Miravalles Volcano | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 2,028 m (6,654 ft)[1] |
Listing | List of volcanoes in Costa Rica |
Coordinates | 10°44′54″N 85°09′10″W / 10.74833°N 85.15278°W[1] |
Geography | |
Parent range | Cordillera de Guanacaste |
Geology | |
Rock age | 1.5 Myr |
Mountain type | Stratovolcano |
Last eruption | September 1946[1] |
The Miravalles Volcano is an andesitic stratovolcano in Costa Rica. The caldera was formed during several major explosive eruptions that produced voluminous dacitic-rhyolitic pyroclastic flows between about 1.5 and 0.6 million years ago. The only reported historical eruptive activity was a small steam explosion on the south-western flank in 1946. High heat flow remains, and Miravalles is the site of the largest developed geothermal field in Costa Rica.[1]
The Miravalles Volcano reaches an elevation of 2,023 metres (6,637 ft) and is the highest mountain in the Guanacaste Mountains. The heat from the volcano also helps power a geothermal energy plant at Las Hornillas, which is run by the Institute of Electricity.[2]