The Volcanoes of Guatemala

Notes: Atitlán is a strikingly beautiful volcano with an almost perfect cone shape and covered with forest. The crater is 250m (820 ft) in diameter and 50m (165 ft) deep. This volcano has been active in recent times but is now dormant and the crater is dotted with various fumaroles. It is associated with Lake Atitlán which is situated in a caldera volcano which exploded millions of years ago and buried the region in ash, as far as Mexico. Alongside Volcán Atitlán is its twin, Volcán Tolimán. All of these are part of a volcanic complex which includes San Pedro, Cerro de Oro and other features.

Notes: Pacaya is an active volcano and its shape is constantly changing. Pacaya is part of a range of peaks: Hoja de Queso at 2,090m (6,857 ft), Cerro Chiquito at 2,420m (7,940 ft), and Cerro de Agua at 2,560m (8,399 ft) which are part of a large volcanic caldera that includes Lake Amatitlán and Laguna de Calderas. The vent which is actually in eruption (Pico Mackenney) is fed by a secondary magma duct.

Notes: Santa María is part of a volcanic system which includes Volcán Siete Orejas and Volcán Chicabal. The local Mayans call this volcano "Gagxanul" which means naked mountain. Eruptions were noted by the Spanish in the 16th century. The 1902 eruption produced lava flows which traveled up to 8.6 km (5.3 mi). The city of Quetzaltenango was buried under a half meter of ash and the ash column reached an altitude of 30km (100,000 feet).

Notes: Santiaguito has an ever changing shape, consisting of a twisted mass of lava flows, ash, lava fragments, and pyroclastic flows. In the recent past, this volcano has produced pyroclastic flows which encounter the nearby rivers resulting in lahars.The nearby town of El Palmar, 10km (6 mi) away, has been destroyed twice by lahars from Santiaguito. The lava dome currently growing on Santiaguito has volcanologists worried because it could collapse, unleashing a large pyroclastic flow.

Notes: Tacaná is the second highest volcano in Guatemala and has a crater 400 meters (1,300 ft) in diameter. The top of the cone is solid andesite lava and light colored hypersthene. The volcano sits atop a mass of granite called la Sierra Madre. There are active fumaroles on the skirts of the volcano.

Notes: The Cakchiquel Mayans call this volcano "Chi Gag". Fuego is almost an identical twin of Acatenango. Fuego is very interesting to scientists because it has been in almost constant eruption since 1524 (over 400 years) with numerous large explosive eruptions and frequent earthquakes. The last big eruption was in 1974. During a big eruption, ash from Fuego falls as far as El Salvador and Honduras.