Coatepeque Caldera
Encyclopedia
Coatepeque Caldera also known as Lago De Coatepeque (Nahuatl
cōātepēc, "at the snake
hill") is a volcanic caldera
in El Salvador
in Central America
. The caldera was formed during a series of major rhyolitic
explosive eruptions between about 72,000 and 57,000 years ago. Since then, basalt
ic cinder cone
s and lava flows formed near the west edge of the caldera, and six rhyodacitic
lava dome
s have formed. The youngest dome, Cerro Pacho, formed after 8000 BC.
in the east part of the Coatepeque Caldera
. It is in Coatepeque
municipality, Santa Ana
, El Salvador
. There are hot spring
s near the lake margins. At 26 km², it is one of the largest lakes in El Salvador. In the lake is the island of Teopan, which was a Mayan
site of some importance.
Nahuatl
Nahuatl is thought to mean "a good, clear sound" This language name has several spellings, among them náhuatl , Naoatl, Nauatl, Nahuatl, Nawatl. In a back formation from the name of the language, the ethnic group of Nahuatl speakers are called Nahua...
cōātepēc, "at the snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
hill") is a volcanic caldera
Caldera
A caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic feature usually formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption, such as the one at Yellowstone National Park in the US. They are sometimes confused with volcanic craters...
in El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
in Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
. The caldera was formed during a series of major rhyolitic
Rhyolite
This page is about a volcanic rock. For the ghost town see Rhyolite, Nevada, and for the satellite system, see Rhyolite/Aquacade.Rhyolite is an igneous, volcanic rock, of felsic composition . It may have any texture from glassy to aphanitic to porphyritic...
explosive eruptions between about 72,000 and 57,000 years ago. Since then, basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
ic cinder cone
Cinder cone
According to the , Cinder Cone is the proper name of 1 cinder cone in Canada and 7 cinder cones in the United States:In Canada: Cinder Cone In the United States:...
s and lava flows formed near the west edge of the caldera, and six rhyodacitic
Rhyodacite
Rhyodacite is an extrusive volcanic rock intermediate in composition between dacite and rhyolite. It is the extrusive equivalent of granodiorite. Phenocrysts of sodium rich plagioclase, sanidine, quartz, and biotite or hornblende are typically set in an aphanitic to glassy light to intermediate...
lava dome
Lava dome
|250px|thumb|right|Image of the [[rhyolitic]] lava dome of [[Chaitén Volcano]] during its 2008–2009 eruption.In volcanology, a lava dome is a roughly circular mound-shaped protrusion resulting from the slow extrusion of viscous lava from a volcano...
s have formed. The youngest dome, Cerro Pacho, formed after 8000 BC.
Coatepeque Lake (Lago de Coatepeque)
Lake Coatepeque (Lago de Coatepeque) is a large crater lakeCrater lake
A crater lake is a lake that forms in a volcanic crater or caldera, such as a maar; less commonly and with lower association to the term a lake may form in an impact crater caused by a meteorite. Sometimes lakes which form inside calderas are called caldera lakes, but often this distinction is not...
in the east part of the Coatepeque Caldera
Caldera
A caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic feature usually formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption, such as the one at Yellowstone National Park in the US. They are sometimes confused with volcanic craters...
. It is in Coatepeque
Coatepeque
Coatepeque may refer to either of the following geographical locations:*El Salvador**Coatepeque, Santa Ana**Coatepeque Caldera*Guatemala**Coatepeque, Quetzaltenango...
municipality, Santa Ana
Santa Ana Department
Santa Ana is a department of El Salvador in the northwest of the country. The capital is Santa Ana.- General information :It has 2,023 km² and a population of over 600,000. This department was created on February 8, 1855...
, El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
. There are hot spring
Hot spring
A hot spring is a spring that is produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater from the Earth's crust. There are geothermal hot springs in many locations all over the crust of the earth.-Definitions:...
s near the lake margins. At 26 km², it is one of the largest lakes in El Salvador. In the lake is the island of Teopan, which was a Mayan
Maya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
site of some importance.