Report on Lokon-Empung (Indonesia) — 9 April-15 April 2003
Smithsonian / US Geological Survey Weekly Volcanic Activity Report,
9 April-15 April 2003
Managing Editor: Gari Mayberry
Please cite this report as:
Global Volcanism Program, 2003. Report on Lokon-Empung (Indonesia). In: Mayberry, G (ed.), Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 9 April-15 April 2003. Smithsonian Institution and US Geological Survey.
Lokon-Empung
Indonesia
1.358°N, 124.792°E; summit elev. 1580 m
All times are local (unless otherwise noted)
After an explosion on 1 April at Lokon-Empung, volcanic activity decreased through 6 April. A "white-thick ash plume" rose to low levels and there were no observations of ash explosions. Seismicity after the 1 April explosion was dominated by tremor due to the release of gases. Lokon-Empung remained at Alert Level 2 (on a scale of 1-4).
Geological Summary. The Lokong-Empung volcanic complex, rising above the plain of Tondano in North Sulawesi, includes four peaks and an active crater. Lokon, the highest peak, has a flat craterless top. The morphologically younger Empung cone 2 km NE has a 400-m-wide, 150-m-deep crater that erupted last in the 18th century. A ridge extending 3 km WNW from Lokon includes the Tatawiran and Tetempangan peaks. All eruptions since 1829 have originated from Tompaluan, a 150 x 250 m crater in the saddle between Lokon and Empung. These eruptions have primarily produced small-to-moderate ash plumes that sometimes damaged croplands and houses, but lava-dome growth and pyroclastic flows have also occurred.
Source: Pusat Vulkanologi dan Mitigasi Bencana Geologi (PVMBG, also known as CVGHM)