The major explosive eruption on 15 June 1991 created a 2.5-km-wide caldera at the summit of Pinatubo. The elevation of the caldera floor is more than 900 m below that of the pre-eruption summit. Plumes rise from fumaroles on the caldera floor in this 4 October 1991 photo taken from the N. The outer flanks of the caldera are stripped of vegetation and covered with ash and pyroclastic surge deposits.

Photo by Chris Newhall, 1991 (U.S. Geological Survey).

This image is made available as a Public Domain Work, but proper attribution is appreciated.

Galleries: Calderas

Keywords: caldera | fumarole | plume | volcanic gas

Pinatubo