Do you have any information on Mount Nyiragongo and Mount
Nyamuragira? I am writing a paper for school on these volcanoes.
Rachel Zamoiski
Dear Rachel,
Nyiragongo (1.5S, 29.3E) and Nyamuragira (1.4S, 29.2E)are associated with
the East African Rift. The volcanoes are in Zaire, not far from the
border with Rwanda. Both volcanoes are in Virunga National Park and they
account for nearly two-fifths of Africa's historical eruptions. The town
of Goma is 11 miles (18 km) south of the summit of Nyiragongo and on the
shore of Lake Kivu. Goma served as an encampment for nearly a million
refugees from the civil war in Rwanda.
Nyiragongo (elevation: 11,365 feet, 3,465 m) is a stratovolcano. A
crater at the summit of Nyiragongo contained a lava lake from 1894 to
1977. On January 10, 1977, the lava lake drained in less than one hour.
The lava erupted from fissures on the flank of the volcano and moved at
speeds up to 40 miles per hour (60 km/hr). About 70 people were killed.
The fluid lava reached within 2,000 feet (600 m) of the Goma airport.
>From June 1982 to early 1982 the volcano was active with a lava lake in
the crater and phreatic explosions and lava fountaining.
The most recent activity at Nyiragongo began in June of 1994. A lava
lake once again filled part of the crater. The lava lake was
approximately 130 feet (40 m) in diameter and sent lava flows onto the
floor of the 2,600 feet (800 m) diameter crater. The surface of the lava
lake was about 500 feet (150 m) below the level of the lake when it
drained in 1977.
Nyamuragira (elevation: 10,013 feet, 3,053 m) is a shield volcano.
Nyamuragira is 9 miles (14 km) northwest of Nyiragongo. Since 1882,
Nyamuragira has erupted 34 times. Most of the eruptions produce lava
flows from fissures in the flanks of the volcano. At the vent, lava
fountains often construct cinder or spatter cones. Only the 1912-1913
eruption caused fatalities. The most recent eruption of Nyamuragira
began on July 4, 1994 from a fissure on the west flank. The eruption
generated ash, lava fountains, and flows. Ash and Pele's hair fell 12
miles (20 km) from the volcano. The eruption ended July 27, 1995.
Steve Mattox, University of North Dakota
Sources of Information:
Bulletin of the Global Volcanism Network, 1995, Smithsonian Institution,
Washington, D.C., v. 20, no. 1, p. 11-12.
McClelland, L., Simkin, T., Summers, M., Nielson, E., Stein, T.C., 1989,
Global volcanism 1975-1985: Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey,
and American Geophysical Union, Washington DC, 655 p.
Simkin, T., and Siebert, L., 1994, Volcanoes of the world: Geoscience
Press, Tucson, Arizona, 349 p.
Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Network, 1994, Summary of
Recent Activity: Bulletin of Volcanology, v. 56, p. 414.
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