Hatepe eruption
| Hatepe eruption | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Volcano | Lake Taupo |
| Date | about 180 AD |
| Type | Ultra Plinian |
| Location | Lake Taupo, New Zealand 38°49′S 175°55′E / 38.817°S 175.917°ECoordinates: 38°49′S 175°55′E / 38.817°S 175.917°E |
| VEI | 7 |
| Impact | Devastated local vegetation, expanded Lake Taupo, flooded the Waikato River |
The Hatepe eruption, named for the Hatepe Plinian pumice tephra layer, sometimes referred to as the Taupo eruption and dated to around 180 AD, was Lake Taupo's most recent major eruption. It is considered New Zealand's largest eruption during the last 20,000 years. The eruption ejected some 120 km3 (29 cu mi), a VEI 7 eruption, of which 30 km3 (7.2 cu mi) was ejected in the space of a few minutes. This makes it one of the most violent eruptions in the last 5000 years, comparable to the Minoan eruption in the 2nd millennium BC, the Tianchi eruption of Baekdu around 1000 AD and the 1815 eruption of Tambora. The resulting ash turned the sky red over Rome and China.
The eruption went through several stages, with six distinct marker horizons identified. Despite the uniform composition of the erupted magma, a wide variety of eruptive styles were displayed, including weak phreatomagmatism, Plinian eruptions, and a huge pyroclastic flow. Rhyolitic lava domes were extruded some years or decades later, forming the Horomatangi reefs and Waitahanui bank.
The main pyroclastic flow devastated the surrounding area, climbing over 1,500 m (4,900 ft) to overtop the nearby Kaimanawa Ranges and Mount Tongariro, and covering the land within 80 km (50 mi) with ignimbrite. Since New Zealand was not settled by the Māori until more than a thousand years later, the area had no known human inhabitants when the eruption occurred. Tsunami deposits of the same age have been found on the central New Zealand coast, evidence that the eruption caused local tsunamis, but much more widespread waves may have been generated (like those observed after the 1883 Krakatoa eruption).
...
Wikipedia