Eruption on Rincón de la Vieja volcano, Costa Rica.

The Comisión Nacional de Emergencias in Costa Rica has reported a large eruption on Rincón de la Vieja, an active volcano in Guanacaste Province.in the northwest of the country, on Friday 21 April 2023. The volcano produced an ash column about 7.5 km high, and part of the northern perimeter of the volcano's caldera was breached, causing ash-laden waters from the volcano's lake to escape, and triggering a series of lahars along the courses of the Pénjamo, Azúl and Azufrada rivers. This event is not thought to have caused any injuries or damage to infrastructure, but people are being warned to keep away from the affected waterways.

An ash column over the Rincon de La Vieja volcano, Costa Rica, on 21 April 2023. Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica-Universidad Nacional.

Rincón de la Vieja is a complex volcano (volcano with multiple eruptive vents rather than a single crater at the top of a cone-shaped mountain) rising to 1916 m above sea-level in Guanacaste Province in the northwest of Costa Rica. It is located within the Rincón de la Vieja National Park, where along with an associated hot spring system it forms an important part of the local economy. Prior to the onset of activity in September 2014 the volcano had been inactive since September 2011, and the last major eruption occurred in 1966. A small geothermal energy project, the Las Pailas Geothermal Power Plant, runs on heat from underground rocks associated with the volcanic complex.

Rincón de la Vieja forms part of the Cordillera de Guanacaste, a range of volcanic mountains running through northern Costa Rica close to the border with Nicaragua and forming part of the Central American Arc. These volcanoes are fueled by the subduction of the Cocos Plate, which underlies part of the east Pacific Ocean, beneath the Caribbean Plate, on which Central America lies, along the Middle American Trench, which lies off the south coast of the country. As the Cocos Plate is subducted it is gradually melted by the heat and pressure of the Earth's interior, with some more volatile minerals rising through the overlying Caribbean Plate as volcanic magma.

Diagram showing the passage of the Cocos Plate beneath Costa Rica (not to scale). Carleton College.

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Eruption on Rincón de la Vieja.

The Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica-Universidad Nacional reported a small eruption on Rincón de la Vieja, an active volcano in Guanacaste Province.in the northwest of the country, at about 12.15 pm local time on Friday 30 January 2020. This is the first eruption from the volcano since January 2019, and produced an ash column about 2 km high, and is the latest in a series of small eruptions on the volcano that started in September 2014

Ash column above Rincón de la Vieja on 30 January 2020. Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica-Universidad Nacional.

Rincón de la Vieja is a complex volcano (volcano with multiple eruptive vents rather than a single crater at the top of a cone-shaped mountain) rising to 1916 m above sea-level in Guanacaste Province in the northwest of Costa Rica. It is located within the Rincón de la Vieja National Park, where along with an associated hot spring system it forms an important part of the local economy. Prior to the onset of activity in September 2014 the volcano had been inactive since September 2011, and the last major eruption occurred in 1966. A small geothermal energy project, the Las Pailas Geothermal Power Plant, runs on heat from underground rocks associated with the volcanic complex.

Rincón de la Vieja forms part of the Cordillera de Guanacaste, a range of volcanic mountains running through northern Costa Rica close to the border with Nicaragua and forming part of the Central American Arc. These volcanoes are fuelled by the subduction of the Cocos Plate, which underlies part of the east Pacific Ocean, beneath the Caribbean Plate, on which Central America lies, along the Middle American Trench, which lies off the south coast of the country. As the Cocos Plate is subducted it is gradually melted by the heat and pressure of the Earth's interior, with some more volatile minerals rising through the overlying Caribbean Plate as volcanic magma.

 

 Diagram showing the passage of the Cocos Plate beneath Costa Rica (not to scale). Carleton College.

 

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Eruption on Rincón de la Vieja, Costa Rica.

The Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica-Universidad Nacional reported a small eruption on Rincón de la Vieja, an active volcano in the northwest of the country, at about 4.20 pm local time on Tuesday 15 March 2015. This is the latest in a sereis of small eruptions on the volcano that started in September 2014, and produced a column of gas and ash which rose about 700 m above the top of the mountain. An earlier eruption on 9 March this year led to small ash-falls in some local villages. Such small eruptions are not in themselves dangerous, but can be indicative of rising activity on a volcano capable of much larger eruptions.

Ash column over Rincón de la Vieja on 15 March 2016. Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica-Universidad Nacional.

