Mayon

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Mayon

Bulkang Mayon (Central Bicolano)

Mayon as viewed from Ligñon Hill in Legazpi City, Albay in December

2006

Highest point

Elevation 2,463 m (8,081 ft) [1]

Prominence 2,447 m (8,028 ft) [1]

 Active volcano
Listing
 Ultra

13°15′24″N 123°41′6″ECoordinates:
Coordinates 13°15′24″N 123°41′6″E 
Geography

Mayon
 Show map of Luzon Show map of Philippines Show all
Country Philippines
Region Bicol Region
Province Albay
Cities and
municipalities List[show]
Geology
Age of rock > 20,000 years [2]

Mountain type Stratovolcano

Last eruption 2018
Climbing
First ascent Scotsmen Paton & Stewart (1858)[3]

Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap

Mayon (Central Bicolano: Bulkan Magayon, Tagalog: Bulkang Mayon, Spanish: Monte Mayón), also
known as Mayon Volcano or Mount Mayon, also, Magayon (Central Bicolano: Bulkan
Magayon, Tagalog: Bulkang Magayon, Spanish: Monte Magayón), also known as Magayon
Volcano or Mount Magayon,[4] is a sacred[5] and active stratovolcano in
the province of Albay in Bicol Region, on the large island of Luzon in the Philippines. It is one of the
tourist spots in Bicol Region. Renowned for its "perfect cone" because of its symmetric conical
shape, the volcano with its surrounding landscape was declared a national park on July 20, 1938,
the first in the nation. It was reclassified a Natural Park and renamed as the Mayon Volcano Natural
Park in 2000.[6] It is said that the volcano grew from the burial grounds of lovers Magayon and
Pangaronon. Thus, the ancient Bicolanos named it after the legendary princess-heroine Daragang
Magayon (English: Beautiful Lady). After some time, the volcano was chosen as the abode of the
supreme god of the Bicolano people, Gugurang, who also chose Mayon as the repository of the
sacred fire of Ibalon.[5] Numerous festivals and rituals are associated with the volcano and its
landscape.[7] The volcano is the centerpiece of the Albay Biosphere Reserve, declared
by UNESCO in 2016,[8] and is currently being nominated as a World Heritage Site.

Contents

 1Location
 2Geomorphology
 3Recorded eruptions
o 3.11814 eruption
o 3.21881–1882 eruption
o 3.31897 eruption
o 3.41984 and 1993 eruptions
o 3.51999 eruption
o 3.62000 eruptions
o 3.72001 eruption
o 3.82006 eruptions
o 3.92008 eruption
o 3.102009–2010 eruption
  3.10.1Government response
 3.10.2International response
o 3.112013 phreatic eruption
 3.11.1International response
o 3.122014 renewed activity
o 3.132018 activity
 4Deadly lahars
 5Monitoring Mayon
 6Philippine currency
 7See also
 8References
 9External links

Location[edit]

Mayon is shared by eight cities and municipalities of Albay province

Mayon is the main landmark and highest point of the province of Albay and the whole Bicol
Region in the Philippines, rising 2,462 metres (8,077 ft) from the shores of the Albay Gulf about 10
kilometres (6.2 mi) away.[9][10] The volcano is geographically shared by the eight cities and
municipalities of Legazpi City, Daraga, Camalig, Guinobatan, Ligao City, Tabaco
City, Malilipot and Santo Domingo (clockwise from Legazpi), which divide the cone like slices of a
pie when viewing a map of their political boundaries.

Geomorphology[edit]
Mayon is a classic stratovolcano with a small central summit crater. The cone is considered the
world's most perfectly formed volcano for its symmetry,[10] which was formed through layers of lava
flows and pyroclastic surges from past eruptions and erosion. The upper slopes of the basaltic-
andesitic stratovolcano are steep, averaging 35–40 degrees.[citation needed]
Like other volcanoes around the Pacific Ocean, Mayon is a part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. It is on
the southeast side of Luzon, close to the Philippine Trench, which is the convergent boundary where
the Philippine Sea Plate sinks beneath (is subducted beneath) the Philippine Mobile Belt. When an
oceanic plate subducts, it releases water into the overlying mantle. The water lowers the melting
point of the mantle and triggers melting that generates magma. The magma rises and erupts at the
surface at a volcano like Mayon.[citation needed]

Recorded eruptions[edit]
Mayon is the most active volcano in the Philippines, erupting over 47 times in the past 500
years.[11] Historical observations accounted its first eruption in 1616.[12] The first eruption for which an
extended account exists was the six-day event of July 20, 1766.[13][14]
1814 eruption[edit]

An old photograph of the Cagsawa ruins with the façade still standing. The church was largely destroyed during
the 1814 eruption of Mayon. Only the bell tower exists today.

