A volcano is a space on the earth's crust that gives way to hot lava and other gases to escape. The classification of volcanoes is into two main categories. They can either be active in dormant/extinct volcanoes. Active volcanoes are the ones that have a recent history of eruption while dormant volcanoes have undergone an explosion for a very long time. Santa Maria Volcano, Guatemala, is one of the most active volcanoes on earth. The volcanism is estimated to be 30,000 years of age and mainly occurs at the composite cone lava. The volcano was inactive at first but later on, became active, and erupted for the first time on October 25, 1902. The essay will focus on the active volcano of Santa Maria by discussing some of its characteristics. The name of the volcano Santa Maria is because of its geographical location. The volcano is located in Guatemala in the highland regions. The place is the home of Santiaguito, which is one of the most active domes of lava across the globe. The highlands of Guatemala were the home of many catholic saints. The saints are the ones who gave the volcano the name as a dedication to the Virgin Mary. The name Santa means a female saint who is innocent. Just like it was in the early days, the mountain was dormant and thus a saint. The volcano is parallel to the Pacific coast, and that might be a contribution to its eruption. Santa Maria volcano eruption is in southwest Guatemala in the highland regions. The place is near the Pacific Ocean and borders El Salvador to the southeast and Mexico to the Northwest. There are four other main domes in the area whose combination led to the creation the Santa Maria volcano. The most active crown among the four is El Caliente, which undergoes frequent explosions (Oregon State University, 2020). The formation of the four domes took place after the first rapid explosion of the mountain in 1902. In the years, the blast of Santa Maria was a trigger to the crowns, and they have been expanding ever since. Santa Maria is a stratovolcano that results from basaltic andesite. The first eruption of the mountain was the most horrific in history. The eruption lasted for nineteen days and moved at a distance of 1.3 cubic miles (Oregon State University, 2020). Stratovolcanoes constitute the largest percentage of volcanoes taking place across the globe. Andesite and dacite are the major releases of volcanoes. The release is layers of lava, which is more relaxed and denser, resulting in pressure creation. The pressure created by the layers of lava led to a massive explosion, and that is what makes this type of volcano more dangerous and destructive. The age of the volcano is dated back 30,000 years ago. There are no historical records of the eruption of Santa Maria volcanoes. However, the oldest lava flow is what makes up 30,000 years old (Santa Maria Volcano, Guatemala, n.p). Data from magnets indicated that a larger portion of the volcano's growth took place between 1000 to 3000 years ago. After several earthquakes that had massive destruction in Guatemala, the mountain underwent an eruption for the first time. The blast resulted in the creation of a crater, which is approximately 0.5 cubic kilometers. The damages of the explosion spread up to 5 cubic kilometers and even impacted some parts of Mexico. The eruption of the mountain is due to the tectonic setting that is parallel to the Pacific Ocean. The highlands of Santa Maria were formed from the subduction taking place in the Cocos plate, which is found beneath the Caribbean (Ball, 2020). The subduction resulted in the creation of a line of stratovolcanoes that stretches along the coast of the Pacific. There is an overlay between the volcano and the base of carbonate in the region, including some igneous and other metamorphic stones. The basement of carbon creates pressure underneath the mountain and, in turn, results in a massive explosion and the release of many poisonous gases. The plate boundaries are moving in the opposite direction and against each other, creating friction and contributing to pressure build-up. The major eruption of Santa Maria was it was first in 1902. During the outbreak, there was the creation of pumice and several layers of lava. There was a drifting of ash from the eruption to the nearby towns, which created some severe breathing problems (Ball, 2020). There is water from the hills that readily mixes with the ash and flows to Guatemala's rivers, choking the rivers with mud. There was massive destruction of El Palmar, but people are still residing in the place and might be in danger as the volcano is still active and up to date. El Palmar and San Felipe are the mainly affected tows from the eruption as they are direct to the west of the domes. Basaltic andesite is the primary rock that the volcano produces during an eruption. However, there are other types of stones, such as dacite. The mountain's likelihood to erupt again in our lifetime is very high as it is still active. The most recent eruption of the mountain was in 2013, and people living close to the region are asked to vacate for their safety. The future explosion might be hazardous and fatal to humans, especially since they are encroaching on the area. People are using the land around the volcano for agricultural purposes, such as planting coffee. In case of a future eruption, they will be the largest affected.
References
Ball, J. (2020). Santa Maria Volcano – Guatemala: Santiaguito Lava Dome Complex.Geology.com. Retrieved from https://geology.com/volcanoes/santa-maria Accessed 16 September 2020.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Oregon State University. (2020). Volcano World: Santa Maria. Retrieved from http://volcano.oregonstate.edu/santa maria#:~:text=Santa%20Maria%20is%20a%20stratovolcano,km)%20of%20dacite%20pyroclastic%20debris Accessed 16 September 2020.
Santa Maria Volcano, Guatemala. Retrieved from http://www.geo.mtu.edu/volcanoes/santamaria/ Accessed 16 September 2020.
Oregon State University. (2020). Volcano World: Stratovolcanoes. Retrieved from http://volcano.oregonstate.edu/stratovolcanoes Accessed 16 September 2020.
