BBC World Service - CrowdScience, When will the next super-volcano erupt? Homepage Accessibility links * Skip to content * Accessibility Help Close menu BBC World Service CrowdScience * Home * Episodes * Clips * Podcast * Contact CrowdScience * Join us on Facebook Main content Listen now When will the next super-volcano erupt? CrowdScience Is the world sitting on a ticking time bomb? CrowdScience listener Christel wants to know whether we can predict when the world’s next great volcanic eruption could be. Show more Is the world sitting on a ticking time bomb? CrowdScience listener Christel recently watched a documentary about a volcanic eruption in 536 AD that left her native Sweden under a cloud of ash for three years. It got her thinking, do we know when this could happen again? With more than 300 volcanoes – and 24 of them listed as currently active – the Philippines is a country where trying to predict eruptions has huge real world consequences. Presenter Anand Jagatia travels to Manila to meet the scientists at PHIVOLCS, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, including the head of their Volcano Monitoring and Eruption Prediction Division, Mariton Antonia Bornas, to find out how they try to predict volcanic activity in the country and help make sure communities are evacuated out of harm’s way. He travels with the team to Taal volcano, which experienced violent eruptions in 2020 and has been active again this year, to visit the observatory monitoring for signs of future activity and to hike to the main crater of the volcano with resident volcanologist Paolo Reniva. He also speaks to Dr George Cooper from Cardiff University in the UK about what makes a volcano a supervolcano, and to ask the all important question of if we know when this will happen again. Presenter: Anand Jagatia Producer: Dan Welsh Editor: Ben Motley (Photo: Smoke Emitting From Volcanic Mountain Against Sky - stock photo -EyeEm Mobile GmbH via Getty Images) Show less Download Choose your file * Higher quality (128kbps) * Lower quality (64kbps) Available now 29 minutes Last on Mon 13 Apr 2026 12:32 GMT BBC World Service Australasia, East and Southern Africa, News Internet & West and Central Africa only More episodes Previous Will rabbits become super predators? Next Why does salt taste so good? See all episodes from CrowdScience Featured * . Broadcasts * Fri 10 Apr 2026 19:32 GMT BBC World Service * Mon 13 Apr 2026 01:32 GMT BBC World Service except Americas and the Caribbean * Mon 13 Apr 2026 04:32 GMT BBC World Service Australasia, Americas and the Caribbean, South Asia & East Asia only * Mon 13 Apr 2026 08:32 GMT BBC World Service * Mon 13 Apr 2026 12:32 GMT BBC World Service Australasia, East and Southern Africa, News Internet & West and Central Africa only Show more / Show less Podcast * CrowdScience Answering your questions about life, Earth and the universe Related Content Similar programmes By genre: * Factual > Science & Nature > Science & Technology By format: * Discussion & Talk * Online schedule * Help & FAQs * Contact us * News in more than 40 languages * Terms of Use * About the BBC * Privacy Policy * Privacy Policy * Cookies * Cookies * Accessibility Help * Parental Guidance * Contact the BBC * Make an editorial complaint * Careers * BBC emails for you * Advertise with us Copyright (c) 2026 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.