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Mawson Peak

Heard

Stratovolcano · Australia · 2745m

A plume rises in 1985 or 1986 from the summit of Big Ben volcano on Heard Island in the southern Indian Ocean. It is seen here from an abandoned Australian geophysical station at Atlas Cove, NNW of the summit. The historically active Mawson Peak forms the island's high point and lies within a 5-6 km wide caldera breached to the SW side of Big Ben. Small satellite scoria cones are mostly located on the N coast. Several subglacial eruptions have been reported.
A plume rises in 1985 or 1986 from the summit of Big Ben volcano on Heard Island in the southern Indian Ocean. It is seen here from an abandoned Australian geophysical station at Atlas Cove, NNW of the summit. The historically active Mawson Peak forms the island's high point and lies within a 5-6 km wide caldera breached to the SW side of Big Ben. Small satellite scoria cones are mostly located on the N coast. Several subglacial eruptions have been reported. · Photo: Photo by A. Hitchman, 1985 (courtesy of Wally Johnson, Australian BMRGG, Canberra).
Type
Stratovolcano
Country
Australia
Region
Somalian-Antarctic Volcanic Regions / Kerguelen Hotspot Volcano Group
Elevation
2745m
Coordinates
-53.106, 73.513
Last eruption
2026
Tectonic setting
Intraplate / Oceanic crust (< 15 km)
Landform
Composite
Major rock type
Trachybasalt / Tephrite Basanite
Geological summary

Heard Island on the Kerguelen Plateau in the southern Indian Ocean consists primarily of the emergent portion of two volcanic structures. The large glacier-covered composite basaltic-to-trachytic cone of Big Ben comprises most of the island, and the smaller Mt. Dixon lies at the NW tip of the island across a narrow isthmus. Little is known about the structure of Big Ben because of its extensive ice cover. The active Mawson Peak forms the island's high point and lies within a 5-6 km wide caldera breached to the SW side of Big Ben. Small satellitic scoria cones are mostly located on the northern coast. Several subglacial eruptions have been reported at this isolated volcano, but observations are infrequent and additional activity may have occurred.

From Wikipedia

Mawson Peak is an active volcanic summit of the Big Ben volcanic massif on Heard Island, an Australian external territory in the Indian Ocean. With an elevation of 2,745 metres (9,006 ft), it is higher than any peak on the Australian mainland and, among Australian mountains, is surpassed only by mountains in the Australian Antarctic Territory. Mawson Peak and other volcanic features on Heard and McDonald Islands are Australia's only active volcanoes. The peak is named after the Australian Antarctic explorer Douglas Mawson.

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Eruption history

Summary (VEI over time)
Click a bar to see individual eruptions
1881~1894 · 1 eruptions · max VEI 21907~1920 · 1 eruptions · max VEI 21947~1960 · 3 eruptions · max VEI 21973~1986 · 1 eruptions · max VEI 21986~1999 · 3 eruptions · max VEI 21999~2012 · 4 eruptions · max VEI 218811907194719731999

Detailed timeline

  1. 2012VEI 0Observed
    2012-09-05 – 2026-03-16
    Mawson Peak
  2. 2006VEI 0Observed
    2006-03-11 – 2008-03-03
    Mawson Peak
  3. 2003VEI 0Observed
    2003-06-09 – 2004-06-14
    Mawson Peak
  4. 2000VEI 2Observed
    2000-03-07 – 2001-02-16
    Mawson Peak and upper south flank
  5. 1993VEI 2Observed
    1993-01-02 – Ongoing
    Mawson Peak
  6. 1992VEI ?Geological estimate
    1992-01-17 – 1992-01-18
    Mawson Peak
  7. 1992VEI 0Observed
    1992-05-29 – Ongoing
    Mawson Peak
  8. 1985VEI 2Observed
    1985-01-14 – 1987-01-16
    Mawson Peak
  9. 1954VEI 2Observed
    1954-04-13 – 1954-06-13
    Mawson Peak
  10. 1953VEI 2Observed
    1953-08-20 – 1953-11-18
    Mawson Peak
  11. 1950VEI 2Observed
    1950-01-24 – 1952-03-12
    Mawson Peak
  12. 1910VEI 2Observed
    1910-03 – 1910-04
    Mawson Peak
  13. 1881VEI 2Geological estimate
    1881-06-02 – Ongoing

External links

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