Barren Island (Andaman Islands)
Barren Island is an island located in the Andaman Sea. It is the only confirmed active volcano in the Indian subcontinent, and the only active volcano along a chain of volcanoes from Sumatra to Myanmar. It is a part of the Indian Union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and lies about 138 km (86 mi) northeast of the territory's capital, Port Blair.
Barren Island erupting in 1995
An illustration of the island in 1789
Barren Island in 2020
Barren Island erupts
The Andaman Sea is a marginal sea of the northeastern Indian Ocean bounded by the coastlines of Myanmar and Thailand along the Gulf of Martaban and the west side of the Malay Peninsula, and separated from the Bay of Bengal to its west by the Andaman Islands and the Nicobar Islands. Its southern end is at Breueh Island just north of Sumatra, with the Strait of Malacca further southeast.
Satellite image of the Andaman Sea showing the green algae and silt deposits due to the Irrawaddy River in its northern part
The Andaman Sea, showing tectonic plate boundaries
Eruption of the Barren Island volcano in 1995. Andaman Islands (on top) are c. 90 km distant
Mangrove trees on the coast, Neil Island, Andaman and Nicobar Islands