Nevado del Tolima facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Nevado del Tolima
View of Nevado del Tolima
Highest point
Elevation	5,276 m (17,310 ft)
Listing	Volcanoes of Colombia
Geography
Nevado del Tolima Location in Colombia
Location	Tolima  Colombia
Parent range	Central Ranges, Andes
Geology
Age of rock	<40 ka Late Pleistocene-recent
Mountain type	Andesitic stratovolcano
Volcanic belt	North Volcanic Zone  Andean Volcanic Belt
Last eruption	March 1943

The Nevado del Tolima is a volcano in Colombia. It's an active volcano, meaning it could erupt again. It's located in the Tolima department, which is a part of Colombia. This volcano is south of another volcano called Nevado del Ruiz. Both are inside a special area called the Los Nevados National Natural Park. The last time Nevado del Tolima had a small eruption was in 1943. Its last big eruption happened about 3,600 years ago.

What is Nevado del Tolima?

Nevado del Tolima is a type of volcano called a stratovolcano. These volcanoes are usually tall and cone-shaped. They are built up over time by many layers of hardened lava, ash, and rocks.

This volcano is covered in glaciers, which are large sheets of ice. It looks very steep. Another volcano, Nevado del Ruiz, is to its north. Ruiz has a wider shape compared to Tolima.

How the Volcano Formed

Nevado del Tolima started forming about 40,000 years ago. It grew on top of an older, wider caldera. A caldera is a large bowl-shaped hollow that forms when a volcano collapses after a big eruption. This old caldera was about 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) wide.

The top of Nevado del Tolima has several lava domes. These are mounds formed by slow-moving, thick lava. These domes created thick lava flows on the north and east sides of the volcano. They also left behind many pyroclastic-flow deposits. These are fast-moving currents of hot gas and volcanic rock.

The very top of the volcano has a crater that looks like a funnel. It is about 200 to 300 meters (650 to 980 feet) deep.

Water from the Volcano

The snow and ice on top of Nevado del Tolima feed several rivers. These rivers flow out from the mountain like spokes on a wheel. The main rivers are the Totare, San Romualdo, Toche, and Combeima.

The Combeima River is very important. It provides most of the water for the city of Ibagué. All these rivers flow down the eastern side of the Central Mountain Range. They eventually join the large Magdalena River.

Los Nevados National Natural Park

Nevado del Tolima is part of the Los Nevados National Natural Park. This park is a protected area in Colombia. It is home to many volcanoes.

Besides Nevado del Tolima, seven other volcanoes are in the park:

• Nevado del Ruiz
• Santa Isabel
• Nevado del Quindío
• Paramillo de Santa Rosa
• Cerro Bravo
• Cerro Machín
• Nevado El Cisne

The park is very large, covering about 58,300 hectares (144,000 acres). It stretches across several departments in Colombia. These include Caldas, Quindío, Risaralda, and Tolima. The park also covers parts of several cities and towns. These are Villamaría, Santa Rosa de Cabal, Pereira, Salento, and Ibagué.

Volcano's Eruptions

Nevado del Tolima has had many explosive eruptions. Some of these were very powerful, known as Plinian eruptions. The last very large eruption happened about 3,600 years ago.

When lava domes grew, they sometimes caused "block and ash flows." These are fast-moving mixtures of hot ash and rock blocks. They mostly traveled to the northeast and southeast sides of the volcano.

Smaller eruptions have also happened more recently. Records show minor explosive eruptions in the 1800s and 1900s. The most recent activity was in March 1943.

See also

In Spanish: Nevado del Tolima para niños

• List of volcanoes in Colombia
• List of volcanoes by elevation