Fourpeaked Mountain
| Fourpeaked Volcano | |
|---|---|
Fumaroles escape from Fourpeaked volcano through a fissure in Fourpeaked Glacier on 24 September 2006
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| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 6,903 ft (2,104 m) |
| Coordinates | 58°46′N 153°40′W / 58.767°N 153.667°W |
| Geography | |
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| Location | Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska, U.S. |
| Parent range | Aleutian Range |
| Topo map | USGS Afognak |
| Geology | |
| Age of rock | > 10,000 years |
| Mountain type | Stratovolcano |
| Volcanic arc/belt | Aleutian Arc |
| Last eruption | September 2006 |
Fourpeaked Volcano is an active stratovolcano in Alaska. The Alaska Volcano Observatory currently rates Fourpeaked Volcano as Aviation Alert Level Green and Volcanic-alert Level Normal. It is nearly completely covered by Fourpeaked Glacier.
Prior to the eruption beginning September 17, 2006, Fourpeaked volcano had been dormant for over 10,000 years.
Pilots and other civilians reported two distinct and very large steam plumes coming from Fourpeaked volcano. They were seen as far away as Homer, Alaska located northeast of Fourpeaked across Cook Inlet. Scientists on subsequent flights by USGS/AVO discovered that volcanic gases were being vented "vigorously" near the summit. Air sampling confirmed these findings. The Alaska Volcano Observatory officially classified this event as an explosive eruption.
The Alaska Volcano Observatory upgraded Fourpeaked volcano from the classification "not assigned" to Level of Concern Color Code Yellow on September 20, 2006. This color-coded system was later renamed the Aviation Alert Level, but with the same color-coding system. At that time they began installing seismic monitoring equipment on the mountain and using fixed-wing aircraft as well as helicopters to monitor the volcano.
On September 25, 2006, the AVO warned that Fourpeaked would likely erupt again, and released the following information as part of a special information release:
Based on all currently available evidence, AVO believes that an eruption from Fourpeaked in the next days to weeks is possible. Given below are some possible future scenarios for the current unrest at Fourpeaked, listed in order, with the most likely scenario listed first:
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Wikipedia