Current Reports of volcanic unrest in the Canary Islands

Introduction

The Canary Islands have had a lot of volcanic activity over millions of years, and some of the islands are still active today; therefore, there will likely be another eruption at some point, but it is near-impossible to predict exactly when, where, or how big it will be. Scientists closely watch the volcanoes to understand their normal “background” activity so that they can identify when unusual volcanic behaviour might indicate that an eruption could be on the way. On this page we describe who monitors volcanic activity and participates in emergency response with a timeline of the main episode of unrest in the last 20 years.

It is important to refer to official sites for information in an emergency. The main sites to find information around volcanic unrest are:

Twitter accounts of the Islands’ Cabildos:

Cabildo de Lanzarote

Cabildo de El Hierro

Cabildo de La Palma

Cabildo de Tenerife

Other groups also cover volcanic unrest:

Current status of each island

VTL - Current volcanic traffic level by Ajay Geotenerife

For an explanation of Traffic Light System, click here

The colours in this interactive map do NOT correspond to the Volcanic traffic level above. The most recent earthquake is within the flashing red circle. Yellow circles are earthquakes with a magnitude less than 2, orange between 2-3, red between 3-4, and dark red is a magnitude of more than 4. IGN Spain uses the mbLg, which measures the body wave magnitude, uses a logarithmic scale, and this scale is suited for measuring earthquakes close to their epicentre.

Most recent report

A summarised version of the most recent report available through the IGN seismic catalogue, relevant social media, and news articles. You can find a comprehensive timeline at the bottom of this page.

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  • Las Canadas del Teide, IGN report, February 17th 2026

    🇬🇧 🇺🇸 Since 18:00 February 16th 2026, IGN has detected a “hybrid seismic swarm” where many small quakes, approximately 755, changed in magnitude and waveform overnight. Interspersed with this swarm, low-frequency (LP) events of greater energy have also been recorded, including one at 04:18 AM with 1.1 mbLg magnitude. Seismic events are still located in the Western area of Las Cañadas del Teide, at depths of 7–8 km.

    🇪🇸 🇮🇨 Desde las 18:00 horas del 16 de febrero de 2026, el IGN ha detectado un «enjambre sísmico híbrido» en el que muchos pequeños terremotos, aproximadamente 755, cambiaron de magnitud y forma de onda durante la noche. Intercalados con este enjambre, también se han registrado eventos de baja frecuencia (LP) de mayor energía, incluido uno a las 04:18 a. m. con una magnitud de 1,1 mbLg. Los eventos sísmicos siguen localizándose en la zona occidental de Las Cañadas del Teide, a profundidades de 7-8 km.

Timeline of volcanic unrest

Drag the timeline along to see previous updates

February 17 2026 12:00 PM

Las Canadas del Teide, IGN report, February 17th 2026

🇬🇧 🇺🇸 Since 18:00 February 16th 2026, IGN has detected a “hybrid seismic swarm” where many small quakes, approximately 755, changed in magnitude and waveform overnight. Interspersed with this swarm, low-frequency (LP) events of greater energy have also been recorded, including one at 04:18 AM with 1.1 mbLg magnitude. Seismic events are still located in the Western area of Las Cañadas del Teide, at depths of 7–8 km.

🇪🇸 🇮🇨 Desde las 18:00 horas del 16 de febrero de 2026, el IGN ha detectado un «enjambre sísmico híbrido» en el que muchos pequeños terremotos, aproximadamente 755, cambiaron de magnitud y forma de onda durante la noche. Intercalados con este enjambre, también se han registrado eventos de baja frecuencia (LP) de mayor energía, incluido uno a las 04:18 a. m. con una magnitud de 1,1 mbLg. Los eventos sísmicos siguen localizándose en la zona occidental de Las Cañadas del Teide, a profundidades de 7-8 km.

February 12 2026 2:00 PM

Las Canadas del Teide, IGN report, February 12th 2026

🇬🇧 🇺🇸 IGN detected a new seismic swarm event on the afternoon of 12th February, following days of seismic activity; 876 individual quakes were recorded at approximately 8 km depth in the Western sector of Las Cañadas del Teide. This is the same region where similar seismic events have been recorded since 2016. This new activity is of particularly low magnitude, with the maximum seismic event recorded at 0.7 mBlg (magnitude), which is usually not felt by the population. (IGN, 2026).

🇪🇸 🇮🇨 El IGN detectó un nuevo evento sísmico en la tarde del 12 de febrero, tras varios días de actividad sísmica; se registraron 876 temblores individuales a aproximadamente 8 km de profundidad en el sector occidental de Las Cañadas del Teide. Se trata de la misma región en la que se han registrado eventos sísmicos similares desde 2016. Esta nueva actividad es de magnitud particularmente baja, con el evento sísmico máximo registrado en 0,7 mBlg (magnitud), lo que normalmente no es percibido por la población (IGN, 2026).

