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Llullaillaco Volcano | John Seach
Chile/Argentina
24.72, 68.53 W
summit elevation 6793 m
stratovolcano
Llullaillaco is the world's highest historically active volcano, and the second highest volcano in the world. It lies in the Atacama Desert, one of the world's driest places.
The precipitous volcano has a high probability of avalanche collapse in the event of renewed eruptions. Llullaillaco cone was built during the Pleistocene.
The volcano was formed in two main stages. The first stage built broad shield of thick dacitic lava flows. The second stage began 50,000 years ago and produced a steep pyramid of dacite coulees.
Collapse of the southeastern flank of Llullaillaco volcano formed a large debris avalanche. The avalanche deposits are well preserved due to the arid climate. The north and south limbs of the avalanche traveled 25 and 23 km, respectively, and cover a total area of 165 sq km.
Llullaillaco Mummies
500-year-old frozen mummies were found at an altitude of 6,739 m in 1999. The mummies were buried with more than 100 objects, including textiles, gold and silver statues, pottery, and feathered headdresses. the mummies are extraordinarily well preserved because of the cold, hypoxic, and arid environment of their mountain tomb. The frozen bodies of Llullaillaco, so far, are among the best-preserved mummies ever found.
Further reading
Richards, J.P. and Villeneuve, M., 2001. The Llullaillaco volcano, northwest Argentina: construction by Pleistocene volcanism and destruction by sector collapse. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 105(1-2), pp.77-105.
Llullaillaco Volcano Eruptions
1877, 1868, 1854