Volcano Information

    Mount Hood
    Volcanic Alert Level: NORMAL Aviation Color Code: GREEN

    • Status: Mount Hood is monitored by the Cascade Volcano Observatory and is at a background level of activity.
    • Volcanic History Overview: Mount Hood, Oregon's highest peak, forms a prominent backdrop to the state's largest city, Portland. The eroded summit area of Mount Hood consists of several andesitic or dacitic lava domes. Major Pleistocene edifice collapse produced a debris avalanche and lahar that traveled north down the Hood River valley and crossed the Columbia River. The glacially eroded volcano has had at least four major eruptive periods during the past 15,000 years. The last three occurred within the past 1800 years from vents high on the SW flank and produced deposits that were distributed primarily to the south and west along the Sandy and Zigzag rivers. The last eruptive period took place around 170-220 years ago, when growth of the Crater Rock lava dome was accompanied by pyroclastic flows and lahars down the White and Sandy rivers. The Sandy River lahar deposits extended to the west as far as the Columbia River and were observed by members of the 1804-1805 Lewis and Clark expedition within a few years of their emplacement. Minor 19th-century eruptions were witnessed from Portland.
    • Location: Western US, OR

      Latitude: 45.374
      Longitude: -121.695
      Elevation: 3426 m

      Recent Eruption: Late 18th century; minoe explosions in mid-19th century
    • Hazard Assessments: Scott, et.al., 1997, Volcano Hazards in the Mount Hood Region, Oregon, USGS Open-File Report 97-89.
    • Link to monitoring data: The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network