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Report on Telica (Nicaragua) — 25 November-1 December 2015


Telica

Smithsonian Institution / US Geological Survey
Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 25 November-1 December 2015
Managing Editor: Sally Sennert.

Please cite this report as:

Global Volcanism Program, 2015. Report on Telica (Nicaragua) (Sennert, S, ed.). Weekly Volcanic Activity Report, 25 November-1 December 2015. Smithsonian Institution and US Geological Survey.

Weekly Report (25 November-1 December 2015)

Telica

Nicaragua

12.606°N, 86.84°W; summit elev. 1036 m

All times are local (unless otherwise noted)


INETER reported that four 5-minute-long explosions at Telica were detected at 0602, 0818, 0934, and 1124 on 25 November, and generated ash-and-ash emissions. On 26 November multiple gas-and-ash explosions were detected; the strongest explosion occurred at 0941 and produced an ash plume that rose more than 800 m above the crater. During 26-27 November a total of 29 explosions were detected, with 16 of those producing ash plumes.

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.

Source: Instituto Nicaragüense de Estudios Territoriales (INETER)