Reconstruction of the 29th December 2013 eruption of San Miguel volcano, El Salvador, using video, photographs, and pyroclastic deposits

Brown, Richard James; Hernández, Walter; Escobar, Demetrio; Gutierrez, Eduardo; Crummy, Julia; Cole, Rosemary; Tournigand, Pierre-Yves

Abstract

San Miguel (or Chaparrastique) volcano, El Salvador, erupted on the 29thDecember 2013, after almost 40 years of quiescence.Initial vent-clearing explosions ejected ballistic blocks and produced a pyroclastic density current (PDC) that flowed down theupper flanks. Plume ascent speeds peaked at 50–70 m s−1and declined over time. The main phase of the volcanic explosivityindex (VEI) 2 eruption produced a sub-Plinian plume that dispersed 106m3ash >20,000 km2across El Salvador in to Honduras.Plume structure was complex due to strong wind shear and to contributions from co-PDC ash. Tephra fall deposits dispersedwestwards include a basal white ash layer of ash-coated clasts and ash aggregates, a grey fine ash co-PDC layer, and a layer ofcoarse ash to fine lapilli-grade scoria. The eruption provides a useful case study to understand the range of volcanic activity atthe volcano.

Citation

Brown, R. J., Hernández, W., Escobar, D., Gutierrez, E., Crummy, J., Cole, R., & Tournigand, P. (2022). Reconstruction of the 29th December 2013 eruption of San Miguel volcano, El Salvador, using video, photographs, and pyroclastic deposits. Volcanica, 5(2), 271 - 293. https://doi.org/10.30909/vol.05.02.271293

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 23, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Sep 1, 2022
• Publication Date: 2022
• Deposit Date: Oct 13, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 13, 2023
• Journal: Volcanica
• Publisher: Volcanica
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 5
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 271 - 293
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.30909/vol.05.02.271293