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The 5,660 yBP Boquerón explosive eruption, Teide–Pico Viejo complex, Tenerife

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Abstract

Quantitative hazard assessments of active volcanoes require an accurate knowledge of the past eruptive activity in terms of eruption dynamics and the stratified products of eruption. Teide–Pico Viejo (TPV) is one of the largest volcanic complexes in Europe, but the associated eruptive history has only been constrained based on very general stratigraphic and geochronological data. In particular, recent studies have shown that explosive activity has been significantly more frequently common than previously thought. Our study contributes to characterization of explosive activity of TPV by describing for the first time the subplinian eruption of El Boquerón (5,660 yBP), a satellite dome located on the northern slope of the Pico Viejo stratovolcano. Stratigraphic data suggest complex shifting from effusive phases with lava flows to highly explosive phase that generated a relatively thick and widespread pumice fallout deposit. This explosive phase is classified as a subplinian eruption of VEI 3 that lasted for about 9–15 h and produced a plume with a height of up to 9 km above sea level (i.e. 7 km above the vent; MER of 6.9–8.2 × 105 kg/s). The tephra deposit (minimum bulk volume of 4–6 × 107 m3) was dispersed to the NE by up to 10 m/s winds. A similar eruption today would significantly impact the economy of Tenerife (e.g. tourism and aviation), with major consequences mainly for the communities around the Icod Valley, and to a minor extent, the Orotava Valley. This vulnerability shows that a better knowledge of the past explosive history of TPV and an accurate estimate of future potentials to generate violent eruptions is required in order to quantify and mitigate the associated volcanic risk.

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Acknowledgments

This research has been partially funded with MICINN grant CGL2008-04264 and the IGN-CSIC collaboration agreement for the study of Tenerife volcanism. The authors are grateful to the National Park of Teide for giving us permission to undertake this research and Cabildo of Tenerife for giving us FYF 412/10 permission. They are also grateful to David Moure, Dario Pedrazzi, Ilazkiñe Iriberren, Natividad Luengo, Stavros Meletlidis, Pedro Torres, Stephanie Barde-Cabusson, Victor Cabrera and all the staff working at the Geophysics Centre of Canarias for their support during the field campaigns, including the staff working in the Central Geophysics Observatory (IGN). They also thank Agathe Martignier of the Department of Mineralogy of University of Geneva (Switzerland) for assistance with the SEM analyses, and Sebastien Biass helped in processing the NOAA wind data. This paper greatly benefited from editorial handling by S. De la Cruz and careful reviews of two anonymous reviewers.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro Geofísico de Canarias del I.G.N., C/La Marina 20, 2°, 38001, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain

    Olaya García

  2. Département de Minéralogie, Section des sciences de la Terre et de l’environnement, Université de Genève, Rues des Maraichers 13, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland

    Costanza Bonadonna & Laura Pioli

  3. Instituto de Ciencias de la Tierra Jaume Almera, CSIC, Lluis Solé Sabarís s/n, 08028, Barcelona, Spain

    Joan Martí

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  1. Olaya García
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  2. Costanza Bonadonna
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  4. Laura Pioli
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Correspondence to Olaya García.

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Editorial responsibility: S. De la Cruz-Reyna

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García, O., Bonadonna, C., Martí, J. et al. The 5,660 yBP Boquerón explosive eruption, Teide–Pico Viejo complex, Tenerife. Bull Volcanol 74, 2037–2050 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00445-012-0646-5

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