Popocatépetl is a steep-sided volcanic cone located 55 km east of Mexico City and 45 km west of the Puebla metropolitan area. More than 30 million people live within view of the volcano and hundreds of thousands of people would be endangered by hazards associated with a large explosive eruption of the volcano. A major eruption would have serious consequences for people living in communities on the flanks of the volcano, and ash from such an eruption could also endanger aircraft using Mexico City international airport. About 30 eruptions have been reported in historical time, although documentation is poor. Most historical eruptions were apparently restricted to mild-to-moderate Vulcanian steam and ash emission. The latest significant activity took place from 1920-22. Popocatépetl is known to have produced a number of Plinian eruptions since the beginning of the Holocene.
In response to a request for assistance from Mexico's National Disaster Prevention Center (CENEPRED), scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have been assisting scientists from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and CENEPRED to monitor and assess hazards at Popocatépetl. All monitoring and hazard-assessment activities at Popocatépetl have been coordinated by CENAPRED, the agency responsible for mitigating natural hazards in Mexico. The USGS scientists are part of the Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP), which is jointly supported by USAID's Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance and the USGS.
Extensive monitoring efforts by Mexican scientists have been underway for more than a year. Prior to the beginning of the current eruptive episode at Popocatépetl, scientists at UNAM, in conjunction with CENAPRED, had installed a four station, telemetered-seismic network at Popocatépetl and established a geodetic network on the north side of the volcano.
USGS scientists have been working with Mexican scientists to augment existing seismic-, deformation-, and geochemical-monitoring efforts, and to prepare a preliminary volcano- hazards assessment. Scientists at the University of Colima, in collaboration with scientists from UNAM and from Arizona State University, have been collecting data on SO2 emissions for about a year. Additionally, scientists at UNAM have been investigating the eruptive history of Popocatépetl for several years. Popocatépetl is geologically similar to volcanoes in the Cascade Range in Washington,Oregon, and California, where future eruptions will threaten nearby communities. Bycollaborating with the Mexican scientists studying and monitoring Popocatépetl, USGS scientists will come back from Mexico with new knowledge and insights applicable to future eruptions in the U.S.
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