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Report on Nevado del Huila (Colombia) — 9 May-15 May 2007


Nevado del Huila

Smithsonian Institution / US Geological Survey
Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 9 May-15 May 2007
Managing Editor: Sally Sennert.

Please cite this report as:

Global Volcanism Program, 2007. Report on Nevado del Huila (Colombia) (Sennert, S, ed.). Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 9 May-15 May 2007. Smithsonian Institution and US Geological Survey.

Weekly Report (9 May-15 May 2007)

Nevado del Huila

Colombia

2.93°N, 76.03°W; summit elev. 5364 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


Based on satellite imagery, the Washington VAAC reported that on 14 May an ash plume from Nevado del Huila drifted SW and dissipated. INGEOMINAS reported that seismicity was possibly related to an ash emission.

Geological Summary. Nevado del Huila, the highest peak in the Colombian Andes, is an elongated N-S-trending volcanic chain mantled by a glacier icecap. The andesitic-dacitic volcano was constructed within a 10-km-wide caldera. Volcanism at Nevado del Huila has produced six volcanic cones whose ages in general migrated from south to north. The high point of the complex is Pico Central. Two glacier-free lava domes lie at the southern end of the volcanic complex. The first historical activity was an explosive eruption in the mid-16th century. Long-term, persistent steam columns had risen from Pico Central prior to the next eruption in 2007, when explosive activity was accompanied by damaging mudflows.

Sources: Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC), Servicio Geológico Colombiano (SGC)