Skip to main content
← Back to map
⇄ Compare

Candlemas Island

Stratovolcano · United Kingdom · 550m

The glacier-covered peaks of Mount Andromeda (Ieft) and Mount Perseus (right) rise along the eastern side of Candlemas Island. Rocky beaches join this prominent southern part of the island to a low-relief ice-free area consisting of dark lava flows from Lucifer Hills in the north. Lucifer Hills is a complex of coalesced cinder cones with numerous active fumaroles, and dark clouds were seen emanating from the area in 1823 and 1911, indicating recent eruptions. A narrow spit, Demon Point, divides greenish Gorgon Pool from Kraken Cove (right). Medusa Pool lies below the cloud beyond Gorgon Pool. Vindication Island can be seen in the background, about 4.5 km from Candlemas. These two islands are part of the same volcanic edifice, with Vindication Island representing the oldest parts of the volcano.
The glacier-covered peaks of Mount Andromeda (Ieft) and Mount Perseus (right) rise along the eastern side of Candlemas Island. Rocky beaches join this prominent southern part of the island to a low-relief ice-free area consisting of dark lava flows from Lucifer Hills in the north. Lucifer Hills is a complex of coalesced cinder cones with numerous active fumaroles, and dark clouds were seen emanating from the area in 1823 and 1911, indicating recent eruptions. A narrow spit, Demon Point, divides greenish Gorgon Pool from Kraken Cove (right). Medusa Pool lies below the cloud beyond Gorgon Pool. Vindication Island can be seen in the background, about 4.5 km from Candlemas. These two islands are part of the same volcanic edifice, with Vindication Island representing the oldest parts of the volcano. · Photo: Photo by HMS Endurance (courtesy of John Smellie, British Antarctic Survey). · Wikimedia Commons
Type
Stratovolcano
Country
United Kingdom
Region
Antarctic-Scotia Volcanic Regions / South Sandwich Volcanic Arc
Elevation
550m
Coordinates
-57.080, -26.670
Last eruption
1911
Tectonic setting
Subduction zone / Oceanic crust (< 15 km)
Landform
Composite
Major rock type
Basalt / Picro-Basalt
Geological summary

The southern end of Candlemas Island consists of an eroded, glacier-covered basaltic stratovolcano cut by steep cliffs on the east. Lava flows along the cliff dip to the west, suggesting that the original summit vent was beyond the eastern shoreline. The northern end of the irregularly shaped, 6-km-long island consists of an andesitic-to-dacitic complex of scoria cones with radiating lava flows. These initially formed a separate island but now consist of a low attached platform that is estimated to be no more than a few hundred years old (LeMasurier and Thomson, 1990). Dark brown clouds mixed with white steam were reported in 1823 and 1911, but it has not been demonstrated which, if any, of the young north flank lava flows formed since the island was discovered in 1775. Geysers and hot pools have been observed on several occasions during the 20th century. Vindication Island, of possible Holocene age, is located 4.5 km west of Candlemas Island.

From Wikipedia

Candlemas Island is a small uninhabited island of the Candlemas Islands in the South Sandwich Islands. It is one of about a dozen islands that make up the South Sandwich island arc, a chain of volcanoes in the Southern Ocean that was discovered in 1775 by James Cook. The volcanism is caused by the subduction of the South American Plate beneath the Sandwich Plate. The island is remote and rarely visited due to the often hostile weather conditions, but is populated by penguins and seabirds, which form large breeding colonies.

Wikipedia · CC BY-SA · Read full article →

Eruption history

Summary (VEI over time)
Click a bar to see individual eruptions
1250 BCE~1062 BCE · 1 eruptions · max VEI ?1765~1953 · 3 eruptions · max VEI 21250 BCE496 BCE25710111765

Detailed timeline

  1. 1953VEI 0Geological estimate
    1953-12-31 – Ongoing
    NW flank (Lucifer Hill)
  2. 1911VEI 2Observed
    1911-11-06 – Ongoing
    NW flank (Lucifer Hill)
  3. 1823VEI 2Observed
    1823 – Ongoing
    NW flank (Lucifer Hill)
  4. 1250 BCEVEI ?Geological estimate
    BCE 1250 – Ongoing
    S Sandwich Is (probably Candlemass)

External links

⚠ For reference only. Not for emergency response.