Birth and evolution of the Paricutín volcano
Nacimiento y evolución del volcán Paricutín
- Date
- 20 de febrero de 1943 - 1952 · confidence high
- Place
- Paricutín, Michoacán, Mexico
- Credited to
- Dionisio Pulido (witness); Ezequiel Ordóñez, William Foshag and Jenaro González
- Field
- Cosmos & Earth
What was discovered
On 20 February 1943 a farmer saw a fissure open in his cornfield in Michoacán. Over nine years the cone grew to about 400 m, buried two villages and was followed day by day by Mexican and American geologists: the first time the complete life cycle of a monogenetic volcano was documented from its birth.
The volcano ceased erupting in 1952; the half-buried bell tower of San Juan Parangaricutiro is now a landmark. The study by Ordóñez and Foshag is a classic of volcanology.
What it led to
- a study model for monogenetic volcanoes
- monitoring of volcanic fields and hazard maps in Mexico