Nuevo Mundo volcano facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Nuevo Mundo |
|
|---|---|
| Jatun Mundo Quri Warani | |
 Nuevo Mundo
Location in Bolivia
|
|
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 5,438 m (17,841 ft) |
| Prominence | 738 m (2,421 ft) |
| Geography | |
| Location | Bolivia |
| Parent range | Cordillera Oriental |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | Holocene |
| Mountain type | Stratovolcano |
| Last eruption | Unknown |
Nuevo Mundo, also called Jatun Mundo Quri Warani, is a large stratovolcano in Bolivia. It is found in the Andes mountains, between the cities of Potosí and Uyuni. This mountain also has lava domes and lava flows. Its peak reaches about 5,438 meters (17,841 feet) high. It is located in the Potosí Department, in the Tomave Municipality.
What's in a Name?
The mountain has two main names: Nuevo Mundo and Jatun Mundo Quri Warani. The name "Jatun Mundo Quri Warani" comes from the Quechua language or Aymara language.
- Jatun means "big."
- Quri means "gold."
- Warani can mean "the one with a scepter" or "constellation."
The word Mundo is Spanish for "world." It might also be a changed word from a native language.
This long name might actually be two names put together by mistake. This happened with another mountain called Pacha Qullu (or Kimsa Misa).
In 1995, the Bolivian government officially named this mountain "Jatun Mundo Quri Warani." Before that, maps often called it "Nuevo Mundo." There was some confusion because older maps showed another peak as "Nuevo Mundo." This other peak was much further south, near the Cerro Lípez volcano.
Discovering Nuevo Mundo's Location
The first mountain climbing in this area happened before 1903. A French explorer named Georges Courty wrote notes about a mountain he called "Nuevo Mundo." However, its exact location was a mystery for a long time.
A German geologist named Frederic Ahlfeld moved to Bolivia in 1924. He loved climbing mountains. After World War II, he explored the mountains in the Potosí Department. He climbed many peaks there.
In 1969, Ahlfeld published a book called Geografia Fisica de Bolivia. In this book, he included a drawing and description of Nuevo Mundo. He placed it southwest of Potosí, near a small village called Potoco. This location was far from the Cerro Lípez area, which had been thought to be the location of Courty's "Nuevo Mundo."
By the late 1990s, a team of explorers confirmed Ahlfeld's location. They found that the mountain Ahlfeld described was indeed Jatun Mundo Quri Warani. Today, the Bolivian government and the USGS (United States Geological Survey) agree that this is the correct Nuevo Mundo. However, some maps still mistakenly label the Lípez volcano as Nuevo Mundo.
How Nuevo Mundo Was Formed
Nuevo Mundo is a volcano located on the edge of the Los Frailes Plateau. It is a complex stratovolcano, which means it's built up of many layers of hardened lava, ash, and rock. Its top is covered by cinder cones, which are small, steep cones made mostly of ash and pumice.
At the bottom of the volcano, two thick lava flows erupted. These flows were made of a sticky type of lava called dacite. At the same time, flows of hot rock and ash moved to the east. Later, a very powerful Plinian eruption happened. This eruption sent ash over 200 kilometers (124 miles) to the east, even reaching Potosí. This was the most recent big eruption on the plateau, but it happened before the Spanish arrived in 1533.
Nuevo Mundo formed during the Holocene period. It created huge deposits of ignimbrite, which is rock formed from hot ash and pumice. These deposits are mostly made of pyroclastic (explosively erupted) dacite and andesite rock.
Scientists have used a method called Surface exposure dating to study the volcano. They found that the northern part of the volcano is about 11,700 years old. This eruption happened about 3,000 years after a local ice cap melted away. It's possible that the melting ice cap reduced pressure on the magma chamber below, causing the volcano to erupt. The lava flows from Nuevo Mundo are found on top of old moraines, which are piles of rock left by glaciers.
The last eruption of Nuevo Mundo might have been seen by people living in the Gran Chaco region. This event could have led to old myths about a great darkness and the sky falling.
See also
In Spanish: Volcán Nuevo Mundo para niños
- List of volcanoes in Bolivia
