[link to hisz.rsoe.hu]


The alert level for Cook Inlet's Redoubt volcano was raised to yellow after a series of small, repetitive earthquakes early today near the summit, the Alaska Volcano Observatory said. The earthquakes may be a harbinger of "renewed eruptive activity" at Redoubt, but it's unclear if the volcano will erupt or if its lava dome is at risk of collapse, the observatory said. Similar small earthquakes were recorded near the volcano in December, but they subsided and there was no eruption, said Rick Wessels, a geophysicist at the observatory.


The observatory said Monday's series of earthquakes near Redoubt's summit began at about 1:44 a.m. and continued into the afternoon. Redoubt, on the west side of Cook Inlet, 106 miles southwest of Anchorage, has erupted several times since the 1960s. Its last major eruption was spring 2009. That eruption caused a mudflow that partially flooded the Drift River Oil Terminal near the base of the 10,197-foot volcano.


The volcanic eruptions also caused flight disruptions then -- hundreds of flights diverted from Anchorage over concerns that an ash cloud could damage airplane engines. Monday's yellow alert means that Redoubt is being closely monitored for a possible increase in activity. The volcano observatory is a joint program of the U.S. Geological Survey, the University of Alaska Fairbanks and Alaska state agencies.