Although Strombolian activity occurred from the late seventies to the mid-eighties, explosive eruptions at Whakaari / White Island are typically phreatic or phreatomagmatic in style. The lava flows, ash, and pyroclastic flows produced by historic and prehistoric eruptions are andesitic and dacitic in composition. These eruptions also produce discrete craters within crater-fill deposits of the Central Cone. Since 1826, there has been a minimum of 28 phreatic or phreatomagmatic eruptions. In addition, prehistoric eruptions have also extruded lava. The lava flows from these prehistoric eruptions are exposed crater walls of the Central Cone. Whakaari / White Island's frequent activity and easy access attract scientists and volcanologists as well as many tourists. For example, this volcano provides a readily studied example of the type of volcanic magmatic–hydrothermal system involved in the generation of porphyry copper deposits.Hedenquist, J.W., Simmons, S.F., Giggenbach, W.F., and Eldridge, C.S., 1993. "White Island, New Zealand, volcanic-hydrothermal system represents the geochemical environment of high-sulfidation Cu and Au ore deposition", Geology, v. 21, pp. 731–734.Mandon, C. L., 2017. Volatile transport of metals in the andesitic magmatic-hydrothermal system of White Island, unpublished PhD dissertation. Wellington, New Zealand: School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington. 209 pp.
