Mount Belinda
Mount Belinda is a stratovolcano on Montagu Island, in the South Sandwich Islands of the Scotia Sea. A part of the British Overseas Territory, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Mount Belinda is also the highest peak in the South Sandwich Islands, at 1,370 m (4,490 ft).
Mount Belinda | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 1,370 m (4,490 ft) |
Prominence | 1,370 m (4,490 ft) |
Coordinates | 58°26′S 26°20′W |
Geography | |
Location | Montagu Island, South Sandwich Islands |
Geology | |
Mountain type | Stratovolcano |
Last eruption | 2001 - 2007[1][2] |
Belinda was inactive until late 2001, when it erupted.[3] The eruption produced large quantities of basaltic lava, melting the thick cover of ice that had accumulated while the volcano lay dormant, and "producing a marvelous 'natural laboratory'; for studying lava-ice interactions relevant to the biology of extreme environments as well as to processes believed to be important on Mars."[2]
The activity throughout 2005 marked the highest levels yet. The increase in activity in the fall of 2005 produced an active 3.5-kilometre (2.2-mile)-long lava flow, extending from the summit cone of Mount Belinda to the sea. The flow spread northeast from the volcanic vent, and then became diverted due north by an arête.[1] By late 2007, eruptive activity had ceased,[1] and in 2010 the only activity was from scattered fumaroles and cooling lava.
References
- "Montagu Island". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 25 June 2021.
- "Ongoing Eruption of Mount Belinda, NASA Earth Observatory". Archived from the original on 17 March 2010.
- Patrick, Matthew R.; Smellie, John L.; Harris, Andrew J. L.; Wright, Robert; Dean, Ken; Izbekov, Pavel; Garbeil, Harold; Pilger, Eric (2005). "First recorded eruption of Mount Belinda volcano (Montagu Island), South Sandwich Islands". Bulletin of Volcanology. 67 (5): 415–422. doi:10.1007/s00445-004-0382-6. ISSN 0258-8900. S2CID 54187857.
External links
- "Ongoing Eruption of Mount Belinda". NASA Earth Observatory. Archived from the original on 1 November 2004. Retrieved 2 May 2006.
- "Mount Belinda Erupts". NASA Earth Observatory. Archived from the original on 21 October 2005. Retrieved 2 May 2006.
- LeMasurier, W. E.; Thomson, J. W., eds. (1990). "E. South Sandwich Islands". Volcanoes of the Antarctic Plate and Southern Oceans. Antarctic Research Series. Vol. 48. American Geophysical Union. p. 512 pp. doi:10.1029/AR048p0360. ISBN 0-87590-172-7.
- News@Nature story on the 2005 eruption (subscription required)