 |
| Aerial photo of Pavlof erupting 2016: Source Colt Snapp. |
I traveled to the Alaska Peninsula to visit the Pavlof volcano. I explained to my family that Pavlof is located near a convergent boundary where both the Pacific plate and North America plate meet. These plates moving against each other is creating a situation in which the Pacifice plate is sliding under the North America plate. This in turn forms a subduction zone(Aleutuan Trench) near Pavlof and as the Pacific plate is forced into the extremely hot magma of the mantle it melts causing Pavlof to erupt.
 |
Simplified plate tectonics cross-section: Source Geology.com |
Regarding past eruptions, Pavlof has released massive plums of ash which have covered several hundred miles of Alaska and created several hazards for flights through the area. In addition, local residential communities see accumulations of ash which is a breathing hazard. Due to Pavlof being buried in ice, when there is an eruption quickly melting ice creates hot flows of lahar which includes mud, hot water and gravel. Pavlof last erupted in 2016 and is currently dormant but considered the most active volcano in the area. I explained to my son that this volcano is likely to continue to erupt as there are at least 45 recorded eruptions since records were kept going back to the late 1700's. In fact, in the last fifty years the longest period of dormancy looks to be just over a decade.
Global Volcanism Program | Pavlof. Retrieved July 29, 2018, from https://volcano.si.edu/volcano.cfm?vn=312030
King, H. M., Ph.D. Pavlof Volcano. Retrieved July 29, 2018, from https://geology.com/volcanoes/pavlof/
No comments:
Post a Comment