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Mount Paektu

Changbaishan

Stratovolcano · China-North Korea · 2744m

Lake Tianchi occupies the 5-km-wide, 850-m-deep summit caldera of Changbaishan, which straddles the China/Korea border. The volcano is also known as Baitoushan and by the Korean names of Baegdu or P'aektu-san. This view looks from the northern rim on the Chinese side towards the SE caldera wall on the Korean side. One of the world's largest known Holocene explosive eruptions took place from Changbaishan about 1000 CE, depositing tephra as far away as northern Japan.
Lake Tianchi occupies the 5-km-wide, 850-m-deep summit caldera of Changbaishan, which straddles the China/Korea border. The volcano is also known as Baitoushan and by the Korean names of Baegdu or P'aektu-san. This view looks from the northern rim on the Chinese side towards the SE caldera wall on the Korean side. One of the world's largest known Holocene explosive eruptions took place from Changbaishan about 1000 CE, depositing tephra as far away as northern Japan. · Photo: Photo by Xiang Liu, 1983 (Changchun University). · Wikimedia Commons
Type
Stratovolcano
Country
China-North Korea
Region
Eastern Asia Volcanic Regions / Central East Asia Volcanic Province
Elevation
2744m
Coordinates
41.980, 128.080
Last eruption
1903
Tectonic setting
Intraplate / Continental crust (> 25 km)
Landform
Composite
Major rock type
Trachyte / Trachydacite
Geological summary

Massive Changbaishan stratovolcano (also known as Baitoushan and by the Korean names of Baegdu, Paektu, or P'aektu-san), is located along the China/Korea border. A 5-km-wide, 850-m-deep summit caldera is filled by Lake Tianchi (Sky Lake). The 60-km-diameter dominantly trachytic and rhyolitic volcano was constructed over the Changbaishan (Laoheidingzi) shield volcano. Satellitic cinder cones are aligned along a NNE trend. One of the largest known Holocene explosive eruptions took place here about 946 CE, depositing tephra as far away as northern Japan and forming in part the present caldera; Yang et al. (2021) estimated the total erupted volume to be 40-98 km3. Minor eruptions have been recorded since the 15th century.

From Wikipedia

The Changbai Mountains are a major mountain range in East Asia that extends from the Northeast Chinese provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning, across the China-North Korea border, to the North Korean provinces of Ryanggang and Chagang. They are also referred to as the Šanggiyan Mountains in the Manchu language, or the Great Paekdu in Korean. Most of its peaks exceed 2,000 m (6,600 ft) in height, with the tallest summit being Paektu Mountain at 2,744 m (9,003 ft), which contains the Heaven Lake, a large volcanic crater lake at a surface elevation of 2,189.1 m (7,182 ft). The protected area Longwanqun National Forest Park is located within the vicinity of the mountain range.

Wikipedia · CC BY-SA · Read full article →

Eruption history

Summary (VEI over time)
Click a bar to see individual eruptions
2155 BCE~1962 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI 41189 BCE~996 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?223 BCE~29 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI 4937~1130 · 1 eruptions · max VEI 61323~1517 · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?1517~1710 · 3 eruptions · max VEI ?1710~1903 · 2 eruptions · max VEI 22155 BCE1189 BCE223 BCE7441710

Detailed timeline

  1. 1903VEI ?Observed
    1903-04-15 – Ongoing
    Liuhaojie tuff ring?
  2. 1898VEI 2Observed
    1898 – Ongoing
  3. 1702VEI ?Observed
    1702-06-09 – Ongoing
  4. 1668VEI ?Observed
    1668-06 – Ongoing
  5. 1597VEI ?Geological estimate
    1597-10-06 – Ongoing
  6. 1413VEI ?Geological estimate
    1413 – Ongoing
  7. 946VEI 6Geological estimate
    946-11-15 – Ongoing
    Millennium Eruption
  8. 180 BCE (±80 yrs)VEI 4Geological estimate
    BCE 180 – Ongoing
  9. 1000 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 1000 – Ongoing
  10. 2155 BCE (±90 yrs)VEI 4Geological estimate
    BCE 2155 – Ongoing

External links

⚠ For reference only. Not for emergency response.