Volcan de Nevado

This past weekend has been quite eventful. Colima is probably the coolest place in Mexico. It is a small state with a small population. The climate ranges from high altitude alpine climate to tropical coastlands. Unfortunately, Colima has experienced several natural disasters. In 2002, Colima experienced an 8.0 earthquake destroying much of the city. Some friends of ours recounted their experiences and it sounded horrifying. They said they thought it was the end of the world. The quake only lasted for less than a minute but they felt it was hours. They said the tremor was so large they couldn’t move or run for cover. Many people just collapsed where they were. After the quake and destruction, they said there was a resounding echo of crying and screaming for loved ones. In 2004 there was a huge eruption from Volcan de Fuego that covered the city in ash and caused roofs of many houses to collapse. Additionally, the state of Colima is hit by huge hurricanes and occasionally tsunamis.

The Colima Volcanic Complex, as geologists call it, is composed of 2 enormous composite volcanoes, Volcan de Nevado and Volcan de Fuego. The two peaks are only 4 km apart but Nevado has been extinct for thousands of years. On Nevado’s peak is the volcanic observatory where I spent all day Thursday and Friday morning monitoring Volcan de Fuego. I went with 2 Mexican students from the University of Colima. We got to the top by hitching a ride with the bomberos (firemen). They go up in shifts to oversee the equipment at the top of Nevado and report an unusual activity to city authorities. So we climbed in the back of their truck with all our own equipment and warm clothes and made our way up to the 14,000 foot observatory.
I felt like I was on an airplane up there. The valleys below are 14,000 feet down. From the peak all the way to sea level. The view was awesome, but the view of the active Volcan de Fuego was the best.

At the top we set up the equipment and watched for explosions. We used a fly spec to measure S02 flux and camcorder to record eruptions. Usually we would also use a thermal camera but it was not working. While we waited we played cards, watched a movie on our laptop, ate tuna and crackers, tried to stay warm, and I went for a short hike. The volcano exploded 3 or 4 times on Thursday. It was one of the coolest things I have ever seen.