Based on webcam views and satellite images, the Washington VAAC reported that on 26 May an ash plume from Telica drifted W at an altitude of 4.3 km (14,000 ft) a.s.l. Later that day a gas-and-ash plume rose to an altitude below 3 km (10,000 ft) a.s.l. and drifted 75 km W. INETER reported continuing small gas explosions during 28 May-1 June; a total of 798 explosions since an unspecified time of increased activity. Ashfall was reported in Posoltega (16 km SW), Corinto (40 km WSW), Chinandega (30 km W), Chichigalpa (20 km WSW), and El Realejo (35 km WSW).

Geological Summary. Telica, one of Nicaragua's most active volcanoes, has erupted frequently since the beginning of the Spanish era. This volcano group consists of several interlocking cones and vents with a general NW alignment. Sixteenth-century eruptions were reported at symmetrical Santa Clara volcano at the SW end of the group. However, its eroded and breached crater has been covered by forests throughout historical time, and these eruptions may have originated from Telica, whose upper slopes in contrast are unvegetated. The steep-sided cone of Telica is truncated by a 700-m-wide double crater; the southern crater, the source of recent eruptions, is 120 m deep. El Liston, immediately E, has several nested craters. The fumaroles and boiling mudpots of Hervideros de San Jacinto, SE of Telica, form a prominent geothermal area frequented by tourists, and geothermal exploration has occurred nearby.

Sources: Washington Volcanic Ash Advisory Center (VAAC), Instituto Nicaragüense de Estudios Territoriales (INETER)