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Fentale Volcano | John Seach
(Fantale)
Ethiopia
8.97 N, 39.93 E
summit elevation 2007 m
stratovolcano
Fentale volcano is located near the village of Matahara, 5 km north of Besek 'a hayk' Lake. It rises approximately 600m from the floor of the Rift Valley and the lavas of the volcano cover an oval area of approximately 100 sq km. An elliptical caldera, approximately 6 km in diameter, dominates the upper portion of the volcano. Fumaroles are present on caldera walls.
Fentale is a tourist destination in Awash National Park about 250 km from Addis Ababa. Fentale area is noted for the ignimbrite blisters which have been used for shelter by people and animals.
14 February 2025 M6.0 Earthquake
A magnitude 6.0 earthquake hit under Fentale volcano on 14 February 2025. It is the strongest earthquake to strike Ethiopia since 1989.
Regional Impact:
It is the largest recorded tremor in the Oromia region since 1944.
2024-2025 Earthquakes
On 23-24 Dec 2024, earthquakes with magnitudes 4.5, 4.5, 4.6, and 4.9 occurred at Fentale Volcano. The earthquakes continued to increase into a swarm which has persisted into 2025. So far no eruption occurred, but the seismic events strongly indicate hysrothermal and or magmatic movement under the volcano. Increased seismicity was also recorded in Sept-Oct 2024. Satellite images and seismographs revealed a 10 km magma blade was injected into the rift, widening it by 2m in just over a week!
2015 seismic swarm
A 2015 seismic swarm in Ethiopia's Main Ethiopian Rift revealed evidence of active rhyolitic dike intrusion near Fentale volcano. Using satellite radar interferometry, researchers detected a 6 km long dike at depths of 5.4-8 km, with surface deformation decaying over 83 days. This slow intrusion suggests high-viscosity rhyolitic magma, differing from faster, basaltic intrusions in the region. The highlights how magmatic and tectonic processes interact during continental rifting, offering insights into the evolving stress and strain patterns in this geologically dynamic area.
1810 Eruption
Local traditions recall a huge basalt flow originating from the southwestern flank of Mt. Fentale in 1810, however this may have been nearby Sodore volcano.
Further reading
Whaler et al. 2024, The 2015 earthquake swarm in the Fentale volcanic complex (FVC): A geohazard risk for Ethiopia's commercial route to the Djibouti port. Journal of african earth sciences, Vol. 213, 105236, 01.05.2024.
Temtime, Tesfaye, et al. "Evidence for Active Rhyolitic dike Intrusion in the Northern Main Ethiopian Rift from the 2015 Fentale Seismic Swarm." Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems 21.6 (2020): e2019GC008550.
Kidane, Tesfaye, et al. "Structural and geochronological implications of the Fentale Volcanics at a nascent passive margin of the Main Ethiopian Rift: Constraints from magnetostratigraphy study at the Kereyou Lodge, Ethiopia." Tectonophysics 495.3-4 (2010): 159-170.
Fentale Volcano Eruptions
A possible eruption in 1810 may have been nearby Sodore volcano.
1250 ± 20 yr.