Toconce (volcano) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Toconce |
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Toconce.
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| Elevation | 5,335 m (17,503 ft) |
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Toconce is a volcano located in Chile. It stands tall at 5,335 meters (about 17,500 feet) above sea level. This volcano has a main crater at its top.
Toconce was built up over time by many lava flows. These flows happened in three main stages. The last stage created most of the volcano we see today.
Contents
How Toconce Was Shaped
About 15,000 to 11,000 years ago, Toconce was covered by glaciers. As these glaciers moved, they carved out parts of the volcano. This process is called glacial erosion.
- Glacial erosion created many valleys on the volcano's sides.
- It also formed piles of rock and dirt called moraines, especially above 4,300 meters (about 14,100 feet).
- The glaciers even exposed older rocks from deep inside the volcano.
Toconce's Place in the Andes
Toconce volcano sits on top of older rock layers. These layers are made of a material called ignimbrite. Ignimbrites are rocks formed from hot ash and gas that erupted from volcanoes a long time ago.
Many volcanoes in the Andes Mountains are built on similar ignimbrite layers. These layers, along with the volcanoes, form a long line of volcanoes called a "volcanic arc." Toconce is part of this important volcanic arc in the Central Andes.
A Chain of Volcanoes
Toconce is part of a group of volcanoes called the San Pedro-Linzor chain. This chain includes other volcanoes like San Pedro, San Pablo, Paniri, Cerro del León, and Linzor. This chain stretches for about 65 kilometers (40 miles).
These volcanoes are quite young in geological terms. They formed between 1.3 million years ago and today. The rocks from these volcanoes are mostly made of lava flows, but also include pyroclastics (bits of rock and ash from eruptions) and scoria (bubbly volcanic rock).
What Toconce is Made Of
The rocks at Toconce are mainly made of two minerals: plagioclase and glass. Other minerals like amphibole, biotite, pyroxene, and quartz are also found there.
Over time, some of the rocks have changed due to hot water moving through them. This process is called "hydrothermal alteration." It can create new minerals like clay and sericite.
Interestingly, a type of volcanic glass called obsidian was once mined on Toconce. Obsidian is very sharp and was used by ancient people to make tools.
Images for kids
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Toconce volcano in Chile.
See also
In Spanish: Volcán Toconce para niños
