Ascensión volcano
Stratovolcano 858 m / 2,815 ft
Central Atlantic Ocean, UK, -7.95°S / -14.37°W
Current status: normal or dormant (1 out of 5) | Reports
Ascensión volcano books
Central Atlantic Ocean, UK, -7.95°S / -14.37°W
Current status: normal or dormant (1 out of 5) | Reports
Ascensión volcano books
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Typical eruption style: unspecified
Ascensión volcano eruptions: unknown, no recent eruptions
Ascensión volcano eruptions: unknown, no recent eruptions
| Time | Mag. / Depth | Distance | Location |
Background:
Ascensión Island, located just west of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, was discovered on Ascensión Day, 1501, by the Portuguese navigator Joao da Nova. Ascensión is the broad emergent summit of a massive stratovolcano that rises 3000 m above the sea floor. The isolated island, 1130 km from the nearest land, is dotted with more than 100 youthful parasitic cones and lava domes, many aligned along two fissures. Basaltic rocks dominate on the 858-m-high island, although trachytic lava domes are also present, mostly on the eastern side. Although no eruptive activity has occurred since its discovery during the 16th century, many volcanic features on Ascensión have a very youthful appearance. Two of the youngest lava flows were erupted from flank vents and reached the sea on the northern and southern coasts.---
Smithsonian / GVP volcano information
Ascensión Photos:
 ascensionauvolcan.jpg (Photo: Yashmin Chebli) |
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