Abstract During the period 28 February 2000–31 December 2013, the MODVOLC system ( http://modis.higp.hawaii.edu ) autonomously analysed almost 9 trillion (i.e. 9×10 12 ) pixels contained within almost 3 million MODIS images, searching for evidence of high-temperature thermal signatures associated with volcanic eruptions. Thermal unrest, mainly associated with active lava, be it in the form of flows, domes, lakes or confined to vents, was detected at 93 volcanoes during this period of time. The first part of this paper describes the physical basis and operational implementation of the MODVOLC algorithm. The second part presents data to detail the nature of the thermal emission from these 93 volcanoes over the past 14 years.