Lake Ilopango
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Lake Ilopango | |
|---|---|
 Lake Ilopango seen from Santiago Texacuangos |
|
| Elevation | 450 m (1,476 ft) |
| Location | El Salvador |
| Coordinates | 13°40′N 89°03′W / 13.67°N 89.05°W |
| Type | Caldera |
| Last eruption | 1880 |
| Lake Ilopango | |
|---|---|
| Location | Central El Salvador |
| Coordinates | 13°40′N 89°03′W / 13.67°N 89.05°WCoordinates: 13°40′N 89°03′W / 13.67°N 89.05°W |
| Lake type | crater lake |
| Basin countries | El Salvador |
| Max. length | 11 km (6.8 mi) |
| Max. width | 8 km (5.0 mi) |
| Surface area | 72 km2 (28 sq mi) |
| Max. depth | 230 m (750 ft) |
| Surface elevation | 440 m (1,400 ft) |
| Islands | Islas Quemadas |
Lake Ilopango is a crater lake which fills a scenic 8 x 11 km (72 km2 or 28 sq mi) volcanic caldera in central El Salvador. It is the largest lake in the country and is located immediately east of the capital city, San Salvador. The caldera formed during a cataclysmic eruption in the 5th century AD[1] which produced widespread pyroclastic flows and devastated Mayan cities. This eruption produced about 25 km3 (6.0 cu mi) of tephra (20 times as much as the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens), thus rating a 6 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index.
Later eruptions formed several lava domes within the lake and near its shore. The only historical eruption in 1879–80 produced a lava dome which reached the surface of the lake, forming the islets known as Islas Quemadas.[2]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Dull, Robert A.; Southon, John R.; Sheets, Payson (2001). "Volcanism, Ecology and Culture: A Reassessment of the Volcan Ilopango Tbj eruption in the Southern Maya Realm". Latin American Antiquity 12 (1): 25–44. doi:.
- ^ Golombek, Matthew P.; Carr, Michael J. (1978). "Tidal triggering of seismic and volcanic phenomena during the 1879–1880 eruption of Islas Quemadas volcano in El Salvador, Central America". Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 3 (3–4): 299–307. doi:.
[edit] External links
 |
This El Salvador location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
