Popocatépetl Volcano

Popocatépetl Volcano Latest News

Recently, a team of scientists obtained the first 3D images from inside Mexico’s Popocatépetl volcano.

About Popocatépetl Volcano

• Popocatépetl means “Smoking Mountain” in the Aztec Nahuatl language.
• Location: It is located in central Mexico roughly 45 miles (72 kilometers) southeast of Mexico City. 
• It is on the border of the states of México and Puebla.
• The volcano lies on the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, which is the result of the small Cocos Plate subducting beneath the North American Plate.
• It is one of Mexico’s most active volcanoes, with recorded eruptions since 1519.
• Elevation: It is a steep-sided stratovolcano that rises to an elevation of 5452 m (17,883 ft) above sea level. 
• Popocatépetl is one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the Ring of Fire.

What is Stratovolcano?

• It is a tall, steep, and cone-shaped type of volcano.
• They are typically found above subduction zones, and they are often part of large volcanically active regions, such as the Ring of Fire that frames much of the Pacific Ocean.
• They comprise the largest percentage (~60%) of the Earth’s individual volcanoes.
  • These more viscous lavas allow gas pressures to build up to high levels. Therefore, these volcanoes often suffer explosive eruptions. 
• They are usually about half-half lava and pyroclastic material, and the layering of these products gives them their other common name of composite volcanoes.
• At the peak, stratovolcanoes usually have a small crater.

Source: TH

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