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Mt Rainier Volcano | John Seach
Washington, USA
46.87 N, 121.758 W
summit elevation 4392 m
stratovolcano
Mount Rainier is the highest peak in the Cascade Range, located 87 km SE of Seattle. The volcano contains 26 main glaciers. Thermal activity keeps the crater rim free of snow.
Previous volcanic activity has produced large debris avalanches and lahars. Some previous lahars have traveled all the way to the Pacific Ocean and reached Puget Sound.
Summit of Mt Rainier
Contains three peaks -
Columbia Crest, Point Success, and Liberty Cap.
Little Tahoma is a small peak located on the eastern flank of the volcano.
Features of Interest at Mt Rainier National Park
Camp Hazard: The campsite is located at 11,600 ft below ice cliffs.
Camp Muir: This stone shelter cabin is located at 10,000 ft.
Carbon Glacier: The glacier is the thickest, and third largest on the mountain. Its terminus is at 3,500 ft. It is 5.7 miles long and 700 ft thick.
Columbia Crest: There are three summits at Mt Rainier. Columbia Crest is the third highest at 14,410 ft.
Cowlitz Glacier: The Cowlitz-lngraham Glacier advanced from the mid-1970's until the mid-1980's. It is currently thinning and retreating.
Echo Rock: This is an old eruption vent on the NW flank.
Emmons Glacier: This large glacier is on the eastern slope of the mountian. In 1963, a rockfall from Little Tahoma Peak covered the lower glacier with rock debris. The debris cover insulates the ice from melting. As a result of decreased melting, the glacier advanced rapidly in the early 1980's. That advance is still continuing toay, but at a slower rate.
Nisqually Glacier: The glacier can be viewed readily from Nisqually and Glacier Vistas located less than 1-mile from Paradise visitor facilities.
Russell Glacier: It is a tributary to the Carbon Glacier on the north side.
Winthrop Glacier: This is the second largest glacier on Mount Rainier, with an area of 3.5 square miles.
Further Reading
Wei, H.L. and Lindell, M.K., 2017. Washington households' expected responses to lahar threat from Mt. Rainier. International journal of disaster risk reduction, 22, pp.77-94.
Reid, M.E., Sisson, T.W. and Brien, D.L., 2001. Volcano collapse promoted by hydrothermal alteration and edifice shape, Mount Rainier, Washington. Geology, 29(9), pp.779-782.
Unger, J.D. and Decker, R.W., 1970. The microearthquake activity of Mt. Rainier, Washington. Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 60(6), pp.2023-2035.
Mt Rainier Volcano Eruptions
1894, 1882?, 1879?, 1870?, 1858?, 1854?, 1843?, 1825?, 300 BC, 520 BC ± 200, 3400 BC, 3600 BC, 3650 BC, 4400 BC, 4900 BC, 5300 BC, 5400 BC, 6800 BC.