Pico de Orizaba: (Aztec
name: Citlaltépetl – “Mountain of the Star”)
General Information:
Pico de Orizaba is the third highest peak in North America, after
Mt Logan and Mt McKinley. Its 5,700 m (or 18,700 ft.) forms a steep
cone at the eastern end of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB).
The TMVB, built on the southern edge of the North American plate,
runs from the Pacific in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the East.
The summit rises 2,900 m to the west and a massive 4,300 m to the
east giving it a majestic appearence.
Formation and Short History:
Pico de Orizaba is a stratovolcano. The mountain was probably formed
during three main stages starting at the beginning of the mid-Pleistocene.
The modern appearance of the volcano was shaped during the late
Pleistocene and Holocene. Andesite and dacitic lavas formed the
steep sided cone we see today. The volcano had its latest eruptions
in 1566 and 1687 but is still considered to be active. Although
Pico de Orizaba has not had a major eruption in centuries, the history
of the volcano shows relatively regular eruptions with major pyroclastic
flows approximately every 1000-2000 years. It is now about 3400
years since the last pyroclastic flow eruption. Approximately 500
000 people live in cities and towns around its base, thus in an
event of such a major eruption, the volcano would have the potential
to cause a huge catastrophe.
Climbing Pico the Orizaba:
The story is that the first organized attempt to reach the summit
of Orizaba was done by Karl Sartorius in 1848. When he got to the
summit he found a plaque with the names F. Maynard and G. Reynolds
who were troopers of the Winfield Scott’s army during the
Mexican-American war between 1846-1848. It is said that their first
ascent was done on May 10, 1848. The best period for ascent is between
December to April during the dry season. An unofficial estimation
by a local mountain guide was that approximately 2000 people try
to reach the summit of Orizaba every year and that 65-70 % fail
to go all the way due to difficulties coping with effects of high
altitude.
Popocatepetl and Iztacchihuatl:
There are a large number of volcanoes in Mexico but three in particular
are often referred to in terms of high altitude climbing. The second
tallest one after Pico de Orizaba is Popocatepetl (5465 m), which
is currently closed to climbers due to recent eruptions. In December
1994, after about 70 years without major eruptions, Popocatepetl
marked the beginning of a new episode of volcanic activity. In 1996,
5 climbers were reported killed by an explosion while they were
on the summit. The name Popocatepetl is derived from the Aztecs
word for “Smoking mountain”, and the volcano is considered
one of the most active volcanoes in Mexico. The third popular volcano
for climbers and the third highest peak in Mexico is called Iztacchihuatl
(5286 m; 17338 ft). In Aztec mythology, Iztaccihuatl was the daughter
of an Aztec emperor and Popocatepetl was the lover of Iztaccihuatl.
Popo was sent out to war by Iztas father. Izta was falsely informed
that Popo had died in battle and died herself in grief. When Popo
returned he placed Izta on the ground and died too in grief. This
is why Popocatepetl still today takes out his revenge on the death
of his love in the shape of the “Smoking mountain”.
The meaning of Iztaccihuatl today is the “Sleeping woman”
because the appearance of the mountain resembles a woman laying
down. The major volcanic activity of Iztaccihuatl is reported to
have ended about 80 000 years ago.
References
Articles by Luca Ferrari:
The
Geochemical Puzzle of the Trans-Mexican volcanic Belt: Mantle Plume,
Continental Rifting, or Mantle Perturbation Induced by subduction?
USGS/Cascades
Volcano Observatory, Vancouver, Washington
University
of North Dakota – Volcano World
Text by Jonas
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