Karmactive Staff
The ground beneath Tenerife’s Mount Teide is showing upward movement. Scientists have measured a one-centimeter rise across four monitoring stations over the past year, matching this movement with unusual patterns in the volcano’s behavior since 2016.
“We know that we could have an eruption in Tenerife, but the precursor events can occur over two years or over 50,” notes Itahiza Domínguez from the National Geographic Institute (IGN). The current movement is gradual, unlike the rapid 30-centimeter rise seen before La Palma’s 2021 eruption.
Deep beneath the surface, the volcano’s plumbing system shows signs of pressure changes. Scientists have picked up five distinct seismic swarms – clusters of small earthquakes – west of Las Cañadas since 2016. Last November, the earth trembled with 500 tiny quakes near Pico Viejo in just three hours.
To better understand these changes, scientists are installing new tools. “An eruption in Tenerife could occur in two years or in 50. The key is to stay vigilant and ensure the population are prepared,” Domínguez emphasizes. These new instruments, called inclinometers, will be placed 20 meters underground to measure even the slightest ground tilt.
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For Tenerife’s residents and visitors, these changes don’t signal immediate danger. The IGN’s measurements are 99% certain to show real changes in the volcanic system, though they’re still sorting out interference from weather and other factors. Manuel Miranda, the Canary Islands Councillor for Territorial Policy, urges calm while keeping informed through official channels.
Local authorities aren’t just watching – they’re planning ahead. The Tenerife Cabildo is considering public drills for volcanic events. Meanwhile, two scientific powerhouses – the IGN and the Canary Islands Volcanology Institute (INVOLCAN) – are joining forces to upgrade their monitoring equipment and create better risk maps.
