IG reported that a high level of activity continued at Reventador during 10-17 May, though cloudy weather conditions sometimes prevented visual observations, particularly during 14-15 May. Gas-and-ash plumes, often observed multiple times a day as reported by the Washington VAAC, rose as high as 1 km above the summit and drifted mainly NW and W. Incandescence from the crater and incandescent blocks rolling 600 m down the flanks was visible during 10-13 May. During the morning of 17 May a new lava flow descended the NE flank.

Geological Summary. Volcán El Reventador is the most frequently active of a chain of Ecuadorian volcanoes in the Cordillera Real, well east of the principal volcanic axis. The forested, dominantly andesitic stratovolcano has 4-km-wide avalanche scarp open to the E formed by edifice collapse. A young, unvegetated, cone rises from the amphitheater floor to a height comparable to the rim. It has been the source of numerous lava flows as well as explosive eruptions visible from Quito, about 90 km ESE. Frequent lahars in this region of heavy rainfall have left extensive deposits on the scarp slope. The largest recorded eruption took place in 2002, producing a 17-km-high eruption column, pyroclastic flows that traveled up to 8 km, and lava flows from summit and flank vents.

Source: Instituto Geofísico-Escuela Politécnica Nacional (IG-EPN)