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Granada Volcano | John Seach
(La Joya)
Nicaragua
11.92 N, 85.98 W
summit elevation 300 m
Fissure vents
Granada Volcano is located western Nicaragua, on northwestern shore of Lake Nicaragua (Cocibolca). The volcano lies next to Granada, the oldest city founded by Europeans on mainland America.
La Joya explosions craters are located SW of Granada.
Apoyo Caldera
Apoyo caldera lies along the NW-trending chain of Quaternary volcanoes in western Nicaragua between Lakes Managua and Nicaragua. The caldera is nearly circular (approximately 7.0 X 6.5 km in diameter) with a depth of at least 600 m below the west rim. Lake Apoyo occupies the caldera. The caldera lies on the western rim of the Nicaraguan Depression. The depression consists of a broad, shallow graben trending northwest between parallel sets of faults.
Volcanism and faulting within the graben are caused by the northeastward subduction of the Cocos Plate beneath the Caribbean Plate along the Middle American Trench.
Caldera Collapse
Caldera collapse occurred at Granada volcano 23,000 years ago with the eruption of 11 cubic km of magma in the form of airfalls, ash-flows and pyroclastic surges over two separate phases. The pumice deposits associated with Apoyo caldera collapse represent the largest eruption of silicic magma from any Nicaraguan volcano during Quaternary time.
Current and Future Activity
Granada volcano is currently inactive, with only a few small hot springs and areas of hot ground located at the western edge of the caldera lake. There has been a long history of activity at the volcano, and the age of the most recent eruptions indicates that the Granada magmatic system is not dead and that future eruptions are possible. The city of Granada, is built upon a thick deposit of ignimbrite, and is likely to be directly in the path of another ashflow eruption, if it occurs.
Further reading
Walker, J.A., 1984. Volcanic rocks from the Nejapa and Granada cinder cone alignments, Nicaragua, Central America. Journal of Petrology, 25(2), pp.299-342.
Ui, T., 1972. Recent volcanism in Masaya-Granada area, Nicaragua. Bulletin Volcanologique, 36(1), pp.174-190.
Granada Volcano Eruptions
Possible eruptions in the past 2000 years.