This thick outcrop exposes deposits of the 1,800-year-old Taupo eruption, one of the world's largest during the past 10,000 years. The Taupo eruption produced phreatomagmatic surge deposits, Plinian tephra deposits, and the overlying Taupo ignimbrite, seen at the upper half of this photo above the thin, light-colored layers. The eruption occurred from a vent at Horomatangi Reefs, now submerged beneath Lake Taupo.

Photo by Richard Waitt, 1986 (U.S. Geological Survey).

This image is made available as a Public Domain Work, but proper attribution is appreciated.

Galleries: Volcanic Outcrops | Fieldwork

Keywords: outcrop | stratigraphy | geology | field work | volcanologist | deposit | tephra

Taupo