One of the most famous volcanoes of New Zealand is Mount Ngauruhoe, which some may recognize as Mount Doom from Lord of the Rings. The largely accepted translation of its Māori (New Zealand's indigenous people) name is "throwing hot stones," characterizing its active volcanism. Ngauruhoe isn't actually a volcano on its own, but rather a cone of the larger Tongariro Volcanic Complex, which resides in the Tongariro National Park.

Ngauruhoe is a stratovolcano, which means its built of alternating layers of lava and ash. The type of lava that erupts from Ngauruhoe cools and hardens relatively quickly after eruption and piles closely around the volcano, a behavior that gives Nagauruhoe and other stratovolcanoes their iconic cone shape.

Recent studies suggest Ngauruhoe began forming 7,000 years ago. There is a long Māori verbal record of eruption activity and 60 events since written records began in 1839. Ngauruhoe was erupting roughly every 9 years until its last eruption in 1975. Today New Zealand-based research teams actively monitor the seismic and chemical activity of Ngauruhoe.