Rincón de la Vieja is a complex volcano (volcano with multiple eruptive vents rather than a single crater at the top of a cone-shaped mountain) rising to 1916 m above sea-level in Guanacaste Province in the northwest of Costa Rica. It is located within the Rincón de la Vieja National Park, where along with an associated hot spring system it forms an important part of the local economy. Prior to the onset of activity in September 2014 the volcano had been inactive since September 2011, and the last major eruption occurred in 1966. A small geothermal energy project, the Las Pailas Geothermal Power Plant, runs on heat from underground rocks associated with the volcanic complex.

Rincón de la Vieja forms part of the Cordillera de Guanacaste, a range of volcanic mountains running through northern Costa Rica close to the border with Nicaragua and forming part of the Central American Arc. These volcanoes are fuelled by the subduction of the Cocos Plate, which underlies part of the east Pacific Ocean, beneath the Caribbean Plate, on which Central America lies, along the Middle American Trench, which lies off the south coast of the country. As the Cocos Plate is subducted it is gradually melted by the heat and pressure of the Earth's interior, with some more volatile minerals rising through the overlying Caribbean Plate as volcanic magma.

Diagram showing the passage of the Cocos Plate beneath Costa Rica (not to scale). Carleton College.

See also...

Explosive eruption on Mount Turrialba. The Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica-Universidad Nacional reported a short explosive eruption which lasted about ten minutes, beginning slightly after 1.10 pm local time on Monday 7 December 2015...

Eruption on Mount Turrialba, Costa Rica. The Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica-Universidad Nacional reported an eruption on Mount Turrialba, a stratovolcano (cone shaped volcano made up of...

Magnitude 4.6 Earthquake off the coast of Limón Province, Costa Rica.

The United States Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 4.6 Earthquake at a depth of 18 km, slightly off the coast of Limón Province in northeast Costa...

 

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Eruption on Rincón de la Vieja, Costa Rica.

Rincón de la Vieja is a complex volcano in northwest Costa Rica. It takes the form of a ridge with a number of craters along a northwest-southeast axis, within an ancient volcanic caldera. Volcanic activity has been recorded on Rincón de la Vieja since 1765, during which time all significant eruptions have occurred from a lake filled crater known as 'The Active Crater' on the side of one of the higher summits, Von Seebach Peak.

Rincón de la Vieja. Blue River Resort & Hot Springs.

On 14 April 2012 villagers living to the north of the volcano reported seeing a phreatic eruption from the Active Crater (a phreatic eruption is an eruption in which lava emerges underwater, prompting an explosion of steam and rock fragments), according to the Observatorio Vulcanológico y Sismológico de Costa Rica. After this eruption volcanic material was found on the outer northern flank of the summit, and a plume of steam was seen over the crater for some time.

There were four similar eruptions in February this year, two on the 24th and one each on the 19th and 20th. A larger eruption occurred on 16 September 2012 this caused fish kills in streams and rivers up to 18 km away and ashfall deposits up to 15 cm thick within 2 km of the crater. Prior to this there had been intermittent Earthquake and fumarole (gas vent) activity around the crater since September 2006, but no actual eruptions.

Previous eruptive cycles have tended to follow a pattern of a long period of fumaroles and Earthquakes, followed by short bursts of phreatic eruptions, followed by more fumaroles and quakes, followed by a quiet period which may last several years, then the start of a new eruptive period. In the past some phreatic eruptions have been large enough to be heard over 25 km away, and have triggered lahars (floods of water and ash) that have swept down rivers and streams causing considerable damage.

The volcanoes of Costa Rica, and neighboring parts of Central America, are caused by the subduction of the Cocos Plate (which underlies the area of the Pacific immediately to the south of Central America) beneath the Caribbean Plate (upon which Central America sits). As the Cocos Plate passes under Central America it is partially melted by the heat of the Earth's interior and friction with the overlying plate. Some of the melted material then rises through the overlying Caribbean Plate as magma, fueling the volcanoes.

Diagrammatic representation of the Cocos Plate passing beneath the Central American Plate, showing how it fuels the volcanoes of Central America. VCS Mining.

See also Earthquake in the Gulf of California, Oaxaca region of Mexico struck by second major Earthquake in two weeks, Understanding the subduction zone beneath Mexico, Mexico shaken by major Earthquake and Volcanoes on Sciency Thoughts YouTube.

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