Information on Mayon Volcano

Mayon Volcano

Mayon Volcano (Mount Mayon) is an active strato volcano found in Albay Bicol on the island of Luzon, Philippines. It has a perfect cone shape; It was named after a legendary folk Daragang magayon. It was among the 7 wonders of nature in the Philippines. Mayon Volcano reaches 2,460 meters and is the central feature of the Albay Province, of which Legazpi City is the capital, about 300-km southeast of Manila. It must be one of the most beautiful volcanic cones anywhere in the world and is visible for miles around in the otherwise flat landscape of the region. The volcano is still active and has erupted in 2000 and 2001. There is a research station (PHIVOLCS) located about one-third of the way up that is accessible by road and is the jump-off for climbers. Mayon Volcano is the Philippines’ most active volcano and is considered to be the world’s most perfectly formed volcano for its symmetrical cone. It is a basaltic-andesitic volcano. The upper slopes of the volcano are steep averaging 35-40 degrees and are capped by a small summit crater. Its sides are layers of lava and other volcanic material. It is located on the eastern side of Luzon, beside the Philippine Trench which is the convergent boundary where the Philippine Sea Plate is driven under the Philippine Mobile Belt. Where a continental plate or belt of continental fragments meets an oceanic plate, the lighter continental material overrides the oceanic plate, forcing it down into the Earth’s mantle. Magma may be forced through weaknesses in the continental crust caused by the collision of the tectonic plates. One such exit point is Mayon.

RECORDED ERUPT

• 2006 Eruption – Mayon erupted from July to October 2006, it has no loss of life recorded.
• 2008 Eruption – Mayon Erupted last August 10, 2008. A summit explosion ejected ash 200 meters above the summit, with the ash drifting east northeast.
• 2009-2010 Eruption – It was monitored from July 2009 to January 2010. Until January 13, 2010, it has reduced its hazards of eruption.

Recommended website: http://www.mayonvolcano.net/

http://www.google.com.sg/images?hl=en&source=hp&biw=1276&bih=558&q=mayon+volcano&gbv=2&aq=0&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=mayon+Volcan

More Photos of Mayon Volcano

 

Geography Project...

My group and I are planning the visit to be at Philippines. Philippines have lots of places of interest. We will be visiting two main locations. Mayon volcano and Land of fire and heaving earth. Here is some information.  

Mayon Volcano, the Philippines
Tens of thousands of people living within the danger zone of Mayon Volcano in the Philippines were forced to evacuate to emergency shelters in mid-December 2009 as small earthquakes, incandescent lava at the summit and minor ash falls suggested a major eruption was on the way. On the evening of Dec. 14, the local volcano observatory raised the alert level to Level 3, which means "magma is close to the crater and hazardous explosive eruption is imminent."

This natural-colour image of Mayon was captured on Dec. 15, 2009, by the Advanced Land Imager on NASA's Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite. A small plume of ash and steam is blowing west from the summit. Dark-colour lava or debris flows from previous eruptions streak the flanks of the mountain. A ravine on the southeast slope is occupied by a particularly prominent lava or debris flow.

The Philippine Star said on Dec. 22 that "ash fall blanketed at least three towns in Albay, raising new health fears for thousands already bracing for an eruption that could come at any time ... Health officials warned the tiny particles could cause respiratory problems or skin diseases, and could affect the thousands of people crammed into evacuation centers.

Also on Dec. 22, CNN reported that "tens of thousands of people have already fled their homes. More than 9,000 families -- a total of 44,394 people -- are being housed in evacuation camps after authorities raised the alert status of the country's most active volcano" as "fountains of red-hot lava shot up from the intensifying Mayon volcano."

Recommended Websites:
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_1550.html

http://www.google.com.sg/images?um=1&hl=en&rlz=1R2SUNC_enSG393&biw=1259&bih=558&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=1&q=mayon+volcano&aq=0&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=Mayon+



LAND OF FIRE AND HEAVING EARTH

Philippines' geological birth was accompanied by heaving earth as ground movements underneath induced volcanic processes and adjustments in the oceanic plates, causing the submergence and emergence of islands and the creation of mountains and trenches. Not all geological occurrences were dramatic though.Coral,which thrives well in warm Philippine waters, accumulated to form island foundations. Later when the glaciers advanced toward the polar caps pulling back the sea level, long submerged bridges that connect the archipelago to other islands and the main land Asia were exposed.

Credits:http://books.google.com.sg/books?id=6-BWFruOcDQC&printsec=frontcover&dq=inauthor:%22Lily+Rose+R.+Tope%22&hl=en&ei=dc58TZ7jCsHZrQf8goH-Dg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCgQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Done by: Xena Goh