Abstract
Although several authors have suggested that sulphur plays an important role in the volcanism on the jovian moon Io1–8, some deny the participation of elemental sulphur there, at least in the form of cooled flows9. Studies of volcanism on Io have focused attention on the role of sulphur in terrestrial volcanism. On Earth, fumarolic sulphur is very common in almost all active volcanoes, but sulphur flows are rare, having been reported only on Siretoko–Iôsan volcano in Japan10, on Sierra Negra and Azufre volcanoes in the Galápagos Islands11,12 and on Mauna Loa in Hawaii13,14. Of these, the Siretoko–Iôsan example is the only natural molten sulphur flow to have been observed in the process of formation; the others being rather poorly exposed. I describe here a singularly well-exposed example of sulphur lava flows, on Lastarria volcano in Chile, where the liquid sulphur appears to have been formed by melting of fumarolic sulphur deposits caused by a rise in the thermal gradient owing to the renewed activity of the magmatic source.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Masursky, H., Schaber, G. G., Soderblom, L. A. & Strom, R. G. Nature 280, 725–729 (1979).
Carr, M. H., Masursky, H., Strom, R. G. & Terrile, R. J. Nature 280, 729–733 (1979).
Strom, R. G., Terrile, R. J., Masursky, H. & Hansen, C. Nature 280, 733–736 (1979).
Smith, B. A., Shoemaker, E. M., Keiffer, S. W. & Cook, A. F. Nature 280, 738–743 (1979).
Sagan, C. Nature 280, 750–753 (1979).
Pearl, J. et al. Nature 280, 755–758 (1979).
Kumar, S. Nature 289, 758–760 (1979).
Greeley, R. & Fink, J. Astr. Express 1, 25–31 (1984).
Young, A. Icarus 58, 197–226 (1984).
Wanatabe, T. Jap. J. Geol. Geogr. 17, 289–310 (1940).
Banfield, A. F. Bull. Can. Inst. Min. Metall. 47, 769–775 (1954).
Colony, W. E. & Nordlie, B. E. Econ. Geol. 68, 371–380 (1973).
Skinner, B. J. Pacific Sci. 24, 144–145 (1970).
Greeley, R., Theilig, E. & Christensen, P. Icarus 60, 189–199 (1984).
Meyer, B. Chem. Rev. 76, 367–388 (1976).
Clow, G. D. & Carr, M. H. Icarus 44, 268–279 (1980).
Greeley, R., Fink, J. & Park, S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration TM 84211, 38–40 (1981).
Fink, J. H., Park, S. O. & Greeley, R. Icarus 56, 38–50 (1983).
Farr, C. C. & Macleod, D. B. Proc. R. Soc. A97, 80–98 (1920).
Fannelli, R. J. Am. chem. Soc. 67, 1832–1834 (1945).
Pinkerton, H. & Sparks, R. S. J. Nature 276, 383–385 (1978).
Fink, J. H. & Fletcher, R. C. J. Volc. Geotherm. Res. 4, 151–170 (1978).
Fink, J. H. Geology 8, 250–254 (1980).
Hulme, G. Geophys. J. R. astr. Soc. 39, 361–383 (1974).
Hulme, G. Icarus 27, 207–213 (1976).
Theilig, E. NASA Contr. Rep. 3594, 1–34 (1982).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Naranjo, J. Sulphur flows at Lastarria volcano in the North Chilean Andes. Nature 313, 778–780 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1038/313778a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/313778a0
This article is cited by
-
Geochemistry of gas and water discharge from the magmatic-hydrothermal system of Guallatiri volcano, northern Chile
Bulletin of Volcanology (2020)
-
Solid sulfur spherules near fumaroles of Hakone volcano, Japan
International Journal of Earth Sciences (2019)
-
Isotopically (δ13C and δ18O) heavy volcanic plumes from Central Andean volcanoes: a field study
Bulletin of Volcanology (2017)
-
Epithermal paleosurfaces
Mineralium Deposita (2015)
-
Recognizing and tracking volcanic hazards related to non-magmatic unrest: a review
Journal of Applied Volcanology (2014)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.