Global Volcanism Program

The Global Volcanism Program has no activity reports available for Mageik.

The Global Volcanism Program has no Weekly Reports available for Mageik.

The Global Volcanism Program has no Bulletin Reports available for Mageik.

The Global Volcanism Program has no synonyms or subfeatures listed for Mageik.

Basic Data

Volcano Number

Last Known Eruption

Elevation

Latitude
Longitude

312150

500 BCE

2,165 m / 7,103 ft

58.195°N
155.253°W

Morphology

Volcano Landform
Composite

Volcano Types
Stratovolcano
Lava dome(s)
Pyroclastic cone(s)

Rock Types

Major
Andesite / Basaltic Andesite
Dacite

Tectonic Setting

Subduction zone
Continental crust (> 25 km)

Population

Within 5 km
Within 10 km
Within 30 km
Within 100 km

0
0
0
376

Geological Summary

Mount Mageik is a broad ice-capped stratovolcano at the head of the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes across Katmai Pass from Trident volcano. Four small overlapping peaks form the broad summit, three of which lie along a NE-SW trend south of the northern peak. The central summit consists of a lava dome, while the E, SW, and N volcanoes are capped by fragmental cones with ice-filled craters. The three westernmost summits are glaciated and of primarily Pleistocene age, but the East Mageik summit cone was the source of at least six Holocene eruptive episodes and fed Holocene lava flows that descended toward Katmai Pass and cover the NE-to-SE flanks of the volcano. A 300-m-wide explosion crater between the east and central summits that formed about 2,400-2,500 years ago contains a shallow, acidic lake and many superheated fumarole jets. Three Holocene debris avalanches from S-flank failures descended into the Martin Creek drainages, one perhaps reaching the coast. Reports of observed eruptions during 1927-1946 CE are considered uncertain (Miller et al., 1998; Hildreth and Fierstein, 2000).

References

The following references have all been used during the compilation of data for this volcano, it is not a comprehensive bibliography.

Coats R R, 1950. Volcanic activity in the Aleutian Arc. U S Geol Surv Bull, 974-B: 35-47.

Fenner C N, 1930. Mount Katmai and Mount Mageik. Zeit Vulk, 13: 1-24.

Fierstein J, 2007. Explosive eruptive record in the Katmai region, Alaska Peninsula: an overview. Bull Volcanol, 69: 469-509.

Henning R A, Rosenthal C H, Olds B, Reading E (eds), 1976. Alaska's volcanoes, northern link in the ring of fire. Alaska Geog, 4: 1-88.

Hildreth W, 1987. New perspectives on the eruption of 1912 in the Valley of Ten Tousand Smokes, Katmai National Park, Alaska. Bull Volcanol, 49: 680-693.

Hildreth W, Fierstein J, 2000. Katmai volcanic cluster and the great eruption of 1912. Geol Soc Amer Bull, 112: 1594-1620.

Hildreth W, Fierstein J, Lanphere M A, Siems D F, 2000. Mount Mageik: a compound stratovolcano in Katmai National Park. In: Kelly K D, Gough L P (eds), Geologic Studies in Alaska by the U. S. Geological Survey, 1998 U S Geol Surv Prof Pap, 1615: 23-41.

Hildreth W, Lanphere M A, Fierstein J, 2003. Geochronology and eruptive history of the Katmai volcanic cluster, Alaska Peninsula. Earth Planet Sci Lett, 214: 93-114.

IAVCEI, 1973-80. Post-Miocene Volcanoes of the World. IAVCEI Data Sheets, Rome: Internatl Assoc Volc Chemistry Earth's Interior.

Miller T P, McGimsey R G, Richter D H, Riehle J R, Nye C J, Yount M E, Dumoulin J A, 1998. Catalogue of the historically active volcanoes of Alaska. U S Geol Surv Open-File Rpt, 98-582: 1-104.

Motyka R J, Liss S A, Nye C J, Moorman M A, 1993. Geothermal resources of the Aleutian arc. Alaska Div Geol Geophys Surv, Prof Rpt, no 114, 17 p and 4 map sheets.

Smith R L, Shaw H R, Luedke R G, Russell S L, 1978. Comprehensive tables giving physical data and thermal energy estimates for young igneous systems of the United States. U S Geol Surv Open-File Rpt, 78-925: 1-25.

Wood C A, Kienle J (eds), 1990. Volcanoes of North America. Cambridge, England: Cambridge Univ Press, 354 p.

Eruptive History

There is data available for 8 confirmed Holocene eruptive periods.

