The remarkably linear island of San Jorge (Sao Jorge) is 54 km long and only 5 km wide. It was formed by fissure-fed eruptions beginning in the eastern part of the island. The western two-thirds of dominantly basaltic San Jorge contains youthful, fissure-fed lava flows resembling those on neighboring Pico Island. Subaerial lava flows issued from three locations above the south-central coast during 1580, producing lava flows that reached the sea. In 1808 a series of explosions took place from vents along the south-central crest of the island; one of these fed a lava flow that also reached the southern coast. Submarine eruptions were reported on several occasions from vents off the southern and SW coasts.