Report on Nevado del Huila (Colombia) — 11 April-17 April 2007
Smithsonian Institution / US Geological Survey
Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 11 April-17 April 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, 11 April-17 April 2007. 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)
According to the Washington VAAC, a pilot reported an ash plume from Nevado del Huila on 17 April. An ash plume that was evident on satellite imagery at 0415 rose to an approximate altitude of 11.3 km (37,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted E. An additional plume drifted SW. Later that day, INGEOMINAS reported increased seismicity. At 0257 on 18 April, INGEOMINAS reported an eruptive event. Based on a news article, an eruption triggered landslides and swelled rivers. About 5,000 people evacuated from areas to the S.
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: Mail and Guardian Online, Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC), Servicio Geológico Colombiano (SGC)