[ 1946 ] Uncertain Eruption

Episode 1 | Uncertain

1946 - Unknown

Evidence from Unknown

Coats (1950) listed an uncertain report of a large explosive eruption in 1946. Hildreth (1987) and Miller et al. (1998) doubt the reliability of this report.

List of 2 Events for Episode 1

	Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
	- - - -	- - - -	Explosion	Uncertain
	1946	- - - -	VEI (Explosivity Index)

[ 1936 Jul 4 - 1936 Jul 5 ] Uncertain Eruption

Episode 1 | Uncertain

1936 Jul 4 - 1936 Jul 5

Evidence from Unknown

Coats (1950) listed a large explosive eruption during 4-5 July 1936. Miller et al. (1998) and Hildreth and Fierstein (2000) questioned the validity of this eruption.

List of 3 Events for Episode 1

Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
- - - -	- - - -	Explosion	Uncertain
- - - -	- - - -	Ash	Uncertain
1936 Jul 4	- - - -	VEI (Explosivity Index)

[ 1929 Aug 19 - 1929 Dec ] Uncertain Eruption

Episode 1 | Uncertain

1929 Aug 19 - 1929 Dec

Evidence from Unknown

Ward and Matumoto (1967) reported "smoking" on 19 August 1929 and ashfall. Coats (1950) reported that the volcano was active in December 1929. Windblown ash is common in the Katmai area and Hildreth (1987) reported no evidence of deposits from historical eruptions of Mageik.

List of 3 Events for Episode 1

Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
- - - -	- - - -	Ash	Uncertain
- - - -	- - - -	Volcanic "smoke"	Uncertain
1929 Aug 19	- - - -	VEI (Explosivity Index)

[ 1927 Aug 26 ± 5 days ] Uncertain Eruption

Episode 1 | Uncertain

1927 Aug 26 ± 5 days - Unknown

Evidence from Unknown

Jagger (1927) recorded a ship captain's report of a five-day explosive eruption in late August 1927 that deposited ash and pumice in Shelikof Strait. Fenner (1930) considered the report valid, but Hildreth and Fierstein (2000) and Miller et al. (1998) questioned reports of historical eruptions from Mageik.

List of 4 Events for Episode 1

Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
- - - -	- - - -	Explosion	Uncertain
- - - -	- - - -	Ash	Uncertain
- - - -	- - - -	Pumice	Uncertain
1927 Aug 26 ± 5 days	- - - -	VEI (Explosivity Index)

0500 BCE ± 50 years Confirmed Eruption

Episode 1 | Eruption

Between East and Central Mageik

0500 BCE ± 50 years - Unknown

Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (uncalibrated)

List of 2 Events for Episode 1 at Between East and Central Mageik

	Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
	- - - -	- - - -	Phreatic activity
	- - - -	- - - -	Ash

0550 BCE (?) Confirmed Eruption

Episode 1 | Eruption

East Mageik

0550 BCE (?) - Unknown

Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (uncalibrated)

List of 2 Events for Episode 1 at East Mageik

	Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
	- - - -	- - - -	Explosion
	- - - -	- - - -	Ash

0650 BCE (?) Confirmed Eruption

Episode 1 | Eruption

East Mageik

0650 BCE (?) - Unknown

Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (uncalibrated)

List of 2 Events for Episode 1 at East Mageik

	Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
	- - - -	- - - -	Explosion
	- - - -	- - - -	Ash

1650 BCE (?) Confirmed Eruption

Episode 1 | Eruption

East Mageik

1650 BCE (?) - Unknown

Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (uncalibrated)

List of 3 Events for Episode 1 at East Mageik

Start Date	End Date	Event Type
- - - -	- - - -	Explosion
- - - -	- - - -	Lava flow
- - - -	- - - -	Ash

1950 BCE ± 100 years Confirmed Eruption

Episode 1 | Eruption

East Mageik, ODLF tephra

1950 BCE ± 100 years - Unknown

Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (uncalibrated)

List of 4 Events for Episode 1 at East Mageik, ODLF tephra

Start Date	End Date	Event Type
- - - -	- - - -	Explosion
- - - -	- - - -	Lava flow
- - - -	- - - -	Ash
- - - -	- - - -	Lapilli

4400 BCE ± 300 years Confirmed Eruption

Episode 1 | Eruption

East Mageik

4400 BCE ± 300 years - Unknown

Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (uncalibrated)

List of 2 Events for Episode 1 at East Mageik

	Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
	- - - -	- - - -	Explosion
	- - - -	- - - -	Ash

