Mount Akutan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mount Akutan |
|
|---|---|
Aerial view of Akutan volcano that forms the west part of Akutan Island
|
|
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 4,275 ft (1,303 m) |
| Geography | |
 Mount Akutan
Location in Alaska
|
|
| Parent range | Aleutian Range |
| Topo map | USGS Unimak A-6 NW |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | Pleistocene |
| Mountain type | Stratovolcano |
| Volcanic arc/belt | Aleutian Arc |
| Last eruption | December 1992 |
Mount Akutan, officially called Akutan Peak, is a tall volcano in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. It is a type of volcano known as a stratovolcano. This means it's a cone-shaped volcano built up from many layers of hardened lava, ash, and volcanic rocks. Akutan Peak is the highest point on this volcano, reaching 4,275 feet (1,303 meters) high.
Mount Akutan has a large bowl-shaped hollow at its top called a caldera. This caldera is about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) wide. It formed during a huge explosive eruption around 1,600 years ago.
Volcanic Activity
Mount Akutan is known for being very active. It has had many eruptions over time.
Recent Eruptions
Most of the recent eruptions have come from a large cinder cone inside the caldera. A cinder cone is a small, steep cone-shaped hill made of volcanic ash and rocks. These eruptions often involve explosions, and sometimes lava flows out, covering the caldera floor.
In 1978, a lava flow from Akutan traveled through a narrow break in the northern edge of the caldera. It came within 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) of the coast. A small lake now sits in part of the caldera floor.
Older Activity
On the northwest side of the volcano, there are two older volcanic spots. One is Lava Peak, which formed a very long time ago. Another cinder cone lower down on the side produced a lava flow in 1852. This lava flow actually made the island's shoreline bigger and created a place called Lava Point.
Scientists believe an even older, mostly buried caldera formed a very long time ago. The current caldera was created by a powerful eruption around 340 AD. This eruption was very strong, rated as a VEI-5 event.
Alaska's Most Active Volcano
The Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO) has officially recorded 33 eruptions at Mount Akutan. This makes it the volcano with the most confirmed eruptions in all of Alaska!
The volcano's most recent eruption happened in December 1992. Even though it hasn't erupted since then, there is still activity. You can find fumaroles (vents that release volcanic gases) at the base of Lava Point. There are also hot springs (places where hot water comes out of the ground) northeast of the caldera.
In March 1996, a series of small earthquakes happened near the volcano. After these earthquakes, the volcano's shape changed. The eastern side of the volcano lowered, and the western side rose. This kind of change can happen when magma moves beneath a volcano.
See also
In Spanish: Monte Akutan para niños
