Trident 1950/7
Start: July 2, 1950 [1]
Stop: August 18, 1950 [1]
Event Type: Explosive
Max VEI: 2 [2]
- Tephrafall [1]
- Tephra plume [1]
Description: From Decker (1963): "William J. Nancarrow, the Ranger at Brooks River during 1950, mentions 3 explosive eruptions that may have been from Mt. Trident in his monthly reports for July and August, 1950:
"'On July 2 at 2:02 A.M. a side vent of Knife [Griggs] Peak (or something in line with Knife Peak) let go and a cloud of smoke and dust was observed to rise up to 5000 feet.' He also reports seeing a large cloud of smoke and ash rising up behind the west side of Katolinat as viewed from the Fish and Wildlife Camp on Brooks Lake on August 1, and a cloud of dust from the Valley on August 16 to 18 which cut the visibility to 2 miles and left a very thin layer of ash which 'penetrated to all corners.'" This eruption has been attributed to Trident by Simkin and Siebert (1994).
The Sitka Sentinel mentions in their July 11, 1950 edition that "a new volcano was born last week in the white snows of Knife [Griggs] Mountain near the famed 'Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes.' It was first reported July 2 by a group of fishermen."
However, Hildreth (1983) disbelieves this account: "Published compilations notwithstanding, there are no credible reports of historic eruptions in the Katmai group except at Novarupta in 1912 and at Trident in 1953 - 1968."
"'On July 2 at 2:02 A.M. a side vent of Knife [Griggs] Peak (or something in line with Knife Peak) let go and a cloud of smoke and dust was observed to rise up to 5000 feet.' He also reports seeing a large cloud of smoke and ash rising up behind the west side of Katolinat as viewed from the Fish and Wildlife Camp on Brooks Lake on August 1, and a cloud of dust from the Valley on August 16 to 18 which cut the visibility to 2 miles and left a very thin layer of ash which 'penetrated to all corners.'" This eruption has been attributed to Trident by Simkin and Siebert (1994).
The Sitka Sentinel mentions in their July 11, 1950 edition that "a new volcano was born last week in the white snows of Knife [Griggs] Mountain near the famed 'Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes.' It was first reported July 2 by a group of fishermen."
However, Hildreth (1983) disbelieves this account: "Published compilations notwithstanding, there are no credible reports of historic eruptions in the Katmai group except at Novarupta in 1912 and at Trident in 1953 - 1968."
References Cited
[1] Proposed volcano observatory at Katmai National Monument, 1963
Decker, R. W., 1963, Proposed volcano observatory at Katmai National Monument: in A preliminary study: Report to National Science Foundation, Hanover, NH, Dartmouth College, 54 p.[2] Volcanoes of the world [2nd edition], 1994
Simkin, Tom, and Siebert, Lee, 1994, Volcanoes of the world [2nd edition]: Tucson, Arizona, Geoscience Press, 349 p.Complete Eruption References
Volcanoes of the world [2nd edition], 1994
Simkin, Tom, and Siebert, Lee, 1994, Volcanoes of the world [2nd edition]: Tucson, Arizona, Geoscience Press, 349 p.
Hard Copy held by AVO at FBKS - CEC shelf
Volcanoes of the world: an illustrated catalog of Holocene volcanoes and their eruptions, 2003
Siebert, L., and Simkin, T., 2002-, Volcanoes of the world: an illustrated catalog of Holocene volcanoes and their eruptions: Smithsonian Institution, Global Volcanism Program Digital Information Series GVP-3, http://volcano.si.edu/search_volcano.cfm, unpaged internet resource.
Proposed volcano observatory at Katmai National Monument, 1963
Decker, R. W., 1963, Proposed volcano observatory at Katmai National Monument: in A preliminary study: Report to National Science Foundation, Hanover, NH, Dartmouth College, 54 p.
Hard Copy held by AVO at FBKS - CEC file cabinet
Alaska briefs, Tuesday July 11, 1950, 1950
Unknown, 1950, Alaska briefs, Tuesday July 11, 1950: Sitka Sentinel, Sitka, AK, July 11, 1950, p. 3.
Hard Copy held by AVO at FBKS - CEC file cabinet
The compositionally zoned eruption of 1912 in the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, Katmai National Park, Alaska, 1983
Hildreth, Wes, 1983, The compositionally zoned eruption of 1912 in the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, Katmai National Park, Alaska: Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, v. 18, n. 1-4, p. 1-56.
