Mount Tongariro (/ˈtɒŋɡərɪroʊ/; Māori: [tɔŋaɾiɾɔ]) is a compound volcano in the Taupō Volcanic Zone of the North Island of New Zealand.

It is located 20 km (12 mi) to the southwest of Lake Taupō, and is the northernmost of the three active volcanoes that dominate the landscape of the central North Island.

Tongariro is composed of layers of both lava and tephra and the eruptions that built the current stratovolcano commenced about 275,000 years ago.

The high altitude and severe alpine climate between March and October allow snowfall in the winter (there are commercial ski-fields at neighbouring Mount Ruapehu) and rain can freeze, causing verglas; in contrast in the mid to late summer, the mountains can be bare apart from remnant patches of snow in south-facing gullies.

Mount Tongariro and its surroundings are also one of the several locations which Peter Jackson chose to shoot The Lord of the Rings film trilogy.

There is then a gap in identified materials until a small lava inlier on the western side of Tongariro that has been dated at 512,000 ± 59,000 years ago and is essentially buried by more recent activity.

[9] The Pahoka-Mangamate sequence was an intense 200 year long period of large explosive eruptions from multiple vents between Tongariro and Ruapehu.

[7] This sequence is understood to have included a total volume of about 4.5 km3 (1.1 cu mi) in several episodes: After a period of volcanic unrest that had resulted in an increase in alert level on 20 July 2012,[11] at 11:50 pm (NZST, UTC+12) on 6 August 2012, Mt Tongariro had what was initially believed to be a hydrothermal eruption after this increased activity.

Air New Zealand cancelled some flights in and out of Rotorua, Taupō, Gisborne, Napier, Wanganui and Palmerston North due to the risk of volcanic ash clogging the engines on their aircraft serving those airports.

[18] No injuries were reported, and the only significant property damage was to the Department of Conservation's Ketetahi Hut, which is located 1.5 km (0.9 mi) west of the Te Māri Craters.