Popocatepetl has been recently in the news (with some very pretty images accompanying it (see below)) for increased activity which has disrupted the airspace over Mexico City (which is approximately 60 km North-West of the volcano). The activity has included near-continuous explosions on Saturday 6th July, gas and ash emissions. As of writing (Monday 8th) reports are that the volcano is on yellow alert (phase 3 of 5) with a 12 km exclusion zone. Sunday 7th saw intermittent eruptions with a steam and ash plume 3 km high.
(Figure 1, reference below)
Like many ridiculously photogenic stratovolcanoes (kind of like the ridiculously photogenic Syrian rebel (dft.ba/-5rebel1) only more deadly), Popocatepetl was formed due to the collision of two plate boundaries, the North American Plate (which the volcano sits upon) and the Cocos Plate that is being subducted beneath it. Fluids are liberated from the subducting plate causing the mantle above the plate to melt and rise up through the crust. This magma mixes with other components creating an Andasitic magma which is viscous, volatile rich leading to explosive eruptions.
(Figure 2, reference below)
But let's now talk about some interesting trivia to do with our dear friend El Popo. I've been recently reading a book called 'Melting the Earth: The history of ideas on volcanic eruptions' by Haraldur Sigurdsson which apart from being the most compulsively readable geological text I've read since Prof. Gillian Foulger's 'Plates Vs. Plumes: A geological Controversy' recounts the local creation myth of Popocatepetl amongst other things.
So without too much plagiarism I shall now summarise said Aztec myth:
The two mountains Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl (The Woman in White) were worshiped by the Aztec people as gods.
The Smoking Mountain (Popocatepetl) was a warrior who fell in love with the daughter of the emperor, Princess Izraccihuatl. The warrior went away to war and upon his victory headed home to claim his beloved sweetheart. However, enemies of the warrior sent word to the Princess that far from coming home victorious he had been killed. Heartbroken, the Princess died soon after of grief.
Upon discovering his deceased love Popocatepetl built two great mountains. He laid his 'sleeping woman' right on the peak of Iztaccihuatl (La Mujer Dormida, which means 'the sleeping woman') and on the other he forever stands guard bearing her funeral torch.
(I get something of a Romeo and Juliet vibe from this story personally...)
As far as explanations for the firry wrath of the great mountains near Mexico City (the flaming torch and insatiable wrath of a great immortal warrior) it certainly beats some of the other ideas early people had about volcanoes (if only in style!) For instance, for a great number of years it was thought that earthquakes and volcanoes were caused by great winds in the caverns beneath the earth! Combine that with some thoughts on the winds being caused by the combustion of brimstone (sulphur) and you've a recipe for some humorous wind-related jokes. (Except I'm far to high brow to make such jokes!)
Anyway, that's all for now, if you want to keep up with other volcano related activity I highly recommend the Smithsonian weekly report (the webpage has recently had a nice shiny overhaul) at: http://volcano.si.edu/weekly_report.cfm
or for daily updates on volcanoes practically as it happens check out the Volcano Discovery website:
In an attempt to get myself doing this during the doldrums of the holidays expect to see more posts soon!
I'm so cool, I'm obsidian...
References:
Help with working out which plate the volcano is on: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20061211100617AAirLaW
Figure 1: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/centralamericaandthecaribbean/mexico/9218197/Mexico-City-on-alert-as-Popocatepetl-volcano-spews-rock-and-ash.html
Figure 2: http://www.platetectonics.com/book/images/Subduction2.gif
Volcano monitoring information: http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/popocatepetl/news.html
More information on Popocatepetl: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popacatapetl
Further information on the myth of Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iztacc%C3%ADhuatl
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