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Report on Galeras (Colombia) — March 1992


Galeras

Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, vol. 17, no. 3 (March 1992)
Managing Editor: Lindsay McClelland.

Galeras (Colombia) Seismicity and SO2 release fluctuate; minor deformation

Please cite this report as:

Global Volcanism Program, 1992. Report on Galeras (Colombia) (McClelland, L., ed.). Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, 17:3. Smithsonian Institution. https://doi.org/10.5479/si.GVP.BGVN199203-351080



Galeras

Colombia

1.22°N, 77.37°W; summit elev. 4276 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


Seismic energy release and the number of long-period events fluctuated widely in March, similar to behavior in January-February. Tremor remained at low levels throughout the month. Eleven high-frequency earthquakes were recorded (M 1.2-2.2), centered primarily N and NE of the crater. Electronic tiltmeter measurements [at Crater Station] showed 21.8 µrad deflation in the N component, while measurements [at Peladitos Station] were essentially stable, with a slight tendency toward inflation (11 and 6 µrad for the two components). SO2 flux from the volcano was variable in March, ranging from 120 to ~2,500 t/d, but showed a general increase late in the month.

Geological Summary. Galeras, a stratovolcano with a large breached caldera located immediately west of the city of Pasto, is one of Colombia's most frequently active volcanoes. The dominantly andesitic complex has been active for more than 1 million years, and two major caldera collapse eruptions took place during the late Pleistocene. Long-term extensive hydrothermal alteration has contributed to large-scale edifice collapse on at least three occasions, producing debris avalanches that swept to the west and left a large open caldera inside which the modern cone has been constructed. Major explosive eruptions since the mid-Holocene have produced widespread tephra deposits and pyroclastic flows that swept all but the southern flanks. A central cone slightly lower than the caldera rim has been the site of numerous small-to-moderate eruptions since the time of the Spanish conquistadors.

Information Contacts: J. Romero, INGEOMINAS-Observatorio Vulcanológico del Sur.