The headland of Cape Thera above Phira harbor. The light-brown, cliff-forming unit above the harbor is the Cape Thera Ignimbrite. Above the cliffs is a sequence of sloping pyroclastic deposits and paleosols, which underlies the prominent thinner dark-colored layer at the top of the photo. This is the Middle Pumice unit, a welded Plinian pumice-fall deposit erupted about 100,000 years ago and thought to originate from a vent west of Phira. The lower-angle slopes above it are lithic breccias of the Middle Pumice eruption.

Photo by Lee Siebert, 1994 (Smithsonian Institution).

This image is made available under the Public Domain Dedication CC0 license, but proper attribution is appreciated.

Galleries: Volcanic Outcrops

Keywords: caldera | outcrop | geology | deposit

Santorini