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

doi:10.30909/vol.05.02.271293

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

Authors

Dr Richard Brown richard.brown3@durham.ac.uk
Associate Professor

Walter Hernández

Demetrio Escobar

Eduardo Gutierrez

Julia Crummy

Rosemary Cole

Pierre-Yves Tournigand

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