| Laguna del Maule | |
|---|---|
&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Laguna_del_Maule_-_NASA_Earth_Observatory.jpg) False colour image of Laguna del Maule | |
| Highest point | |
| Coordinates | 36°04′03″S 70°31′21″W / 36.06750°S 70.52250°W |
| Geography | |
&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Relief_Map_of_Chile.jpg)  Laguna del Maule | |
| Parent range | Andes |
| Geology | |
| Mountain type | Volcanic field |
| Volcanic arc/belt | Southern Volcanic Zone |
| Last eruption | 800 ± 600 |
Laguna del Maule is a volcanic field in the Andes mountain range of Chile, close to, and partly overlapping, the Argentina–Chile border. The bulk of the volcanic field is in the Talca Province of Chile's Maule Region. It is a segment of the Southern Volcanic Zone, part of the Andean Volcanic Belt. The volcanic field covers an area of 500 km2 (190 sq mi) and features at least 130 volcanic vents. Volcanic activity has generated cones, lava domes, lava coulees and lava flows, which surround the Laguna del Maule lake. The field gets its name from the lake, which is also the source of the Maule River.
The field's volcanic activity began 1.5 million years ago during the Pleistocene epoch; such activity has continued into the postglacial and Holocene epoch after glaciers retreated from the area. Postglacial volcanic activity has included eruptions with simultaneous explosive and effusive components, as well as eruptions with only one component. In the postglacial era, volcanic activity has increased at Laguna del Maule, with the volcanic field rapidly inflating during the Holocene. Three major caldera-forming eruptions took place in the volcanic field prior to the last glacial period. The most recent eruptions in the volcanic field took place 2,500 ± 700, 1,400 ± 600 and 800 ± 600 years ago and generated lava flows; today geothermal phenomena occur at Laguna del Maule. Volcanic rocks in the field include basalt, andesite, dacite and rhyolite; the latter along with rhyodacite makes up most of the Holocene rocks. In pre-Columbian times, the field was a regionally important source of obsidian.
Between 2004 and 2007, ground inflation began in the volcanic field, indicating the intrusion of a sill[a] beneath it. The rate of inflation is faster than those measured on other inflating volcanoes such as Uturunku in Bolivia and Yellowstone Caldera in the United States and has been accompanied by anomalies in soil gas emission and seismic activity. This pattern has created concern about the potential for impending large-scale eruptive activity.
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