Montserrat Volcano Observatory

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The Montserrat Volcano Observatory (MVO) was established after the first phreatic eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano, on July 18th 1995. The MVO's main priority is to advise the civilian authorities on volcanic activity and associated hazards.
The observatory is based in Olde Towne, northwest of the volcano. This is in the safe zone, so that continuous monitoring can occur even during an evacuation.

The research mandate of MVO includes a number of objectives, including earthquake monitoring, deformation monitoring, visual observations, gas sampling, and hazard analysis.