Its most destructive recorded eruption occurred on February 1, 1814 (VEI=4).[12][15] Lava flowed but
less than the 1766 eruption. The volcano belched dark ash and eventually bombarded the town
of Cagsawa with tephra that buried it.[12][15] Trees burned, and rivers were certainly damaged.
Proximate areas were also devastated by the eruption, with ash accumulating to in depth. In
Cagsawa town, about 1,200 locals perished in what is considered to be the most lethal eruption in
Mayon's history according to PHIVOLCS.[12][15] The eruption is believed to have contributed to the
accumulation of atmospheric ash together with the catastrophic 1815 eruption of other volcanoes
like Indonesia's Mount Tambora, leading to the Year Without a Summer in 1816.[citation needed]
1881–1882 eruption[edit]
From July 6, 1881, until approximately August 1882, Mayon underwent a strong (VEI=3)
eruption. Samuel Kneeland, a naturalist, professor and geologist, personally observed the volcanic
activity on Christmas Day, 1881, about five months after the start of the activity:
At the date of my visit, the volcano had poured out, for five months continuously, a stream of lava on
the Legaspi side from the very summit. The viscid mass bubbled quietly but grandly, and overran the
border of the crater, descending several hundred feet in a glowing wave, like red-hot iron. Gradually,
fading as the upper surface cooled, it changed to a thousand sparkling rills among the crevices, and,
as it passed beyond the line of complete vision behind the woods near the base, the fires twinkled
like stars, or the scintillions of a dying conflagration. More than half of the mountain height was thus
illuminated.[16]

1897 eruption[edit]

Mount Mayon erupting on July 21, 1928

Mayon's longest uninterrupted eruption occurred on June 23, 1897 (VEI=4), which rained fire for
seven days. Lava once again flowed down to civilization. Eleven kilometers (7 miles) eastward, the
village of Bacacay was buried 15 m (49 ft) beneath the lava. In Santo Domingo 100 people were
killed by steam and falling debris or hot rocks. Other villages like San Roque, Sta. Misericordia and
Santo Niño became deathtraps. Ash was carried in black clouds as far as 160 kilometres (99 mi)
from the catastrophic event, which killed more than 400 people.[10]

The eruption on September 23, 1984

1984 and 1993 eruptions[edit]

No casualties were recorded from the 1984 eruption after more than 73,000 people were evacuated
from the danger zones as recommended by PHIVOLCS scientists.[17] But in 1993, pyroclastic
flows killed 79[12] people, mainly farmers, during the eruption[18] that also forced 50,000 residents
evacuated, according to the Albay provincial government.[15]
1999 eruption[edit]
Mayon began its increasing activity in May 1999, with hazard status associated raised to Alert Level
1.[19][20] On June 22, 1999, Mayon emitted an ash column that rose to approximately 10 km above the
vent; the status was later raised to Alert Level 2.[15][19][20] The emission was recorded by the seismic
network of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology as an explosion that lasted for 10
minutes. No volcanic earthquakes nor other visible signs of abnormal activity were observed before
the explosion.[citation needed]
2000 eruptions[edit]
Mayon had experienced continuous emissions since 1999 and followed by a series of eruptions in
the next two consecutive years.[15]
On January 5, 2000, a 5-km-high ash column was produced by an explosion. Growth of summit-
crater dome and intensifying eruptions later signaled evacuations.[19]
Past emissions had led to the growth of the lava dome beginning February 12.[20][21] On February 23,
series of eruptions began.[21][22] PHIVOLCS then recommended evacuation even beyond permanent
danger zone.[20] On February 24, PHIVOLCS raised its status to the highest, Alert Level 5, with at
least eight towns and one city warned of possible explosions with ash and lava flows, and several
thousands forced to evacuate even outside identified danger zones.[12][20][22][23] The most violent
eruptions were occurred from February 28 to March 1, and since then, declining activity was
observed until April.[21][22]
NDCC reported that the 2000 eruption displaced 14,114 families (68,426 persons) and damaged at
least ₱89-million worth of property and crops.[15]
2001 eruption[edit]
NDCC reported that another eruption in 2001 affected 11,529 families (56,853 persons) and
damaged at least ₱48-million worth of property and crops.[15]
2006 eruptions[edit]
Mayon in satellite image

Mayon's 48th modern-era eruption was on July 13, 2006, followed by quiet effusion of lava that
started on July 14, 2006.[14][24] Nearly 40,000 people were evacuated from the 8-kilometre (5.0 mi)
danger zone on the southeast flank of the volcano.[25]
After an ash explosion of September 1, 2006, a general decline in the overall activity of Mayon was
established. The decrease in key parameters such as seismicity, sulfur dioxide emission rates and
ground inflation all indicated a waning condition. The slowdown in the eruptive activity was also
evident from the decrease in intensity of crater glow and the diminishing volume of lava extruded
from the summit. PHILVOLCS Alert Level 4 was lowered to Level 3 on September 11, 2006; to Level
2 on October 3, 2006; and to Level 1 on October 25, 2006.[26]