Santiaguito Dec 2015: eruptions from Caliente
Impressions of Santiaguito volcano's activity during 26-28 Dec 2015 from our Guatemala volcano tour when we spent two nights on the summit of Santa Maria, more than 1000 m above the active lava dome - one (if not THE) best volcano observation spots in the world!
An eruption plume rises through the usual afternoon cloud cover over the coastal plain. (Photo: Tom ... [info]
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Steven films his first eruption from Santiaguito. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Degassing of the Caliente lava dome seen in moonlight. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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During one of the occasional stronger degassing phases which lasted up to 10-15 minutes, a loud jet-... [info]
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Caliente falls back to sleep after the degassing phase is over. Only very few incandescent spots are... [info]
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Low clouds engulf most of the lava dome during another jet-like degassing event. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffe... [info]
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View towards the western part of Guatemala's volcanic front with the silhouettes of Tacana (left bac... [info]
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A strombolian-type eruption from Santiaguito's Caliente vent. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Most of the erupted material is fine ash. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Around 3:30 am on 27 Dec 2015, a stronger explosion occurs at the summit of the active "Caliente" l... [info]
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Lots of incandescent bombs are ejected along with a dense, dark ash plume. Many glowing rockfalls oc... [info]
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The ash plume starts to rise, blackening out the moonlight. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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As rockfalls continue, the ash plume has now risen more than 1 km. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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After the ash plume has lifted, glowing bombs remain visible on the crater floor. (Photo: Tom Pfeiff... [info]
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Another, weaker explosion occurs only about 15 minutes later. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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A smaller ash plume rises from the "follow-up" eruption. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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The ash plume from the first eruption is now high above our viewpoint (3600 m a.s.l.) and spreads la... [info]
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View over the Santiaguito lava dome complex at dawn. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Dawn with first sunrays hitting trees and rocks beneath our observation spot. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Santa Maria's conical morning shadow over the western cordillera. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Caliente lava dome (left) and the old La Mitad dome (active between 1940-50) to the right. (Photo: T... [info]
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The fronts of the viscous lava flow on the SE side of the dome, which had been active in 2014. Towar... [info]
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The inactive El Monje lava dome (l), active in the 1950s, and the El Brujo dome (r), active in the 1... [info]
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The Santiaguito lava dome complex with its 4 domes seen from the summit of Santa Maria volcano. From... [info]
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A weak eruption in the morning of 27 Dec. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Another eruption in the afternoon sends an ash plume through the cloud deck covering the dome comple... [info]
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Weak eruption at night. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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A plume with only light ash content is produced by this eruption. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Dawn with first sunlight reaching the summit of Caliente dome. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Small morning eruption from Caliente dome (28 Dec). (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Moderate explosion with ash plume rising almost vertically. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Wide-angle view of the eruption, with a 1000 m tall plume. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Another, moderately strong explosion occurs on the morning of 28 Dec. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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The plume from the previous eruption has drifted east, leaving a trail in the atmosphere. (Photo: To... [info]
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A third eruption within one hour, but with less energy. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Looking at Santiaguito from the south shows the giant collapse scar in the southern side of Santa Ma... [info]
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