Huequi

Last updated

Huequi
Huequi.jpg
Highest point
Elevation 1,318 m (4,324 ft)
Coordinates 42°22′24″S72°34′48″W / 42.37333°S 72.58000°W / -42.37333; -72.58000 [1]
Geography
Relief Map of Chile.jpg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Huequi
Location of Huequi in southern Chile
Location Chile
Parent range Andes
Geology
Mountain type Stratovolcano
Last eruption 1920 (?)

Huequi (Spanish pronunciation: [weki] [2] ) is a volcano in the Los Lagos Region of Chile. It is in the Southern Volcanic Zone, in the centre of Ayacara Peninsula and close to the Gulf of Ancud. It is made up of a lava dome complex situated in a depression of unclear origin, a postglacial lava dome Calle and a Pleistocene volcano with Holocene parasitic cones, with a sharp summit at 1,318 metres (4,324 ft). There were reports of eruptions 1890–1920, and it is said to have "smoked" in 1935.

Contents

Geography and geology

The volcano is also known as Hueque, Relibuentu and Huequen. [3] It is in a remote region of southern Chile with no road access. There are only a few villages along the coast, [4] and little human modification of the environment. [5]

Huequi lies roughly at the centre of the Ayacara Peninsula east of the Gulf of Ancud. [4] Huequi is part of the Southern Volcanic Zone (SVZ), lying in its southern sector between the volcanoes Hornopiren and Chaiten-Minchinmavida; [4] Chaiten erupted in 2008. [5] Compared to other volcanoes in the SVZ it is small, rising only 400 metres (1,300 ft) from a curved depression [1] to an elevation of 1,318 metres (4,324 ft), and it lacks glaciers. [6] Huequi consists of a pile of lava domes that are heavily eroded and cut by sector collapses. A partially collapsed dome forms the summit. [1] A summit crater was reported as "narrow" in 1909 [2] and as 800 metres (2,600 ft) wide by the Global Volcanism Program. [7] Debris avalanches, partly channelled by a northwestward trending valley in the edifice, have formed a fan on that side of Huequi. [1] Pumice from the volcano has been carried to the sea by the Huequi River, which originates at the foot of Huequi. [8] Two additional cones are named Porcelana and Barranes Colorado [3] or Barranco Colorado; [9] there is also the Calle postglacial lava dome. [10] The Huequi volcano may be part of larger volcanic complexes that are now eroded. [11] The basement is formed by faulted granite and metamorphic rocks [4] of the North Patagonian Batholith. [9]

The subduction of the Nazca Plate under the South American Plate gives rise to the volcanism of the Andes. [12] In the southern sector between Yate and Cerro Hudson, where Huequi is located, the crust is thin and does not heavily influence the basaltic and basaltic andesite magmas. [1] East of the volcano passes the Liquine-Ofqui Fault Zone in a fjord; [4] the volcano lies on a separate, northwest-trending lineament. [13]

Composition

Huequi has erupted andesite and basaltic andesite, which have grey and red colours and feature both layered and brecciated sequences. [1] Dacite has also been reported. [14] The volcanic rocks define a calc-alkaline suite [15] that resembles the adakites of Nevado de Longavi. [16] The main phenocryst phase is plagioclase, followed by orthopyroxene and hornblende. [17] The lava domes contain columnar forms exposed in cliffs and dense porphyries. Compared to other volcanoes in this sector of the Southern Volcanic Zone, Huequi's magmas are water-rich. This may explain some peculiarities about its eruptive activity, as the water escapes from the magma and leaves a viscous andesite. [18]

Climate and vegetation

The region has a humid climate, with storm systems from the Pacific Ocean bringing about 2 m (79 in) [12] or 3–3.2 m (120–130 in) [5] of precipitation during autumn and winter. Mean annual temperatures are about 8 °C (46 °F). [12] It is covered by the Valdivian rainforest, with Amomyrtus meli , Drimys winteri , Luma apiculata , Nothofagus nitida and Podocarpus as representative plant species. [5]

Eruption history

Southeast of Huequi lie three small volcanoes, which probably erupted during the Pleistocene. [4] Porcelana is of Pleistocene age. [10] During the Holocene, the volcano repeatedly produced lava domes that frequently collapsed, and explosive eruptions that deposited tephra. [18] The debris avalanche deposits consist of older volcanic rocks, pumice and lithics from the basement. The collapses were not energetic, with most of the debris being confined by the surrounding topography; their heavy vegetation cover indicates that they are older than the most recent eruption. [19] Tephra layers in Lago Futalaufquen have been correlated to an eruption in AD 1645–1745. [20]

