Mageik 1997
Start: 1997 [1]
Event Type: Not an eruption
- Fumarolic or hydrothermal activity [1]
- Steam [1]
Description: From McGimsey and Wallace (1999): "On Thursday, February 19, 1997, AVO received multiple pilot reports (PIREPs) of ash and steam rising to 5,000 ft (~1,500 m) above either Martin or Mageik volcanoes. No anomalous seismic activity was recorded on the Katmai seismic network, and no indication of eruptive activity was detected on satellite imagery.
"* * * Another observation of unusual steaming at Martin and Mageik was reported to AVO on December 11, 1997, via the Alaska Tsunami Warning Center, who received the report from a resident of Karluk Village on Kodiak Island. Using a spotting scope, the village resident had observed the peaks for the previous three weeks - noting no unusual activity - when on the morning of the 11th he witnessed a sudden increase in steam activity and watched as white, towering steam clouds billowed from Martin, subsided, and then rose again to about 600-700 ft (~200 m) above the vent, forming a large mushroomed top before dissipating. A second white, billowing steam plume then rose from adjacent Mageik. Local pilots also noticed the unusually vigorous activity." This steaming does not constitute a volcanic eruption.
"* * * Another observation of unusual steaming at Martin and Mageik was reported to AVO on December 11, 1997, via the Alaska Tsunami Warning Center, who received the report from a resident of Karluk Village on Kodiak Island. Using a spotting scope, the village resident had observed the peaks for the previous three weeks - noting no unusual activity - when on the morning of the 11th he witnessed a sudden increase in steam activity and watched as white, towering steam clouds billowed from Martin, subsided, and then rose again to about 600-700 ft (~200 m) above the vent, forming a large mushroomed top before dissipating. A second white, billowing steam plume then rose from adjacent Mageik. Local pilots also noticed the unusually vigorous activity." This steaming does not constitute a volcanic eruption.
References Cited
[1] 1997 volcanic activity in Alaska and Kamchatka: Summary of events and response of the Alaska Volcano Observatory, 1999
McGimsey, R. G., and Wallace, K. L., 1999, 1997 volcanic activity in Alaska and Kamchatka: Summary of events and response of the Alaska Volcano Observatory: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 99-0448, 42 p.
full-text PDF 17 MB Complete Eruption References
1997 volcanic activity in Alaska and Kamchatka: Summary of events and response of the Alaska Volcano Observatory, 1999
McGimsey, R. G., and Wallace, K. L., 1999, 1997 volcanic activity in Alaska and Kamchatka: Summary of events and response of the Alaska Volcano Observatory: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 99-0448, 42 p.
full-text PDF 17 MB 