Is Madeira an active volcano?

Madeira is part of massive underwater shield volcano in the Atlantic Ocean, of which the island is just the highest point. Formed hundreds of thousands of years ago, the island has seen volcanic activity as recently as 6,500 years ago, but today is considered to be dormant and unlikely to erupt.



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It cannot be assumed that volcanic activity on Madeira is extinct but in the absence of significant seismic activity it is considered that the volcanic hazard level is very low.

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Although there are no active volcanoes in the continental territory of Portugal, apart from geological remnants of ancient volcanism, the Portuguese Atlantic island possessions have a long history of active volcanism.

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On March 4th, 1930, a sector of the Cape Girão cliff, located in the southern shore of Madeira Island, collapsed into the sea and generated an 8 m tsunami wave height.

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To achieve this, we use the prime example of Madeira, a volcanic island in the Atlantic Ocean highly vulnerable to cliff-failure. Particularly, we explore the March 4th, 1930 Cabo Girão event that triggered a deadly tsunami.

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In the area you have selected (Ilha Da Madeira (madeira)) tsunami hazard is classified as low according to the information that is currently available. This means that there is more than a 2% chance of a potentially-damaging tsunami occurring in the next 50 years.

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Natural Disasters The rainy season is from October through March. Floods may occur, especially on Madeira Island. Forest fires occur during the dry season.

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Calheta Beach is one of the island of Madeira's few yellow sandy beaches. A peaceful swimming experience is guaranteed by two piers, so you can exercise in the sea all year round. Ribeira do Natal Beach enjoys properties that make it one of the best places for swimming. The transparency of its waters is remarkable.

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Madeira is renowned for its landscapes, lore—and its legendary wine, which graced the tables of America's Founding Fathers.

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Our study confirms that Madeira's subaerial shield volcano was built upon the eroded remains of an uplifted seamount, with shallow marine sediments found between the two eruptive sequences and presently located at 320–430 m above sea level.

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Together with the islands of Porto Santo and Desertas and the Selvagens—Madeira forms an autonomous region of the country of Portugal.

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The island's rugged topography is fundamental for the constant formation of perfect, clean and big waves that have made Madeira's surf spots famous on the international surf circuit.

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The most affected regions are Azores, Madeira and North. The hurricane season usually lasts from early June to late November. Portugal has certainly been affected by the foothills of several hurricanes, but during the past 12 months no hurricane reached the inhabited areas on land.

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Although they are unusual, hurricanes have occurred in the Madeira Islands, such as Hurricane Vincent in 2005.

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Shark attacks According to Shark Attack Data, there have been two fatal attacks off the coast of Funchal, Madeira, but nothing recorded in Portugal. Both of the attacks were more than 40 years ago, back in 1979 and 1956, during fishing trips.

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The report claimed that “during a future eruption” the volcano “may experience a catastrophic flank collapse”. The paper suggested that this could create waves capable of transiting “the entire Atlantic Basin and arrive on the coasts of the Americas with 10-25 m (3-8 m) height”.

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The sea between the islands of Madeira Archipelago has a depth of around 4000 meters, already at a distance of 5 km from the coast of the sea reaches a depth of 3000 m The archipelago is bathed by the Gulf Stream and therefore the temperature of the water around the island of Madeira does not drop below 18 ° C, which ...

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