- India’s only mud volcano at Baratang, Andaman reactivated on October 2, 2025 after ~20 years. See what happened, why it matters, and safety/travel tips.
- Baratang’s mud volcano erupts again after two decades—get the science, confirmed timeline, and field guidance in one place at The Earth Current.
Baratang mud volcano eruption 2025:
India’s only known mud volcanoes sit quietly in the mangrove-laced interior of Baratang Island in the Andaman & Nicobar archipelago—and for nearly two decades they did exactly that: sit quiet. On October 2, 2025, that changed. Fresh activity was reported from the Baratang mud volcano field, with a muddy cone roughly three to four meters high building up over an area estimated near a thousand square meters, the first reactivation since 2005 and the first major outburst since 2003. Early local reporting fixed the reawakening on October 2 and described the sudden, muddy surge that drew residents’ and officials’ attention. NewsBytes In response, the Geological Survey of India confirmed that a team would be sent to the site to study the new activity and assess ongoing conditions, an important step because these vents—as benign as “mud volcano” may sound—still involve pressurized fluids and gases moving through fractured ground. Hindustan Times
To understand what’s happening at Baratang, it helps to remember what a mud volcano is—and is not. Unlike magmatic volcanoes that erupt molten rock, mud volcanoes vent a slurry of water, clay, and gases (often methane) driven by sediment compaction, fluid overpressure, and degassing in the fore-arc of an active subduction zone. They are usually cooler and less explosive than lava eruptions, but they can build cones, ooze fields, and transient craters, and they can change the ground surface quickly enough to pose localized hazards. Baratang is the textbook Indian example of this phenomenon; it is widely noted as hosting the only known mud volcanoes in India, with documented episodes in 2003 and 2005, the latter widely linked by researchers and compilers to stress and fluid changes after the December 26, 2004 megathrust earthquake. Wikipedia+2Andaman Island Travels+2
The timing of Baratang’s 2025 stir is also interesting because the broader Andaman arc has been lively this season. Just weeks earlier, Barren Island—India’s only active magmatic volcano—produced mild eruptions on September 13 and 20, 2025, according to multiple outlets and official commentary tying the September 20 activity to a magnitude 4.2 earthquake two days prior. None of those bursts threatened populations, but together they remind us that the arc’s tectonics and volatile plumbing remain in motion. Gadgets 360+2India Today+2 While mud-volcano and magmatic systems are distinct, they share the same geodynamic neighborhood, and both can be nudged by stress changes and seismicity cascading through the crust and sediments.
For readers and travelers, the natural question is whether Baratang’s mud fields are safe to visit right now. As of publication, the prudent approach is to treat the site like an active geologic workspace: respect any cordons or fresh perimeters established by local authorities, avoid walking on brand-new mud surfaces that can be soft or unstable, and stay clear of visible vents or cracks where gases can accumulate. When planning a trip from Port Blair, check current convoy or permit rules and travel advisories, and consider hiring a licensed guide who knows the short forest trail to the vents and the day-to-day conditions on the ground. Basic visitor guidance pages for Baratang remain useful for logistics, but official advisories from the administration and updates from GSI should be treated as the primary source while the investigation is ongoing. Go2Andaman+2Tropical Andamans+2
Scientifically, the 2025 episode will give geologists a fresh window into the Baratang system after a long pause. Field teams will likely document the geometry of new cones and flows, sample gases for methane and other light hydrocarbons, and compare slurry chemistry and temperatures against previous baselines. They will also look for structural controls—faults or fractures that may have reopened—and for any hints of seismic triggering, themes that recur in studies across the Andaman sector after the 2004 megathrust event. ScienceDirect For context-hungry readers, think of Baratang as a pressure valve for the basin’s squashed, water-rich sediments: when overpressure builds, or when shaking lofts and rearranges the plumbing, the slurries can find a shortcut to the surface and briefly remake the landscape.
If you follow The Earth Current, you know we like pairing field updates with broader explainers. For a deeper dive into what makes the Andaman arc tick—and why a mud volcano in a mangrove swamp and a lava-spewing cone offshore can both lurch to life in the same season—see our forthcoming primer on subduction along the Andaman trench and our recent Barren Island wrap, which threads September’s mild outbursts into a longer-term narrative of eruptions since 1991. India Today And if you’re planning a trip, our responsible geo-tourism guide will cover simple ways to visit fragile sites like Baratang’s vents without leaving a heavy footprint.
Editorial note on sources: Core facts in this report draw on contemporaneous coverage of the October 2, 2025 Baratang eruption (including estimated cone height and affected area), confirmation that GSI is deploying a field team, background documentation that Baratang hosts India’s only known mud volcanoes with activity in 2003 and 2005, and late-September 2025 reports of minor eruptions at Barren Island, including an official link to a local M4.2 earthquake. The Economic Times+5NewsBytes+5Hindustan Times+5
Sources (key facts)
- Baratang hosts India’s only known mud volcanoes; eruptions in 2003 & 2005.
- Oct 2, 2025 Baratang eruption details (~3–4 m cone; ~1,000 m² affected; first since 2005).
- GSI to investigate the Baratang event.
- Barren Island minor activity on Sept 13 & 20, 2025 (context).
- Visitor basics for Baratang mud volcano (how to visit).
Recent Barren Island coverage (for context)
Watch: India’s only active volcano stirs again; ‘Barren Island’ saw mild eruptions twice last week
Watch: Minor eruptions recorded at India’s only active volcano, Barren Island
Watch: India’s only active volcano, located in Barren Island, erupts after an earthquake
