Activity at Mount Redoubt is again increasing, and scientists monitoring the volcano say an explosive eruption is likely in coming days.
"Seismic and rockfall activity increasing," said a statement posted this morning on the Alaska Volcano Observatory Web page. "Explosive eruption likely in coming days; could occur at any time with little or no warning."
The alert level remains at "orange/watch."
The AVO statement continued:
"The growing lava dome is becoming increasingly unstable, and should a dome failure occur it likely would result in a significant explosion producing high-altitude (above 30,000 feet above sea level) ash plumes, trace to minor ash fall in parts of Southcentral Alaska, lahars in the Drift River valley and pyroclastic flows in the immediate vicinity of the volcano."
Redoubt's last major explosion was April 4. Since then, the dome has been growing. Redoubt first erupted on March 22. That was followed by numerous large explosions, some sending ash plumes more than 50,000 feet into the air.
Webcam photos from Redoubt this morning show the now-familiar scene of a modest steam plume rising from the ash-covered mountain.
Anchorage Daily News