San Antonio (volcano)

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San Antonio
View into the crater of San Antonio

View into the crater of San Antonio

height 632  m
location La Palma , Spain
Coordinates 28 ° 29 ′ 1 ″  N , 17 ° 50 ′ 59 ″  W Coordinates: 28 ° 29 ′ 1 ″  N , 17 ° 50 ′ 59 ″  W
San Antonio (volcano) (Canary Islands)
San Antonio (volcano)
Type Stratovolcano
rock basalt
Age of the rock approx. 3200 years
Last eruption 1677

The San Antonio is a stratovolcano and is located directly in the village of Los Canarios (until 1678 Fuencaliente), about 12 km from the southern tip of La Palma . Originally he was called Volcán Fuencaliente . Since the eruption took place on the day of St. Anthony in 1677/78 , it was renamed Volcán de San Antonio . It is the penultimate southern volcano of the Cumbre Vieja , which was created when volcanic activity shifted from the north of the island to the south. Directly below the San Antonio is the Teneguía , which erupted in 1971 and is the youngest volcano in La Palma.

The volcano lies at an altitude of 632 m above sea level. NN. At its base it has a diameter of about 1 km. The volcanic cone with the round crater is about 150 meters high. Dating of the rocks of the volcano and the lava flows of other volcanoes surrounding it using the C14 method have shown that the volcano is more than 3000 years old. According to this dating, the crater was formed in a phreatomagmatic explosion about 3200 years ago.

Access to the volcanic crater, which is half accessible, is only possible via the visitor center (accessible directly by car from Los Canarios or via the Ruta de los Volcanes hiking route ).

and display information about the image
View from the crater to the lava platform with banana plantation and the Teneguía

outbreaks

The Teneguía as seen from the San Antonio

In addition to the probably around 1200 BC There is only one other documented eruption of the San Antonio when a large phreatomagmatic explosion occurred. According to the sources (eyewitness reports), this took place between November 17, 1677 and January 21, 1678. The strombolic eruption lasts 66 days. The lava released is basaltic lava. The actual eruption did not take place in the main crater, but at four different places on the flanks of the volcano. The emerging lava flowed into the sea in seven lava flows and formed a large new area of ​​land there. This eruption had been preceded by several earthquakes a few days earlier . Then gaps opened in four places from which only gases emerged at the beginning. Lava later emerged from these crevices. After three explosions at the upper opening around November 22nd, the lava at the lower fissures began to dry up. The very next day, however, new crevices formed in the three lower places, from which lava emerged again. As a result of the eruption, the sacred spring Fuente Santa , which was also the original namesake of the town and the volcano, was buried. As a result, the name of the place was changed from Fuencaliente to Los Canarios . Today both terms are in use. Today, the lava of Teneguía partially covers the lava fields of San Antonio.

Visitor center

Sign in the visitor center

The visitor center can be easily reached by car. To do this, follow the LP 209 from Los Canarios / Fuencaliente or during a hike on the Ruta de los Volcanes hiking route . An entrance fee is charged for visiting the center, which also includes the parking fees. The visitor center houses an exhibition of exhibits and information on the 1677 eruption and the formation of the San Antonio. In addition, a film about La Palma is shown alternately in five languages ​​in a cinema. There is also information and video footage of the outbreak of Teneguía in 1971. The café in the center offers snacks and drinks. There are also benches and tables for picnics outside. The earthquake simulator in the outer area of ​​the center is a small highlight. It is a small platform covered with stones. If you step on it, the plate is set in vibrations that correspond to an earthquake of magnitude 6.5. The earthquake simulator was inaugurated on the 42nd anniversary of the Teneguía eruption on October 26, 2013.

Current volcanic and seismic activity in the Cumbre Vieja region

Since October 2017 there have been small swarmquakes under the Cumbre Vieja , which intensified again in February 2018. The earthquakes occurred at a depth between 20 and 30 km and had a strength between 1.1 and 2.7 on the Richter scale . The three tremors of July 2018, however, occurred at a depth of almost 5 km. Overall, however, the earthquakes do not yet suggest any imminent eruption.

Holy spring Fuente Santa

Entrance to the Fuente Santa Gallery

The Fuenta Santa ( map ) is a hot spring whose water was used to heal various diseases as early as the 16th and 17th centuries. Originally the source was called Fuente Caliente , from which the original name Fuencaliente of Los Canarios is derived. Due to the healing properties that the water is said to have, it was renamed Fuenta Santa . When the San Antonio erupted in 1677, it was completely buried. Although it has been searched for over the centuries, it was only rediscovered in 2005 during excavations at a depth of approx. 187 meters. In 2007 the source was accessible to the public for four days for the first and only time. Since then, efforts have been made to build a thermal bath here. To date, however, nothing has happened. Persistent disputes between the municipality and the government over funding and profit prevent the construction of the thermal bath. The source, which has been painstakingly reconstructed so far, with the basins in the tunnel is therefore not accessible to the public. Hot water from the spring is only fed into a small basin outside.

Other sights in the area

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Rainer Olzem / Tim Reisinger - The Cumbre Vieja
  2. ^ Rainer Olzem / Tim Reisinger - The eruptions of the San Antonio
  3. ↑ JUAN CARLOS CARRACEDO: LOS VOLCANES DE LAS ISLAS CANARIAS VOL. IV: LA PALMA, LA GOMERA, EL HIERRO . RUEDA, Madrid 2008, ISBN 9788472071902
  4. ↑ Trembling in the simulator . wochenblatt.es. Archived from the original on September 5, 2018. Retrieved January 12, 2020.
  5. ↑ Interview with Rainer Olzem and Tim Reisinger from July 13, 2018 - la-palma24
  6. ↑ Statements by Blanca Pérez (Deputy Environment Minister of the Government of the Canary Islands) and María José Blanco (Regional Director of the Instituto Geográfico Nacional) on February 16, 2018 following the Pevolca meeting. In: Earthquake on La Palma by magma ingress , on teneriffa-heute.net, from February 17, 2018. Retrieved on September 9, 2018.
  7. ↑ La Palma opened its treasure - Wochenblatt - The newspaper of the Canary Islands from June 23, 2007
  8. ↑ Fuente Santa: This is what the thermal baths of Fuencaliente should look like - Wochenblatt - The newspaper of the Canary Islands from August 20, 2016
  9. ↑ Kirsten Lux, Lisa Graf-Riemann: 111 places on La Palma that you have to see . Emons Verlag , 1st edition March 2018, page 46 ISBN 9783740803452