The History of the Youngest Volcano in the World
Paricutín volcano is a monogenetic volcano located in the Michoacán region of Mexico. Monogenetic means that it was formed from a single volcanic eruption, and is a type of volcano commonly found in thin crustal regions of the Earth’s crust.
The Paricutín volcano began to form on February 20, 1943, when a fissure in the earth began to emit ash and steam. Soon after, a volcanic cone began to form and grow rapidly. Paricutin volcano continued to erupt for the next nine years, covering an area of approximately 20 square kilometers with ash and lava. The final eruption of Paricutin volcano occurred on March 12, 1952.
The Paricutín volcano has been a source of inspiration and curiosity for scientists and the general public because of its rapid formation and the destruction it caused in the surrounding area. During its eruption, the Paricutin volcano destroyed several towns and cities, including San Juan Parangaricutiro, which was completely covered by lava and ash from the volcano. Despite this, the Paricutín volcano has also been an important source of information for scientists studying the formation process of monogenetic volcanoes and how they affect nearby communities.
Paricutín volcano is a cone located southwest of the CVMG, 25 km northwest of the city of Uruapan. This volcano had a historic eruption lasting nine years (1943-1952). Its birth was very important for science worldwide since it is one of the few volcanoes in the world whose birth, development and end has been observed and studied in detail, so its study is essential to understand the volcanic processes in the CVMG and in other monogenetic volcanic fields.
monogenetic volcanic fields.
The appearance of Paricutín was a tragedy for the inhabitants of San Juan Parangaricutiro and Paricutín. Although there were no deaths due to the eruption itself, there were several deaths due to indirect health problems (heart attacks and respiratory illnesses), as well as many damages to the ecosystem, social and economic problems due to the loss of property and relocation of the inhabitants to other communities. Today, the Paricutín volcano is an important tourist attraction that represents a cultural and natural heritage for the people of Michoacán.
Brief history of the Paricutín volcano
The testimonies of peasants, indigenous people and scientists who lived through this phenomenon were compiled in several historical documents (e.g., Wilcox 1948, Segerstrom and Gutiérrez 1947, Foshag and González 1956, Yokoyama and de la Cruz-Reyna 1990, Luhr et al. 1993, Corona-Chávez 2002, among others). The following is a brief description of its eruption and its main characteristics.
The premonitory activity for the birth of the volcano began 44 days earlier with intense seismic activity in the region. The first precursor earthquake occurred on January 7 with a magnitude of 4.4. Afterwards, 21 tectonic earthquakes occurred with magnitudes between 3.2 and 4.5, almost all located 320 km east of the volcano (Yokoyama and De la Cruz-Reyna 1990). It was not until February 20, 1943 that they began to hear thunder-like noises and immediately afterwards a crack almost 30 meters long formed in their crop field, according to Mr. Dionisio Pulido’s account of the plot he worked on.
The Paricutín volcano in the Michoacán-Guanajuato volcanic field… Ciencia Nicolaita 74 23 August 2018 That same day, and from that crack or fissure, gases, columns of ash (rock fragments and crystals), and showers of bombs and blocks began to come out (Fig. 3) (Foshag and González 1956). During the first 24 hours a 30 meter high volcano had already formed and after 10 days it had reached 148 meters. Ezequiel Ordóñez and Ariel Hernández Velasco classified the explosive activity of the volcano in three phases: the first consisted of explosive eruptions forming an eruptive column and pyroclastic material, the second consisted of periods of calm alternating with periods of explosive activity, and the third phase was characterized by gas and ash emanations (Segerstrom and Gutiérrez 1947).
The volcano continued to grow with strombolian and volcanic eruptions (Erlund et al. 2010) until it reached its maximum height of 385 m (Wilcox 1948) on December 31, 1947, with a basal diameter between 770 and 950 m and a crater diameter between 240 and 250 m (Wilcox 1948, Hasenaka and Carmichael 1985b).
On April 3, 1943, effusive activity began with the emanation of A’a’ type lava flows at temperatures of about 1200°C from several emission points located northeast and southeast of the cone, called Quiquichio, Ahuán, hornitos or bocas (Kennedy 1946, Zies 1946, Segerstrom and Gutiérrez 1947). From October 18, 1943 to January 8, 1944, Zapichu/Sapichu (which in Purépecha means “son”) formed, an adventitious or satellite volcano located on the northeastern slope of Paricutín, from which most of the lava flows emanated. The total volume of lava flows was estimated at 0.7 km3 by Scandone (1979).
After the eruption, several authors have studied the chemical composition of the ash and lavas emitted by the volcano, including Wilcox (1954), Hasenaka and Carmichael (1987), Pioli et al. (2008), Erlund et al. (2010) and Cebriá et al. (2011b).
These authors found that the magma evolved, between 1947 and 1948, from andesite-basaltic to andesitic composition due to processes of cortical assimilation and fractional crystallization (Luhr 2001, Erlund et al. 2010, Rowe et al. 2011). The Paricutín lavas belong to the calc-alkaline series (Cebriá et al. 2011b) and contain olivine phenocrysts and microphenocrysts of plagioclase, olivine, orthopyroxene and clinopyroxene (Wilcox 1954).
See “How a Volcano is formed” and we also recommend “The Paricutín Volcano in Images”.
During the nine years of its activity it emitted a total volume of magma between 1.32 km3 (Scandone 1979, McBirney 1987) and 1.68 km3 (Larrea et al. 2017), affecting more than 2,500 people, completely burying the towns of San Juan Parangaricutiro and Paricutín and damaging the towns of Zirosto, Zacán and Angahuan (Nolan 1979). The Paricutín volcano was extinguished on March 4, 1952.
Paricutín Volcano, Michoacán Mexico. On its 80th Anniversary Actual images at the time of the eruption.
However, I can recommend some reliable scientific sources and references that you could consult for detailed information about the history of Paricutín Volcano in Michoacán:
Scientific articles: you can search for academic articles in geological and volcanological journals that have investigated the history and activity of Paricutín Volcano. Use online platforms such as Google Scholar or scientific databases to find publications related to this topic. Here are some suggestions from the UNAM “La Historia del Nacimiento del volcán Paricutín” (The History of the Birth of the Paricutín Volcano).
Geological and volcanological institutes: Consult the websites of respected institutions dedicated to the study of volcanoes and geology, such as the Servicio Geológico Mexicano (SGM) and the Centro de Investigación en Geografía y Geomática “Ing. Jorge L. Tamayo” (CIGG).
Reference books: Look for books by geologists or volcanologists who have studied the Paricutín Volcano in depth. Some books may provide a more detailed narrative about its history and geological features. Reference Wikipedia and the history of the volcano. For reference there is also Paricutín: the telluric story of how Mexico’s youngest volcano was born, just 80 years ago.
Local museums and visitor centers: If you have the opportunity to visit Michoacán, look for museums or visitor centers in the area near Paricutín Volcano. These places often offer detailed information about the geological history and past eruptions of the volcano. Reference the Government of Mexico and the History of the Paricutín Volcano
Documentaries and science programs: Look for documentaries and popular science programs related to volcanoes and geology, as they may include information about the history of Paricutín Volcano in Michoacán.
When researching the history of the Paricutín Volcano, be sure to use sources that are reliable and endorsed by the scientific community. Check the credibility and expertise of the authors or institutions behind the information you find.