![\"Methana](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/20090608_Methana_peninsula_Peloponnese_view_from_the_sea_Greece-e1525686082857.jpg\")
Methana seen from the sea. Credit: Ggia \u2013 Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0<\/p>\nMethana seen from the sea. Credit: Ggia \u2013 Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0<\/p>\n
New research published in Science Advances has challenged the long-held assumption that the Methana volcano in Greece<\/a>, located about 31 miles (50 km) from Athens, is extinct. Despite showing no signs of activity, such as ash clouds or lava flows, for over one thousand centuries, the volcano has been quietly accumulating vast quantities of magma<\/a> within its subterranean chambers.<\/p>\n To attain these findings, scientists<\/a> analyzed more than 1,250 zircon crystals extracted from the Earth\u2019s crust beneath the volcano. Because these crystals preserve data about the conditions under which they were formed, researchers were able to map the volcano\u2019s history with remarkable detail.<\/p>\n As ETH Zurich volcanologist Olivier Bachmann explained, \u201cWe can think of zircon crystals as tiny flight recorders. By dating more than 1,250 of them across 700,000 years of volcanic history, we\u2019ve reconstructed the volcano\u2019s inner life with precision.\u201d<\/p>\n The study reveals that the volcano\u2019s magma chambers have been active almost continuously, suggesting that a lack of surface activity does not necessarily indicate extinction. Bachmann further noted, \u201cWhat we learned is that volcanoes<\/a> can \u2018breathe\u2019 underground for millennia without ever breaking the surface.\u201d<\/p>\n The research team discovered that the magma feeding the volcano is exceptionally water-rich, which may actually influence the frequency of eruptions. According to co-author R\u0103zvan-Gabriel Popa, \u201cWe actually believe that many subduction zone volcanoes might be periodically fed by particularly wet primitive magma, something that the scientific community has not yet fully [recognized].\u201d<\/p>\n These findings carry significant consequences for global safety protocols regarding volcanic risk. The authors emphasized that the study \u201chighlights the importance of monitoring dormant volcanoes, even in the absence of recent eruptions,\u201d and suggested that current threat levels for long-quiet volcanoes should be re-examined.<\/p>\n Bachmann stated: \u201cFor volcano hazard authorities, for example, in Greece, Italy, Indonesia, the Philippines, South and North America, Japan, etc, this means re-evaluating the threat level of volcanoes that have been quiet for tens of thousands of years but show periodic signs of magmatic unrest.\u201d<\/p>\n Ultimately, the study serves as a warning that a long period of dormancy can mask the development of a large, potentially dangerous magma system.<\/p>\n![\"Methana](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sulfurous_bath_inside_sea-e1525685988511.jpg\")
Sulfurous baths of Methana. Credit: Agustin Bartolome \u2013 Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0
\nThe risks from Greece\u2019s Methana volcano<\/p>\n