<P> Mount Erebus is the second - highest volcano in Antarctica (after Mount Sidley) and the southernmost active volcano on earth . It is the sixth - highest ultra mountain on an island . With a summit elevation of 3,794 m (12,448 ft), it is located on Ross Island, which is also home to three inactive volcanoes, Mount Terror, Mount Bird, and Mount Terra Nova . </P> <P> The volcano has been observed to be continuously active since 1972 and is the site of the Mount Erebus Volcano Observatory run by the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology . Mount Erebus is currently the most active volcano in Antarctica and is the current eruptive zone of the Erebus hotspot . </P> <P> The volcanoes of the Victoria Land area are the most well known in Antarctica, most likely because they are the most accessible . Much of Victoria Land is mountainous, developing the eastern section of the Transantarctic Mountains, and the several scattered volcanoes include Mount Overlord and Mount Melbourne in the northern part . Farther south are two more well - known volcanoes, Mount Discovery and Mount Morning, which are on the coast across from Mount Erebus and Mount Terror on Ross Island . The volcanism in this area is caused by rifting along a number of rift zones increasing mainly north - south similar to the coast . </P> <P> Marie Byrd Land contains the largest volcanic region in Antarctica, covering a length of almost 600 mi (970 km) along the Pacific coast . The volcanism is the result of rifting along the vast West Antarctic Rift, which extends from the base of the Antarctic Peninsula to the surrounding area of Ross Island, and the volcanoes are found along the northern edge of the rift . Protruding up through the ice are a large number of major shield volcanoes, including Mount Sidley, which is the highest volcano in Antarctica . Although a number of the volcanoes are relatively young and are potentially active (Mount Berlin, Mount Takahe, Mount Waesche, and Mount Siple), others such as Mount Andrus and Mount Hampton are over 10 million years old, yet maintain uneroded constructional forms . The desert - like surroundings of the Antarctic interior, along with a very thick and stable ice sheet which encloses and protects the bases of the volcanoes, which decreases the speed of erosion by an issue of perhaps a thousand relative to volcanoes in moist temperate or tropical climates . </P>

Where are the world's major volcanoes and mountain generally located