7380 BCE ± 150 years Confirmed Eruption

Episode 1 | Eruption

East Mageik

7380 BCE ± 150 years - Unknown

Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (calibrated)

List of 2 Events for Episode 1 at East Mageik

	Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
	- - - -	- - - -	Explosion
	- - - -	- - - -	Ash

8670 BCE ± 300 years Confirmed Eruption

Episode 1 | Eruption

East Mageik

8670 BCE ± 300 years - Unknown

Evidence from Isotopic: 14C (calibrated)

List of 2 Events for Episode 1 at East Mageik

	Start Date	End Date	Event Type	Event Remarks
	- - - -	- - - -	Explosion
	- - - -	- - - -	Ash

Deformation History

There is data available for 1 deformation periods. Expand each entry for additional details.

Deformation during 1995 - 2010 [Uplift; Observed by InSAR]

Start Date: 1995

Stop Date: 2010

Direction: Uplift

Method: InSAR

Magnitude: Unknown

Spatial Extent: 20.00 km

Latitude: 58.000

Longitude: -155.000

Remarks: A deformation signal near Martin, Mageik, and Trident volcanoes has been observed with InSAR. There is a gap in InSAR data coverage between 2000 and 2004, but the uplift is likely continuous.

Averaged deformation images of the Mount Martin?Mount Mageik area produced by stacking high- quality ERS-1 and ERS-2 interferograms for 1995?2000 from two ascending tracks, 021 and 250. Ellipse outlines an area of subsidence near Novarupta dome. A full cycle of colors (i.e., one interferometric fringe) represents 28 mm/year of LOS surface displacement. Areas of loss of InSAR coherence are not colored. See Fig. 6.197 for meanings of labels

From: Lu and Dzurisin 2014.

Reference List: Lu and Dzurisin 2014.

Full References:

Lu Z, Dzurisin D, 2014. InSAR imaging of Aleutian volcanoes: monitoring a volcanic arc from space. Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-00348-6

Emission History

There is no Emissions History data available for Mageik.

Photo Gallery

Glacier-covered Mount Mageik, seen here from the north, is a broad stratovolcano that is the SW-most of a group of volcanoes encircling Novarupta volcano. Despite its extensive glacial cover, it is only moderately dissected, and most of its exposed lava flows are of Holocene age. Its elongated summit contains four knobs that were spatter and lava-flow vents. Reports of historical eruptions during the 20th century are of variable certainty.

Copyrighted photo by Katia and Maurice Krafft, 1978.

The summit crater of glacier-covered Mount Mageik appears in the foreground of this 1978 view looking NE across Katmai Pass to Trident volcano. These two volcanoes stand guard at the head of the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. Mageik's young crater contains a shallow turbulent lake. The fresh, black lava flows descending the SW flank of Trident volcano were emplaced in a series of eruptions during 1953-1966.

Copyrighted photo by Katia and Maurice Krafft, 1978.

Mount Mageik is in the center of this aerial view from the east, south of Katmai Pass. Martin forms the skyline left of Mageik, and lava flows on the flanks of Trident volcano are visible to the middle right. The three volcanoes are part of a NE-SW chain across Katmai National Park. Much of the surface of Mageik is composed of Holocene lava flows.

Photo by Christina Neal, 1990 (U.S. Geological Survey, Alaska Volcano Observatory).

Mount Mageik (left) and Mount Martin (distant right) tower above the flat floor of the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. The deposits in the valley are pyroclastic flows that formed during the 1912 eruption of Novarupta, the largest eruption of the 20th century. Glacier-covered Mageik has a broad summit containing multiple cones and vents.

Photo by Game McGimsey (U.S. Geological Survey, Alaska Volcano Observatory).

GVP Map Holdings

Maps are not currently available due to technical issues.

Smithsonian Sample Collections Database

There are no samples for Mageik in the Smithsonian's NMNH Department of Mineral Sciences Rock and Ore collection.

External Sites

Alaska Volcano Observatory (Link to Mageik)

The Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO) is a joint program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Geophysical Institute of the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAFGI), and the State of Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys (ADGGS). AVO was formed in 1988, and uses federal, state, and university resources to monitor and study Alaska's hazardous volcanoes, to predict and record eruptive activity, and to mitigate volcanic hazards to life and property.

Copernicus Browser

The Copernicus Browser replaced the Sentinel Hub Playground browser in 2023, to provide access to Earth observation archives from the Copernicus Data Space Ecosystem, the main distribution platform for data from the EU Copernicus missions.

