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Volcán Cerro Negro

Negro, Cerro

Pyroclastic cone · Nicaragua · 728m

Cerro Negro, the largest and youngest of a group of four cinder cones that were constructed along a N-S line, is Central America's youngest volcano. Since its formation in 1850, Cerro Negro has produced frequent explosive eruptions, building a 250-m-high cinder cone surrounded by a fresh lava field. This 1995 photo from the southernmost of the older cones to the NNE shows flow levees and lava flows at the left side of Cerro Negro that were produced during the 1995 eruption. The vegetated peak in the background is part of the Las Pilas complex.
Cerro Negro, the largest and youngest of a group of four cinder cones that were constructed along a N-S line, is Central America's youngest volcano. Since its formation in 1850, Cerro Negro has produced frequent explosive eruptions, building a 250-m-high cinder cone surrounded by a fresh lava field. This 1995 photo from the southernmost of the older cones to the NNE shows flow levees and lava flows at the left side of Cerro Negro that were produced during the 1995 eruption. The vegetated peak in the background is part of the Las Pilas complex. · Photo: Photo by Britt Hill, 1995 (Southwest Research Institute). · Wikimedia Commons
Type
Pyroclastic cone
Country
Nicaragua
Region
Middle America-Caribbean Volcanic Regions / Central America Volcanic Arc
Elevation
728m
Coordinates
12.506, -86.702
Last eruption
1999
Tectonic setting
Subduction zone / Continental crust (> 25 km)
Landform
Minor
Major rock type
Basalt / Picro-Basalt
Geological summary

Nicaragua's youngest volcano, Cerro Negro, was created following an eruption that began in April 1850 about 2 km NW of the summit of Las Pilas volcano. It is the largest, southernmost, and most recent of a group of four youthful cinder cones constructed along a NNW-SSE-trending line in the central Marrabios Range. Strombolian-to-subplinian eruptions at intervals of a few years to several decades have constructed a roughly 250-m-high basaltic cone and an associated lava field constrained by topography to extend primarily NE and SW. Cone and crater morphology have varied significantly during its short eruptive history. Although it lies in a relatively unpopulated area, occasional heavy ashfalls have damaged crops and buildings.

From Wikipedia

Cerro Negro is an active volcano in the Cordillera de los Maribios mountain range in Nicaragua, about 10 km (6.2 mi) from the village of Malpaisillo. It is a very new volcano, the youngest in Central America, having first appeared in April 1850. It consists of a gravelly basaltic cinder cone, which contrasts greatly with the surrounding verdant hillsides, and gives rise to its name, which means Black Hill. Cerro Negro has erupted frequently since its first eruption. One unusual aspect of several eruptions has been the emission of ash from the top of the cone, while lava erupts from fractures at the base.

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Eruption history

Summary (VEI over time)
Click a bar to see individual eruptions
1850~1865 · 1 eruptions · max VEI 21865~1880 · 1 eruptions · max VEI 21895~1910 · 1 eruptions · max VEI 21910~1925 · 3 eruptions · max VEI 31925~1939 · 1 eruptions · max VEI 21939~1954 · 5 eruptions · max VEI 31954~1969 · 8 eruptions · max VEI 31969~1984 · 1 eruptions · max VEI 31984~1999 · 3 eruptions · max VEI 318501880192519541984

Detailed timeline

  1. 1999VEI 2Observed
    1999-08-05 – 1999-08-07
    South flank (near Cristo Rey crater)
  2. 1995VEI 2Observed
    1995-05-29 – 1995-12-06
  3. 1992VEI 3Observed
    1992-04-09 – 1992-04-14
  4. 1971VEI 3Observed
    1971-02-03 – 1971-02-14
    Summit and east flank
  5. 1969VEI 1Observed
    1969-12-19 – 1969-12-29
  6. 1968VEI 3Observed
    1968-10-23 – 1968-12-10
    Summit and south flank
  7. 1964VEI 2Geological estimate
    1964-07-02 – Ongoing
  8. 1963VEI 1Observed
    1963-03-16 – Ongoing
  9. 1962VEI 2Observed
    1962-03-21 – 1962-04-16
  10. 1961VEI 1Observed
    1961-10-25 – Ongoing
    NE-flank fissure
  11. 1960VEI 3Observed
    1960-09-28 – 1960-12-26
    Summit and south flank
  12. 1957VEI 2Observed
    1957-09-04 – 1957-09-24
    Summit and east flank
  13. 1954VEI 2Observed
    1954-02-16 – 1954-02-16
  14. 1950VEI 3Observed
    1950-11-21 – 1950-12-17
  15. 1949VEI 2Observed
    1949-06 – 1949-06
  16. 1948VEI 2Observed
    1948-03-31 – Ongoing
  17. 1947VEI 3Observed
    1947-07-09 – 1947-08-02
    Summit and NE flank
  18. 1929VEI 2Observed
    1929-02-10 – 1929-03
  19. 1923VEI 3Observed
    1923-10-23 – 1923-12-11
    Summit and upper north flank
  20. 1919VEI 2Observed
    1919-06-20 – 1919-06-30
  21. 1914VEI 2Observed
    1914-10-28 – 1914-11-03
  22. 1899VEI 2Observed
    1899-11-22 – 1899-11-29
  23. 1867VEI 2Observed
    1867-11-14 – 1867-11-30
    NE-SW-trending fissure
  24. 1850VEI 2Observed
    1850-04-13 – 1850-05-27

External links

⚠ For reference only. Not for emergency response.