Sabancaya

Sabancaya is an active 5,976-metre (19,606 ft) stratovolcano in the Andes of southern Peru, about 100 kilometres (62 mi) northwest of Arequipa. It is the most active volcano in Peru and is part of a 20-kilometre (12 mi) north-south chain of three major stratovolcanoes, including the extinct and eroded 6,025 metres (19,767 ft) high volcano Wallqa Wallqa at the northern end, the dormant 6,288 metres (20,630 ft) high volcano Ampato to the south, and Sabancaya in the middle. Sabancaya hosts several glaciers which cover an area of about 3.5 square kilometres (1.4 sq mi) and descend as low as 5,400 metres (17,700 ft) on its flanks.

Volcanic activity

The andesite stratovolcano of Sabancaya has been very active during historic times, with the earliest recorded eruptions in 1695 and 1758 (other sources list 1750 and 1784 as possible eruptions, too). Following over 200 years of dormancy, satellites detected an increase in thermal emission in July 1986 and intense activity resumed in December of that year, with several eruptive cycles over the next two years producing a lava dome in the crater.