There are sparse reports of eruptions between 1890–1920, [4] with reports from the years 1890–91, 1893–94, 1895–96, 1906, 1917, 1920, and 1922. [21] The activity was visible from Chiloe [8] and Puerto Montt. [22] Some of this activity may relate to the 1906 Valparaíso earthquake. [23] These eruptions reached a volcanic explosivity index of 2–3 [24] and deposited patches of tephra to the north of the volcano. [25] Contemporary records indicate that the 1890 eruption deposited ash from Chiloe into Argentina. [26] The tephra consists of red and black scoria and pumice, formed presumably by Vulcanian eruptions. [25] The summit dome may have formed during this sequence. [1] The volcano was reportedly "smoking" in 1935. [27]

Porcelana geyser and Porcelana hot spring lie on the Ayacara Peninsula and are associated with Huequi. [28] The Porcelana geysers have produced pinnacles of travertine reaching heights of 2.5 metres (8 ft 2 in); this extreme size in a highly erosive environment may be due to microbial chemical processes. [9] The area has good potential for geothermal energy. [29]

See also

Related Research Articles

The Huanquihue Group is a group of young basaltic stratovolcanoes in Argentina near the border with Chile, south of Lanín volcano. The Huanquihue group is located south of Epulafquén Lake, north of Lolog Lake and west of Reigolil-Pirihueico Fault in Chile. Volcanism is associated with the Liquiñe-Ofqui Fault.

Risco Plateado is a stratovolcano in Argentina, with an elevation of 4,999 metres (16,401 ft) above sea level. With a prominence of 1,602 metres (5,256 ft), it is one of the many ultra prominent peaks in the Andes. The equilibrium line altitude of the volcano lies at an altitude of 3,800 metres (12,500 ft).

Viedma is a subglacial volcano whose existence is questionable. It is supposedly located below the ice of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field, an area disputed between Argentina and Chile. The 1988 eruption deposited ash and pumice on the ice field and produced a mudflow that reached Viedma Lake. The exact position of the edifice is unclear, both owing to the ice cover and because the candidate position, the "Viedma Nunatak", does not clearly appear to be of volcanic nature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nevado de Longaví</span> Volcano in Chile

Nevado de Longaví is a volcano in the Andes of central Chile. The 3,242 m (10,636 ft) high volcano lies in the Linares Province, which is part of the Maule Region. It features a summit crater and several parasitic vents. The volcano is constructed principally from lava flows. Two collapses of the edifice have carved collapse scars into the volcano, one on the eastern slope known as Lomas Limpias and another on the southwestern slope known as Los Bueye. The volcano features a glacier and the Achibueno and Blanco rivers originate on the mountain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lautaro (volcano)</span> Mountain in Chile

Lautaro is an active subglacial stratovolcano located in Chilean Patagonia, in the northern part of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field. Its summit rises roughly 2,400 m (7,900 ft) above the average surface of the ice cap plateau.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Puyuhuapi (volcanic group)</span>

Puyuhuapi Volcanic Group is a volcanic group of cinder cones located at the head of Puyuhuapi Channel, in the Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region of Chile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corcovado Volcano</span> Mountain in Chile

Corcovado Volcano is a stratovolcano located about 25 kilometres (16 mi) south of the mouth of the Yelcho River, in the Palena Province, Los Lagos Region, Chile. The glacially eroded volcano is flanked by Holocene cinder cones. The volcano's base has likely prehistoric lava flows that are densely vegetated. The most distinctive feature of this volcano is its stepped top, similar to that of Puntiagudo Volcano. At its foot lies a series of lakes. Corcovado dominates the landscape of the Gulf of Corcovado area and is visible from Chiloé Island, weather permitting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yanteles</span> Mountain in Chile

Yanteles is an isolated stratovolcano composed of five glacier-capped peaks along an 8 km-long NE-trending ridge. It is located approximately 30 km (19 mi) south of the Corcovado volcano in the Chilean X Region within the Corcovado National Park. The name Yanteles can refer only to the main summit, which is also known as Volcán Nevado.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melimoyu</span> Mountain in Chile

Melimoyu is a stratovolcano in Chile. It is an elongated volcanic complex that contains two nested calderas of 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) and 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) width. An ice cap has developed on the volcano with a couple of outlet glaciers. Melimoyu has not erupted in recent times, but during the Holocene two large eruptions took place and ejected ash at large distances from the volcano.