MIROVA

Middle InfraRed Observation of Volcanic Activity (MIROVA) is a near real time volcanic hot-spot detection system based on the analysis of MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) data. In particular, MIROVA uses the Middle InfraRed Radiation (MIR), measured over target volcanoes, in order to detect, locate and measure the heat radiation sourced from volcanic activity.

MODVOLC Thermal Alerts

Using infrared satellite Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data, scientists at the Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawai'i, developed an automated system called MODVOLC to map thermal hot-spots in near real time. For each MODIS image, the algorithm automatically scans each 1 km pixel within it to check for high-temperature hot-spots. When one is found the date, time, location, and intensity are recorded. MODIS looks at every square km of the Earth every 48 hours, once during the day and once during the night, and the presence of two MODIS sensors in space allows at least four hot-spot observations every two days. Each day updated global maps are compiled to display the locations of all hot spots detected in the previous 24 hours. There is a drop-down list with volcano names which allow users to 'zoom-in' and examine the distribution of hot-spots at a variety of spatial scales.

WOVOdat
   Single Volcano View
   Temporal Evolution of Unrest
   Side by Side Volcanoes

WOVOdat is a database of volcanic unrest; instrumentally and visually recorded changes in seismicity, ground deformation, gas emission, and other parameters from their normal baselines. It is sponsored by the World Organization of Volcano Observatories (WOVO) and presently hosted at the Earth Observatory of Singapore.

GVMID Data on Volcano Monitoring Infrastructure The Global Volcano Monitoring Infrastructure Database GVMID, is aimed at documenting and improving capabilities of volcano monitoring from the ground and space. GVMID should provide a snapshot and baseline view of the techniques and instrumentation that are in place at various volcanoes, which can be use by volcano observatories as reference to setup new monitoring system or improving networks at a specific volcano. These data will allow identification of what monitoring gaps exist, which can be then targeted by remote sensing infrastructure and future instrument deployments.

Volcanic Hazard Maps

The IAVCEI Commission on Volcanic Hazards and Risk has a Volcanic Hazard Maps database designed to serve as a resource for hazard mappers (or other interested parties) to explore how common issues in hazard map development have been addressed at different volcanoes, in different countries, for different hazards, and for different intended audiences. In addition to the comprehensive, searchable Volcanic Hazard Maps Database, this website contains information about diversity of volcanic hazard maps, illustrated using examples from the database. This site is for educational purposes related to volcanic hazard maps. Hazard maps found on this website should not be used for emergency purposes. For the most recent, official hazard map for a particular volcano, please seek out the proper institutional authorities on the matter.

IRIS seismic stations/networks

Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS) Data Services map showing the location of seismic stations from all available networks (permanent or temporary) within a radius of 0.18° (about 20 km at mid-latitudes) from the given location of Mageik. Users can customize a variety of filters and options in the left panel. Note that if there are no stations are known the map will default to show the entire world with a "No data matched request" error notice.

UNAVCO GPS/GNSS stations

Geodetic Data Services map from UNAVCO showing the location of GPS/GNSS stations from all available networks (permanent or temporary) within a radius of 20 km from the given location of Mageik. Users can customize the data search based on station or network names, location, and time window. Requires Adobe Flash Player.

DECADE Data

The DECADE portal, still in the developmental stage, serves as an example of the proposed interoperability between The Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program, the Mapping Gas Emissions (MaGa) Database, and the EarthChem Geochemical Portal. The Deep Earth Carbon Degassing (DECADE) initiative seeks to use new and established technologies to determine accurate global fluxes of volcanic CO₂ to the atmosphere, but installing CO₂ monitoring networks on 20 of the world's 150 most actively degassing volcanoes. The group uses related laboratory-based studies (direct gas sampling and analysis, melt inclusions) to provide new data for direct degassing of deep earth carbon to the atmosphere.

Large Eruptions of Mageik

Information about large Quaternary eruptions (VEI >= 4) is cataloged in the Large Magnitude Explosive Volcanic Eruptions (LaMEVE) database of the Volcano Global Risk Identification and Analysis Project (VOGRIPA).

EarthChem

EarthChem develops and maintains databases, software, and services that support the preservation, discovery, access and analysis of geochemical data, and facilitate their integration with the broad array of other available earth science parameters. EarthChem is operated by a joint team of disciplinary scientists, data scientists, data managers and information technology developers who are part of the NSF-funded data facility Integrated Earth Data Applications (IEDA). IEDA is a collaborative effort of EarthChem and the Marine Geoscience Data System (MGDS).