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Report on Fuego (Guatemala) — 26 June-2 July 2013


Fuego

Smithsonian Institution / US Geological Survey
Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 26 June-2 July 2013
Managing Editor: Sally Sennert.

Please cite this report as:

Global Volcanism Program, 2013. Report on Fuego (Guatemala) (Sennert, S, ed.). Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 26 June-2 July 2013. Smithsonian Institution and US Geological Survey.

Weekly Report (26 June-2 July 2013)

Fuego

Guatemala

14.473°N, 90.88°W; summit elev. 3763 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


INSIVUMEH reported that explosions from Fuego on 26 June generated shock waves and ash plumes that rose 400 m and drifted SW. On 27 June explosions produced ash plumes that rose 550 m and drifted 10 km. Shock waves vibrated structures in areas including Sangre de Cristo (8 km WSW), Panimaché (8 km SW), and Morelia (9 km SW). Lahars descended the Las Lajas and El Jute drainages (SE), carrying blocks up to 1.5 m in diameter as well as tree trucks and branches.

On 28 June Vulcanian explosions produced shockwaves felt by local populations within 15 km. Explosions also generated ash plumes that rose 100-200 m and drifted W, and ejected incandescent tephra 150 m above the crater. Ashfall was reported in Panimaché, Morelia, and Sangre de Cristo. A lava flow was active on the flank. During 29 June-2 July explosions generated ash plumes that rose 500-600 m and mostly drifted W and NW.

Geological Summary. Volcán Fuego, one of Central America's most active volcanoes, is also one of three large stratovolcanoes overlooking Guatemala's former capital, Antigua. The scarp of an older edifice, Meseta, lies between Fuego and Acatenango to the north. Construction of Meseta dates back to about 230,000 years and continued until the late Pleistocene or early Holocene. Collapse of Meseta may have produced the massive Escuintla debris-avalanche deposit, which extends about 50 km onto the Pacific coastal plain. Growth of the modern Fuego volcano followed, continuing the southward migration of volcanism that began at the mostly andesitic Acatenango. Eruptions at Fuego have become more mafic with time, and most historical activity has produced basaltic rocks. Frequent vigorous historical eruptions have been recorded since the onset of the Spanish era in 1524, and have produced major ashfalls, along with occasional pyroclastic flows and lava flows.

Source: Instituto Nacional de Sismologia, Vulcanologia, Meteorologia, e Hidrologia (INSIVUMEH)