Nevado Cayambe is a massive volcanic complex in northern Ecuador, 60 km NE of the city of Quito and only 15 km E of the 20,000 inhabitants city of Cayambe. The equator passes through its southern flank. The andesitic-dacitic volcano is located on the isolated western edge of the Cordillera Real in the Ecuadorian Andes, east of the Inter-Andean Valley.
The volcano is capped by extensive glaciers, which descend to 4200 m on the eastern Amazonian side. It contains 2 summit lava domes located about 1.5 km apart, the western of which is the highest. Several other lava domes are located on the upper flanks and have been the source of pyroclastic flows down the lower flanks of the volcano.
La Virgen is a prominent young cinder cone on the lower eastern flank, which erupted thick andesitic lava flows that reached 10 km to the east.
There is only one confirmed historic eruption, during 1785-86, but recent studies have shown that the volcano has produced frequent explosive eruptions during the past 4000 years.