Do You Know What A Caldera Is?
Calderas are nothing but the depression that after a volcanic explosion! The calderas are as dangerous as an explosion. They release many poisonous particles from the magma chamber.
Do You Know That Calderas Are Also Called Super Volcanoes?
Calderas are also called reverse volcanoes!
Yes, that’s true.
In the 20th century, many calderas were exploded unannounced.
Geologists and scientists are puzzled and surprised by how the calderas work over a long time. Volcanoes are known to be active for more than hundreds of years.
A volcano is said to experience at least three to four caldera collapses. Calderas are as dangerous as volcanoes. The after-effects of each volcanic explosion are massive and deadly!
Calderas are also quite dangerous than we expect them to be.
How is a Caldera Formed?
The caldera is formed when the volcanic vent collapses because of poor or no structure below.
In simple terms, the empty magma chambers leave the volcano unsupported. This will cause the whole volcano to collapse.
Intensity and duration are the two factors that decide the creation of the caldera.
The caldera can spread up to 100 kilometers wide. A caldera can permanently cause changes in the environment!
Never Think Less Of The Calderas!
What’s a Crater and a Caldera?
Let us know a few differences between a crater and a caldera:
A caldera is not the same as a crater. A crater is formed by the outward explosion of rocks by the volcanic explosion.
Calderas are formed by the inward collapse of a volcanic explosion. Craters are more circular than calderas.
Do You Know The Different Types Of Calderas?
- Crater lake calderas
- Shield volcano calderas
- Resurgent calderas
Let Us See Some Of The Largest Calderas In The World:
- La Garita Caldera
- Lake Toba caldera
- Cerro Guacha caldera
- Yellowstone Caldera
- Lake Taupo caldera
- Cerro Galán calderas
- Island Park Caldera
- Vilama caldera
- La Pacana caldera
- Pastos Grandes caldera
- La Garita Caldera:
La Garita Caldera is one of the largest calderas in the world.
The Garita Caldera is located in the United States. In history so far, the explosion of La Garita Caldera is known to be one of the largest ones!
Do you know that the scale of the La Garita caldera explosion was the second greatest of the Cenozoic Era?
The ash-flow had a volume of 1,200 cubic miles. The VEI scale was 8.
- Lake Toba Caldera:
Located in North Sumatra, Lake Toba is also one of the largest caldera remnants of a Supervolcano.
The caldera is covered an area of 100 by 30 km it is the world’s largest Quaternary caldera.
The caldera is the fourth and the youngest in the world. The last explosion occurred around 75,000 years ago. The VEI is said to have reached an 8 scale!
Pretty Large, Isn’t It?
For the last 25 million years, Lake Tabo caldera is known to be the largest explosive volcanic eruption within the last 25 million years. 2,800 km3 of dense pyroclast was said to have been released.
- Cerro Gaucha Caldera:
Cerro Gaucha is one of the largest volcanic calderas in the world. Part of the volcano of the Andes is considered the Central Volcanic Zone (CVZ).
The dimensions of the caldera are 40 kilometers and its altitude is 5,250 meters.
The explosion has paved way for the formation of several lava domes and lava flows and a central resurgent dome.
- Yellowstone Caldera:
The Yellowstone is located in the United States. The caldera and the yellow stone park are located in the northwest corner of Wyoming.
The yellow stone exploded recently, and the calderas of the explosion were intense and large.
The three massive and deadly explosions of the Yellowstone volcano occurred 2.1 million, 1.3 million, and 630,000 years ago.
These volcanoes led way to the formations of Island Park Caldera, the Henry’s Fork Caldera, and Yellowstone calderas!
- Lake Taupo caldera:
Lake Taupo is located on New Zealand’s North Island. It is the caldera of a supervolcano called the Taupo Volcano.
The Taupo The most memorable eruption was the Oruanui eruption which occurred 26,500 years ago.
The VEI scale was 8!
- Cerro Galán Caldera:
The Cerro Galán caldera is located in Argentina. To date, the caldera is said to be one of the largest exploded ones!
The caldera was believed to be rumbling and active between 5.6 and 4.51 million years ago. The last eruption occurred two million years ago and produced 1,050 km3 of poisonous deposits.
- Island Park Caldera:
Crossing the borders of Idaho and Wyoming in the United States stands the Island Park Caldera.
Island Park caldera is one of the largest volcanic calderas in the world.
The dimensions of the caldera are 80 by 65 km. The Island Park Caldera is also known as the First Phase Yellowstone Caldera or the Huckleberry Ridge Caldera.
- Vilma Caldera:
Vilma is a Miocene caldera located in Bolivia and Argentina. The caldera is an active one, since 8 million years ago.
Vilama is also the source of the Vilama ignimbrite.
It is believed that a large amount of the Vilma ignimbrite is inside the caldera depression.
- La Pacana Caldera:
La Pacana caldera is located in Northern Chile’s Antofagasta Region.
La Pacana volcano was formed by the subduction of the Nazca Plate which is beneath the South American Plate in the Peru-Chile Trench.
Do You Know?
La Pacana is also responsible for the eruption of the great Atana ignimbrite. The explosion resulted in reaching the maximum volume of 2,451–3,500 cubic kilometers.
Also, the La Pacana is the fifth-largest explosive eruption happened in history.
- Pastos Grandes Caldera:
Pastos Grandes is a nested caldera which is located in Bolivia. The caldera is around 35 by 40 kilometers wide. Also, it is 400 meters deep!
Pastos Grandes has been known to have exploded many times.
Geologists and scientists say that the maximum volume reached during the explosion was 1,000 cubic kilometers.
