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Mombacho   »  Summary

Mombacho

Mombacho Photo

Country:Nicaragua
Subregion Name:Nicaragua
Volcano Number:1404-11=
Volcano Type: Stratovolcano
Volcano Status:Holocene
Last Known Eruption: Unknown
Summit Elevation: 1344 m 4,409 feet
Latitude: 11.826°N 11°49'34"N
Longitude: 85.968°W 85°58'3"W

Mombacho is an andesitic and basaltic stratovolcano on the shores of Lake Nicaragua south of the city of Granada that has undergone edifice collapse on several occasions. Two large horseshoe-shaped craters formed by edifice failure cut the summit on the NE and southern flanks. The NE-flank scarp was the source of a large debris avalanche that produced an arcuate peninsula and a cluster of small islands (Las Isletas) in Lake Nicaragua. Two small, well-preserved cinder cones are located on the volcano's lower northern flank. The only reported historical activity was in 1570, when a debris avalanche destroyed a village on the south side of the volcano. Although there were contemporary reports of an explosion, there is no direct evidence that the avalanche was accompanied by an eruption. Fumarolic fields and hot springs are found within the two collapse scarps and on the upper northern flank.

Global Volcanism ProgramDepartment of Mineral SciencesNational Museum of Natural HistorySmithsonian Institution

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