Index of Mt. Damavand Volcanic Activity Reports

Reports are organized chronologically and indexed below by Month/Year (Publication Volume:Number), and include a one-line summary. Click on the index link or scroll down to read the reports.

09/1993 (BGVN 18:09) Fumarolic vent on the crater rim; sulfur deposits

10/1999 (BGVN 24:10) Morphology and brief description of summit from visiting excursion


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Contents of Volcanic Activity Reports
All information contained in these reports is preliminary and subject to change.
09/1993 (BGVN 18:09) Fumarolic vent on the crater rim; sulfur deposits

A visit to the summit area . . . on 12 July 1993 revealed a small, powerful fumarolic vent on the S rim of the crater that was emitting SO2-rich gases at a temperature of ~50°C. Sulfur deposits also covered the surrounding slopes. The summit crater was ~150 m wide and 20 m deep, with a 40-m-diameter frozen lake in the bottom, surrounded by patches of snow. . . . there is no permanent glacier because of the dry climate. However, the upper slopes do contain scattered areas of hardened perennial snow (névés).

Information Contacts: J. Sesiano, Univ de Genève.

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10/1999 (BGVN 24:10) Morphology and brief description of summit from visiting excursion

On 1 August 1999, a group from the Societe de Volcanologie Geneve ascended the ice- and rock-covered summit. On the way up the N flank they saw vertical coal deposits below 2,450 m elevation, reaching thicknesses of tens of meters. Above 4,000 m elevation huge blocks were seen that appeared to have traveled from ~1 km above. Just below the summit were large sulfur-bearing blocks that appear to be mixed with a clay- like material. Within 100 m of the N rim of the summit chunks of pure sulfur were observed. The circular summit crater was ~150 m in diameter. In the center of the crater lay a small frozen lake approximately 40 m across. From the N rim of the summit, an active fumarole could be seen to the south.

Information Contacts: D. Zurcher and R. Haubrichs, Societe de Volcanologie Geneve (SVG), C.P. 6423, CH-1211, Geneve 6, Switzerland (Bulletin de la SVG, October 1999, p. 6 (in French)).