AP Photo

By Jamie Hale | The Oregonian, OregonLive

Living among the volcanic peaks of the Cascade Mountains is a part of the reality of life in the Pacific Northwest. But what we don't often consider – and what many of us don't really know – is just how dangerous each of those volcanic peaks is.



Back in 2005, the U.S. Geological Survey set out to determine just that, assigning a "threat level" to all 169 potentially active volcanoes in the United States. The results showed only 18 volcanoes that could be considered a "very high" threat, but 10 of those happen to be found right here in the Northwest.



Ranging from Northern California through Oregon and Washington, the Cascade peaks earned the highest threat level due to a variety of factors, with researchers focused specifically on the number of people living nearby, and the potential range of ash and lava flows. That's why quiet Mount Hood near Portland got a "very high" threat level, while active Mount Cleveland in the remote Aleutian Islands of Alaska got a "moderate" threat level.



USGS researchers further evaluated the U.S. volcanoes, assigning each an overall threat score based on those factors. The result was Hawaii's Kilauea on top, followed by several Northwest mountains, with Hawaiian, Alaskan and one southern California volcano mixed in. You can see a full list of the threatening peaks below, but here are the 10 most dangerous volcanoes in the Pacific Northwest.



Don't Edit

Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

10. Newberry Volcano

Threat score: 126

Location: Central Oregon

Last eruption: 690

Don't Edit

Wikimedia Commons/Walter Siegmund

9. Glacier Peak

Threat score: 155

Location: Northwest Washington

Last eruption: 1700

Don't Edit

AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File

8. Mount Baker

Threat score: 156

Location: Northwest Washington

Last eruption: 1880

Don't Edit

David Smigelski/The Mail Tribune via AP

7. Crater Lake

Threat score: 161

Location: Southern Oregon

Last eruption: 2850 BCE

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Wikimedia Commons

6. Lassen Volcanic Center

Threat score: 186

Location: Northern California

Last eruption: 1917

Don't Edit

John M. Vincent/The Oregonian

5. South Sister

Threat score: 194

Location: Central Oregon

Last eruption: 440

Don't Edit

Wikimedia Commons

4. Mount Shasta

Threat score: 210

Location: Northern California

Last eruption: 1786

Don't Edit

Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

3. Mount Hood

Threat score: 213

Location: Northwest Oregon

Last eruption: 1866

Don't Edit

AP Photo/Elaine Thompson

2. Mount Rainier

Threat score: 244

Location: Northwest Washington

Last eruption: 1894

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Mark Graves/The Oregonian

1. Mount St. Helens

Threat score: 267

Location: Southwest Washington

Last eruption: 2008

Don't Edit

Other "very high" threat volcanoes in the U.S. (threat score; location)

Kilauea (324; Hawaii), Mauna Loa (170; Hawaii), Mount Redoubt (164; Alaska), Makushin Volcano (152; Alaska), Mount Akutan (140; Alaska), Mount Spurr (130; Alaska), Long Valley Caldera (128; California), Augustine Volcano (123; Alaska)

Don't Edit

Don't Edit

Jamie Hale/The Oregonian/OregonLive

MORE NW VOLCANOES

Take an epic volcano road trip: Oregon's volcanic peaks, lava fields and underground caves make a great geological excursion around the state.

How Oregon's mountains got their names: Hood? Baker? St. Helens? Who are Oregon's mountains named after anyway?

Mount St. Helens eruption, 36 years later: Back in 2016, we took a look at the Mount St. Helens eruption, and its lasting effects.

Don't Edit

--Jamie Hale | jhale@oregonian.com | @HaleJamesB

Don't Edit