal of the car park.

Fort Cautley
Maungauika's strategic location at the entrance to the Waitematā Harbour made it an important coastal defence site. Development of the defensive fort began far before WWII, with construction beginning as early as the 1880s due to fears of a Russian attack. A second phase of development occurred leading up to and during WWII, with additional tunnels and gun batteries built on the mountain.

Acknowledgements:
📖 'Volcanoes of Auckland' by Bruce Hayward

24/04/2026

We know we live in a volcanic field, but what is the likelihood of a future volcanic eruption in Auckland?

Graham Leonard and his colleagues at Earth Science New Zealand (ESNZ) have been working on the answer to this question for the last 10 years and have estimated that there is roughly a 10% chance of an eruption in the next 50 years. Let's break it down.

Increased volcanism 📈🌋
The oldest volcanoes erupted about 190,000 years ago (Pupuke Moana & Onepoto Basin), but over half of Auckland's eruptions occurred in the last 60,000 years, meaning that the eruption rate has accelerated, with as many as several eruptions in 1000 years.

What are the statistics? 📊
ESNZ scientists say the chance of a future eruption is roughly 10% over the next 50 years, based on a median (middle) and modal (most common) gap of about 500 years between eruptions over the last 60,000 years. The mean is not included in these statistics as the few (less common) larger gaps skew the mean value inappropriately.

What does this all mean? 🤔
An eruption is unlikely in our lifetimes, but given the impact a future eruption could have on life safety, human health, infrastructure, and the economy, it is definitely worth being aware of and for the city and authorities to be preparing for, which we are!

20/04/2026

Kia ora! For today's , we are exploring one of our most popular volcanoes, Maungawhau (Mt Eden).

Located in the heart of the city, Maungawhau rises 196 m above sea level, providing spectacular views of Auckland City and the surrounding Maunga. Maungawhai can be described like a 'fried egg' - with a scoria cone (yolk) surrounded by a field of lava flows (egg white). The two scoria cones are believed to have erupted through the lava flows of the earlier Te Kōpuke/Mt St John (owner of the longest lava flow in the AVF), roughly 28,000 years ago.

Te Kapua kai a Mataaho - the perfect crater 🥣
The crater of the higher southern cone is shaped like an inverted circular cone, about 180 m in diameter and 50 m deep. Such a deep and perfectly shaped crater is rare in the AVF. In pre-European times, this crater was known as Te Kapua Kai a Mataaho, 'the food bowl of Mataaho' - the deity of volcanic activity.

Rising vents 🌋⬆️
During the early phases of the eruption, lava was hot and fluid, reaching long distances as far as New Market and Balmoral. However, as the eruption progressed, lava cooled and thickened, piling up at the base of the cone to form a 'pedestal' around the Maunga. Consequently, as solidified lava blocked the lower vents at the base, 'younger' lava was forced to squeeze out of progressively higher exit points up the cone.

Human history 🧍🏽🧍🏻
The Māori name, Maungawhau, means 'hill of the whau tree'. Before Europeans arrived, this scoria cone was extensively modified to create a pā. On the outer slopes, numerous flat terraces were used partly for defence but mainly for living and working space. The English name, Mt Eden, was given by Governor William Hobson (who also named Ōhinerau/Mt Hobson). Several large quarries worked the thicker flows, operating for many years near Mt Eden Prison, with the road to the top of the mountain constructed by prison labour between 1869 and 1880.

Acknowledgements
📖 'Volcanoes of Auckland' by Bruce Hayward
📸 Bruce Hayward (2009) & Auckland Museum

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