Mexico is a state located on the North American continent. In its area, it occupies 13th place in the world. But few people know that several dozen volcanoes, both extinct and active, are located on the territory of this country. The smallest of them is 13 m high, and the largest is more than 5600 m. It is about the volcanoes of Mexico that will be discussed in this article.
Terrain
The territory of Mexico is crossed by mountain ranges: Western and Eastern Sierra Madre, stretches from north to south. In the central part of the country is the Trans-Mexican volcanic belt. It stretches from east to western Mexico and is known by many as Sierra Nevada. Another mountain range - Southern Sierra Madre, is divided between two states: Oaxaca and Michoacan.
Most of the country, due to the mountainous terrain, is located on the heights. The largest mountain peaks of Mexico are in the volcanic zone. These include:
- Nevado de Toluca.
- Istaxiwatl.
- Popocatepetl.
- Orizaba.
In the valley, at the foot of these peaks, there are 3 settlements: Toluca de Lerdo, Puebla de Zaragoza and the capital of Mexico - Mexico City.
Why is Mexico increasing seismic and volcanic activity?
The location of the state is the main cause of frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Mexico is part of the so-called Pacific Fire Belt (Pacific Ring) - a horseshoe-shaped zone where the highest seismic activity on the planet is recorded. This belt stretches across the entire Pacific Ocean - from the east coast of Asia to two continents: North and South America. In this zone, 90% of all earthquakes in the world occur. About 80% of them are the most powerful and destructive.
Seismic activity is due to the displacement and collision of tectonic plates located on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. In the zone of the Fiery belt, the largest number of all volcanoes in the world is also concentrated - up to 75%.
The Mexican Highlands are divided into Northern and Central Mesa. The first part is a desert plateau, where there are separate mountain ranges and intermontane depressions. On average, North Mesa has a height of 200 to 650 m. To the south, it adjoins Central Mesa, whose height is about 2600 m. At the southern border of Central Mesa, the ridge merges with the Transverse Volcanic Sierra. It is here that numerous volcanoes of Mexico are concentrated. The base of their cones seemed to merge with each other. Of the most famous volcanoes here are Orisaba, Popocatepetl and Istaxiuatl.
Volcanoes of Mexico: List
In terms of size, all volcanoes located on the territory of this country can be divided into three groups: large (over 3000 m), medium (from 1000 to 3000 m) and small (no more than 1000 m).
The largest are:
- Orizaba (5636 m).
- Popocatepetl (5426 m). Powerful explosions with the release of a huge cloud of ash were recorded in early November 2017.
- Istaxiuatl (5230 m).
- Nevado de Toluca (4680 m).
- Sierre Negrea (4640 m).
- La Malinche (4461 m).
- Cofre de Pirote (4282 m). The last time a volcano erupted in the period from 1150 to 1855. The exact date is not reliably known.
- Takana (4060 m).
- Las Cumbres (3940 m).
- Chichinocin (3930 m).
- Colima (3839 m). The last time the eruption was observed in 2009.
- Volcanic field of La Gloria (3600 m).
- Los Humeros (3150 m). An extinct volcano that erupted (according to scientists) in the Holocene.
There are many volcanoes in Mexico with a height of 1000 to 3000 m. Among them:
- Parikutin (2800 m).
- Ceboruko (2280 m). The last activity of the volcano was observed in 1875.
- Volcanic field Durango (2075 m).
- San Martin (1650 m). It erupted in 1792.
- Las Derrumbadas (1500 m).
- Horullo (1330 m).
- El Chichon (1150 m). An active volcano, whose activity was observed in 1982.
- Guadalupe (1100 m).
Mexico's small volcanoes are:
- Volcanic field Dzharagvay (960 m).
- Los Atlixos (800 m).
- Commando la Purisima (780 m).
- Coronado (440 m). An active volcano that erupted in 1895.
- Barsena (332 m). In 1953, his activity was recorded.
- Zerro Prieto (223 m). The last eruption occurred during the Holocene period.
- Kekskomat (13 m). It is the smallest volcano in Mexico. There is no exact information where it is located.
Let us consider in detail some of them.
Orizaba - the highest point
Mexico's highest volcano is Orizaba. Its height reaches 5636 m. Today it is not active, and the last eruption was recorded in 1846. The volcano was formed during the Pleistocene, its formation took place in several stages, during which three main domes of the peak arose. During all this time, Orisaba erupted at least 26 times. According to scientists, the most powerful explosion occurred in 6710 BC.
At the end of 1936, the country's leadership decided to create a conservation area in the area where the volcano is located.
Mexico's most dangerous volcano - Popocatepetl
Orizaba, although it is the largest volcano, but the inhabitants of Mexico do not see it as a threat, since almost 200 years have passed since its last eruption. But Popocatepetl, makes the local population worry. He constantly reminds himself, and over the past 17 years, this has been happening more and more. For such a short period, the volcano erupted in 2000, 2005, twice in 2012 and in September 2017.
Earthquakes - this is the main reason for such an active Popocatepetl. The seismic shakes that arose on September 19, 2017, the magnitude of which was 7.1 points, woke this sleeping monster. It is worth recalling that at the foot of the volcano there are several large settlements. For example, the city of Mexico City is 65 km from Popocatepetl. And the number of residents automatically at risk is more than 20 million people.
In Mexico, the names of volcanoes often have ancient roots. For example, Popocatepetl, translated from the Nahuatl language (one of the dialects of the Indian tribes living in these places), means "Smoke Hill". This volcano reaches 5426 m and is the second highest in Mexico, second only to Orizaba.
Young volcanoes
Mexico boasts not only ancient smoking giants, the formation of which took several thousand years. There are also young volcanoes, which arose relatively recently. They include Horullo, whose height is 1330 m. It arose in the XVII century. But there is a completely new volcano, which is not even 100 years old - this is Parikutin. This is the only volcano in the world whose occurrence and then attenuation was fully documented by people.
Almost a month before the eruption, in the vicinity, people heard a strong hum. An impressive crack formed on the corn field, from which smoke fell and stones flew. This happened on 02.20.1943, and the very next day a ten-meter cone consisting of slag and ash rose in this place, and somewhere in the depths explosions were heard. The volcano erupted continuously for 9 years. During this time, he destroyed the nearby villages: Parikutin and San Juan Parangaricutiro. In honor of the first, a young volcano was named. In the first two years, a cone of 336 m was formed. Over the next years, it gradually grew, but the intensity of eruptions decreased significantly. Only six months before its attenuation did its activity increase. In 1952, Parikutin died out, and its height at that time was already 2774 m.