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Report on Veniaminof (United States) — 6 May-12 May 2009


Veniaminof

Smithsonian Institution / US Geological Survey
Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 6 May-12 May 2009
Managing Editor: Sally Sennert.

Please cite this report as:

Global Volcanism Program, 2009. Report on Veniaminof (United States) (Sennert, S, ed.). Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 6 May-12 May 2009. Smithsonian Institution and US Geological Survey.

Weekly Report (6 May-12 May 2009)

Veniaminof

United States

56.17°N, 159.38°W; summit elev. 2507 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


During 6-7 May, seismic activity from Veniaminof increased, prompting AVO to raise the Volcanic Alert Level to Advisory and the Aviation Color Code to Yellow. Small magnitude earthquakes occurred at rates of 5-10 per hour during quieter periods and 1-3 per minute during periods of more intense activity. Visual observations indicated typical steaming from the summit caldera cone. Seismicity remained elevated during 8-12 May. Minor ash-producing explosions last occurred in March 2008.

Geological Summary. Veniaminof, on the Alaska Peninsula, is truncated by a steep-walled, 8 x 11 km, glacier-filled caldera that formed around 3,700 years ago. The caldera rim is up to 520 m high on the north, is deeply notched on the west by Cone Glacier, and is covered by an ice sheet on the south. Post-caldera vents are located along a NW-SE zone bisecting the caldera that extends 55 km from near the Bering Sea coast, across the caldera, and down the Pacific flank. Historical eruptions probably all originated from the westernmost and most prominent of two intra-caldera cones, which rises about 300 m above the surrounding icefield. The other cone is larger, and has a summit crater or caldera that may reach 2.5 km in diameter, but is more subdued and barely rises above the glacier surface.

Source: US Geological Survey Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO)