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Eruption at Sabancaya volcano ejects ash up to 9.4 km (31 000 feet) a.s.l., Aviation Color Code Red, Peru

sabancaya-eruption-peru-august-5-2019

The latest report from the Instituto Geofísico del Perú​ (IGP) indicates volcanic ash is rising 9.4 km (31 000 feet) above sea level and moving SW, the Buenos Aires VAAC reported 20:10 UTC on August 5, 2019.

The Aviation Color Code has been raised to Red.

Satellite imagery shows strong emissions clearly seen under clear skies.

IGP issued ash alert after explosions dispersed ash towards the western sector of the volcano, in the direction of the town of Huambo. The institute is advising residents to take preventive measures to avoid damage to health.

Geological summary

Sabancaya, located on the saddle between 6288-m-high (20 629 feet) Ampato and 6025-m-high (19 800 feet) Hualca Hualca volcanoes, is the youngest of these volcanic centers and the only one to have erupted in historical time. The oldest of the three volcanoes, Nevado Hualca Hualca, is of probable late-Pliocene to early Pleistocene age. Both Nevado Ampato and Nevado Sabancaya are only slightly affected by glacial erosion and consist of a series of lava domes aligned along a NW-SW trend.

The name of 5967-m-high (19 600 feet) Sabancaya (meaning "tongue of fire" in the Quechua Indian language) first appeared in records in 1595 CE, suggesting activity prior to that date. Holocene activity has consisted of plinian eruptions followed by emission of voluminous andesitic and dacitic lava flows, which form an extensive apron around the volcano on all sides but the south. Records of historical eruptions date back to 1750. (GVP)

Featured image: Sabancaya volcano erupting on August 5, 2019. Credit: IGP

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