Photo courtesy of Philippine News Agency (PNA).
Taal Volcano in Batangas showed a spike in seismic activity following a brief phreatic eruption early Saturday, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).
State volcanologists reported that the volcano generated 15 volcanic earthquakes and 14 volcanic tremors in the past 24 hours, the highest daily count recorded so far this month.
Phivolcs said monitoring data from May 1 to 16 showed a total of 145 volcanic quakes and 19 tremor episodes, signaling continued underground movement beneath the volcano.
The agency explained that volcanic earthquakes are usually linked to magma-related activity below or near the surface, while tremors refer to continuous seismic signals that can last for minutes.
At around 12:16 a.m. on Saturday, Taal released a short phreatic eruption that lasted roughly three minutes, sending a steam-driven plume about 300 meters into the air.
Phivolcs said such eruptions occur when water beneath or near the surface is rapidly heated by magma or hot rocks, triggering a sudden steam explosion.
The agency noted that earlier in April, the volcano recorded several minor eruptive events, including both phreatic and phreatomagmatic activity, pointing to intermittent unrest in recent weeks.
Despite the heightened activity, Phivolcs said no magma upwelling was observed in the main crater lake and no volcanic smog was detected, with Taal remaining under Alert Level 1, indicating low-level but persistent volcanic unrest.