The objective of the study was to detect volcanic activity at different timescales using geostationary satellite derived Land Surface Temperature data. LST data of the second-generation European Meteorological Satellites, were used to study (a) a paroxysmal, 1 day long eruption of Mount Etna (Italy); (b) a prolonged, 6 month period of effusive and lateral lava flows of the Nyamuragira volcano (Democratic Republic of Congo); and (c) intermittent activity in the permanent lava lake of Nyiragongo (Democratic Republic of Congo) over a period of 2 years (2011–2012). The results of the analysis were compared with published ground-based observations and satellite-based alert systems. The same analysis is also applied on mid-infrared and long-infrared brightness temperatures for the case of Etna, to compare findings and explore possibilities of synergistic application of different data