Mentolat is an ice-filled, 6 km (4 mi) wide caldera in the central portion of Magdalena Island, Aisén Province, Chilean Patagonia. This caldera sits on top of a stratovolcano which has generated lava flows and pyroclastic flows. The caldera is filled with a glacier.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aguilera (volcano)</span> Mountain in Chile

Aguilera is a stratovolcano in southern Chile, which rises above the edge of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field. It is a remote volcano that was identified as such in 1985, but the first ascent only occurred in 2014, making it the last unclimbed major Andean volcano.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taapaca</span> Volcano in Chile

Taapaca is a Holocene volcanic complex in northern Chile's Arica y Parinacota Region. Located in the Chilean Andes, it is part of the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andean Volcanic Belt, one of four distinct volcanic chains in South America. The town of Putre lies at the southwestern foot of the volcano.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sollipulli</span> Volcanic mountain in Chile

Sollipulli is an ice-filled volcanic caldera and volcanic complex, which lies southeast of the small town of Melipeuco in the La Araucanía Region, Chile. It is part of the Southern Volcanic Zone of the Andes, one of the four volcanic belts in the Andes chain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chaitén (volcano)</span> Active volcano in Palena Province, Los Lagos Region, Chile

Chaitén is a volcanic caldera 3 kilometres (2 mi) in diameter, 17 kilometres (11 mi) west of the elongated ice-capped Michinmahuida volcano and 10 kilometres (6 mi) northeast of the town of Chaitén, near the Gulf of Corcovado in southern Chile. The most recent eruptive phase of the volcano erupted on 2008. Originally, radiocarbon dating of older tephra from the volcano suggested that its last previous eruption was in 7420 BC ± 75 years. However, recent studies have found that the volcano is more active than thought. According to the Global Volcanism Program, its last eruption was in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reclus (volcano)</span> Volcano located in the Patagonia Ice Field, Chile

Reclus, also written as Reclús, is a volcano located in the Southern Patagonian Ice Field, Chile. Part of the Austral Volcanic Zone of the Andes, its summit rises 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) above sea level and is capped by a crater about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) wide. Close to the volcano lies the Amalia Glacier, which is actively eroding Reclus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Puyehue-Cordón Caulle</span> Volcanic complex in Chile

Puyehue and Cordón Caulle are two coalesced volcanic edifices that form a major mountain massif in Puyehue National Park in the Andes of Ranco Province, in the South of Chile. In volcanology this group is known as the Puyehue-Cordón Caulle Volcanic Complex (PCCVC). Four volcanoes constitute the volcanic group or complex, the Cordillera Nevada caldera, the Pliocene Mencheca volcano, Cordón Caulle fissure vents and the Puyehue stratovolcano.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Cayley volcanic field</span> Remote volcanic zone in Canada

The Mount Cayley volcanic field (MCVF) is a remote volcanic zone on the South Coast of British Columbia, Canada, stretching 31 km (19 mi) from the Pemberton Icefield to the Squamish River. It forms a segment of the Garibaldi Volcanic Belt, the Canadian portion of the Cascade Volcanic Arc, which extends from Northern California to southwestern British Columbia. Most of the MCVF volcanoes were formed during periods of volcanism under sheets of glacial ice throughout the last glacial period. These subglacial eruptions formed steep, flat-topped volcanoes and subglacial lava domes, most of which have been entirely exposed by deglaciation. However, at least two volcanoes predate the last glacial period and both are highly eroded. The field gets its name from Mount Cayley, a volcanic peak located at the southern end of the Powder Mountain Icefield. This icefield covers much of the central portion of the volcanic field and is one of the several glacial fields in the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains.

Crater Basalt volcanic field is a volcanic field in Argentina in the Chubut province.

Fueguino is a volcanic field in Chile. The southernmost volcano in the Andes, it lies on Tierra del Fuego's Cook Island and also extends over nearby Londonderry Island. The field is formed by lava domes, pyroclastic cones, and a crater lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Hudson</span> Mountain in Chile

Mount Hudson is a volcano in rugged mountains of southern Chile. Lying in the Southern Volcanic Zone of the Andes, it was formed by the subduction of the oceanic Nazca Plate under the continental South American Plate. The Nazca Plate ends there at the Chile Triple Junction; south of Hudson is a smaller volcano then a long gap without active volcanoes. Hudson is a large volcanic caldera, formed partly by non-volcanic rocks and largely filled with ice. The Huemules Glacier emerges from the northwestern side of the caldera. The volcano has erupted rocks ranging from basalt to rhyolite.

References

Sources