February 11 2026 1:44 PM

Rosa Davila statement 11th February 2026

🇬🇧 🇺🇸 The president of the Cabildo de Tenerife, Rosa Dávila, has called for calm and noted the volcanic monitoring capabilities of the island of Tenerife: “Probably one of the most closely monitored volcanic systems in the world is Teide and the island of Tenerife,’

Today (11th of February), around 4 a.m. on Wednesday, the low-frequency signal was detected again on Mount Teide, although with less amplitude and duration than yesterday. 

Next thursday, 19 February, the scientific committee of the Special Plan for Civil Protection and Emergency Response to Volcanic Risk in the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands (Pevolca) will meet again. (El dia, 2026)

🇪🇸 🇮🇨 La presidenta del Cabildo de Tenerife, Rosa Dávila, ha pedido calma y ha destacado la capacidad de vigilancia volcánica de la isla de Tenerife: “Probablemente uno de los sistemas volcánicos más vigilados del mundo es el Teide y la isla de Tenerife”.

Hoy (11 de febrero), alrededor de las 4 de la madrugada del miércoles, se ha vuelto a detectar la señal de baja frecuencia en el Teide, aunque con menos amplitud y duración que ayer.

El próximo jueves 19 de febrero se reunirá de nuevo el comité científico del Plan Especial de Protección Civil y de Emergencia ante Riesgos Volcánicos de la Comunidad Autónoma de Canarias (Pevolca). (El dia, 2026)

February 10 2026 2:00 PM

Las Cañadas del Teide, Pevolca report, 10th February 2026

🇬🇧 🇺🇸 The Pevolca report explains that, since February 7, 2026, there have been more than 100 series of low-frequency seismic events. However, their nature, depth, and location represent typical activity for Teide.

PEVOLCA also reports that today (February 10, 2026), a continuous low-frequency signal has been detected in Tenerife, reaching its maximum intensity between 8:45 and 10:15 a.m., and that a signal with these characteristics has never been recorded before. PEVOLCA assures that these events do not imply an increased probability of a volcanic eruption in Tenerife in the short or medium term. (Government of the Canary Islands, 2026)

Click on the image to read the official report
Click on the image to read the official report

🇪🇸 🇮🇨 El informe del Pevolca explica que, desde el 7 de febrero de 2026, se han producido más de 100 series de eventos sísmicos de baja frecuencia. Sin embargo, su naturaleza, profundidad y ubicación representan una actividad típica del Teide.

PEVOLCA también informa de que hoy (10 de febrero de 2026) se ha detectado en Tenerife una señal continua de baja frecuencia, que ha alcanzado su máxima intensidad entre las 8:45 y las 10:15 de la mañana, y que nunca antes se había registrado una señal con estas características. El PEVOLCA asegura que estos eventos no implican un aumento de la probabilidad de una erupción volcánica en Tenerife a corto o medio plazo. (Gobierno de Canarias, 2026)

Haga clic en la imagen para leer el informe oficial.
Haga clic en la imagen para leer el informe oficial.
February 7 2026 2:00 PM

Las Canadas del Teide, IGN report, February 7th 2026

🇬🇧 🇺🇸 Since Saturday, 7 February, the National Geographic Institute (IGN) has recorded several series of seismic events in the Las Cañadas del Teide area. Many of the quakes are located in the western sector, 10-12 km deep; an area where similar episodes have been observed in recent years. This type of seismic signal is usually associated with fluid movement at depth, a common process in active volcanic systems such as Tenerife.

The advisory committee of the Special Plan for Civil Protection and Emergency Response for Volcanic Risk in the Canary Islands Autonomous Community (PEVOLCA) met on Tuesday, 10th February; however, with the information available at this time, the IGN sees no evidence of a significant change in the state of the volcanic system (IGN, 2026).

🇪🇸 🇮🇨 Desde el sábado 7 de febrero, el Instituto Geográfico Nacional (IGN) ha registrado varias series de eventos sísmicos en la zona de Las Cañadas del Teide. Muchos de los terremotos se localizan en el sector occidental, a una profundidad de entre 10 y 12 km, una zona en la que se han observado episodios similares en los últimos años. Este tipo de señal sísmica suele estar asociada al movimiento de fluidos en profundidad, un proceso habitual en sistemas volcánicos activos como el de Tenerife.

El comité consultivo del Plan Especial de Protección Civil y de Emergencia por Riesgo Volcánico de la Comunidad Autónoma de Canarias (PEVOLCA) se reunió el martes 10 de febrero; sin embargo, Con la información disponible en este momento, el IGN no ve indicios de un cambio significativo en el estado del sistema volcánico. (IGN, 2026).