Volcano Live
volcanolive.com
Cuicocha Volcano | John Seach
Ecuador
0.308 N, 78.364 W
summit elevation 3246 m
Caldera
Cuicocha Volcano is located 100 km north of Quito. The volcano consists of a 3 km wide lake filled caldera at near Cotacachi volcano. The caldera formed during an eruption 3100 years ago.
Four lava domes are located in the lake, and a pre-caldera lava dome is situated on the east side of the lake.
Cuicocha caldera lake has a depth of 148 m and is filled by both rain water and hydrothermal water. After an earthquake in 1987, a rapid water level drop was
observed for several weeks. Recently the water level has been dropping by about 30 cm per year. Approximately
3000 cubic m/day, is lost by percolation into fractures and fissures of the bedrock.
Lake temperature continues to increase at a rate of 0.1 deg C per year. Divers have observed inflow of hydrothermal water, which indicates potential future activity at the volcano.
Further reading
Sierra, Daniel, et al. "Temporal and spatial variations of CO2 diffuse volcanic degassing on Cuicocha Caldera Lake–Ecuador." Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research (2020): 107145.
Gunkel, G., et al. "Hazards of volcanic lakes: analysis of Lakes Quilotoa and Cuicocha, Ecuador." Advances in Geosciences 14 (2008): 29-33.
Cuicocha Volcano Eruptions
950 BC, 1150 BC