Trident Volcano facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Trident Volcano |
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Multiple peaks of Trident Volcano, from the top of Baked Mountain, Valley of the Ten Thousand Smokes.
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 6,115 ft (1,864 m) |
| Geography | |
| Location | Katmai National Park and Preserve, Alaska, U.S. |
| Parent range | Kejulik Mountains |
| Topo map | USGS Mount Katmai A-4 |
| Geology | |
| Mountain type | Stratovolcano |
| Volcanic arc/belt | Aleutian Arc |
| Last eruption | July 1974 |
- For the mountain in Antarctica, see Mount Trident (Antarctica).
Trident Volcano is a group of volcanoes in Katmai National Park, Alaska. It's on the Alaska Peninsula. This area has many volcanoes. Trident is made up of about 23 different volcanic domes. The highest point of Trident Volcano is about 6,115 feet (1,864 meters) tall. The newest part of Trident is a large dome. It formed on the side of one of the peaks. It is about 3,599 feet (1,097 meters) high.
The name "Trident" was given in 1916. Robert Fiske Griggs from the National Geographic Society named it. He chose the name because the volcano had three main peaks. The volcano's official name has changed over time. In 1928, it was called Mount Trident. The name was changed to Trident Volcano in 1968. This is the name it still has today.
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History of Trident Volcano's Eruptions
Scientists have not found signs of recent eruptions at Trident's very top. However, there have been reports of steam vents, called fumaroles, on the east side. The first known small eruptions happened in 1913, 1949, and 1950.
The Big Eruption of 1953
A major eruption happened on February 15, 1953. It created a new, smaller volcano cone. This cone formed on the southwest side of Trident. The eruption was very powerful. It sent ash high into the sky, over 5.6 miles (9 kilometers) up.
After this big eruption, lava started flowing out. This happened in 1954, 1957, 1958, and 1959-1960. The lava came from the new vent. By 1960, the new dome had grown quite large. It was nearly 853 feet (260 meters) tall. Thick lava flows spread out from it. These flows were up to 984 feet (300 meters) thick. They covered an area of about 1,200 acres (4.9 square kilometers).
Later Eruptions and Activity
More explosions were reported in the early to late 1960s. Lava also flowed out between 1966 and 1968. There were more eruptions from 1974 to 1975. In 1983, steam and vapor were still rising. This came from the center of the new cone. It also came from many steam vents on the lava flows.
What Trident Volcano is Made Of
The lava from Trident Volcano is a type called andesite or dacite. These are specific kinds of volcanic rock. Inside the lava, there are small crystals. These crystals include plagioclase, hypersthene, and olivine. The lava flows from 1953 to 1963 were a type of andesite. They contained olivine and two types of pyroxene crystals.
