Mt. Fitzherbert

Potential ash hazards: Wind forecasts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), coupled with eruption models, show that any ash clouds rising above the crater rim today would drift broadly eastward.

Recent observations: So far, this summer's dome growth is like watching an egg hatch. Seismic activity consists chiefly of small, mostly impalpable earthquake every 3 to 6 minutes. Rockfalls spall frequently from the growing lava dome, their telltale small ash clouds rising placidly within the crater. Some ash barely clears the crater rim and may be visible from afar. Field work today includes a FLIR thermal imagery flight and GPS station repositioning on the volcano's flanks.