Report on Nevado del Huila (Colombia) — 16 January-22 January 2008
Smithsonian Institution / US Geological Survey
Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 16 January-22 January 2008
Managing Editor: Sally Sennert.
Please cite this report as:
Global Volcanism Program, 2008. Report on Nevado del Huila (Colombia) (Sennert, S, ed.). Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 16 January-22 January 2008. Smithsonian Institution and US Geological Survey.
Nevado del Huila
Colombia
2.93°N, 76.03°W; summit elev. 5364 m
All times are local (unless otherwise noted)
Based on aerial observations from a commercial flight on 19 January, INGEOMINAS reported that ash deposits from Nevado del Huila were seen on the W sector of a summit glacier, confirming the seismic interpretation from the previous month.
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.
