Buldir Volcano
Buldir Volcano from the east
Highest point
Elevation2,152 ft (656 m)
Prominence2,152 ft (656 m)
Coordinates52°20′58″N 175°54′34″E / 52.3494°N 175.9094°E / 52.3494; 175.9094[1]
Geography
Buldir Volcano is located in Alaska
Buldir Volcano
Buldir Volcano
Location in Alaska
LocationBuldir Island, Alaska, USA
Parent rangeAleutian Islands
Geology
Mountain typeStratovolcano
Volcanic arc/beltAleutian Islands
Last eruptionHolocene

Buldir Volcano is an inactive stratovolcano located on Buldir Island in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, once described as "the westernmost volcanic center of the present Pleistocene to Recent Aleutian volcanic front."[2] It shares the island with a younger stratovolcano named East Cape.

Discovery and accessibility

After successful expeditions in 1725, 1728, and 1730, Vitus Bering was sent to explore the Bering Sea area of the Pacific in 1740. He soon settled on Kamchatka, where he started a settlement and built two additional vessels, dubbed St. Peter and St. Paul.

In 1741, Bering and his company started towards North America, but were stalled by a storm. In being delayed, they were forced to seek land. During the storm they could not make out the Alaskan coast. The storm proved too powerful so the ships turned around, charting several of the Aleutians, including Buldir Island.[3] The island is extremely remote, leaving it totally unavailable to all but a select group of scientists. In fact, transportation through the entire area is restricted to the United States Coast Guard. Special permission is required to access the island, and for the most part only representatives from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service have the ability to obtain it. A visit to study the geology of the island was permitted in 1947 for R. R. Coats.[2]

A skeleton was found on the island in July 1988. Further examination of the body suggested that the body was Corporal Carl Houston of Manitowoc, Wisconsin, who was last seen hiking on the isle on March 3, 1945. Along with the body were found an M-1 rifle and several spent shells.[4]

Geography and geology

The volcano's structure has changed significantly over time, from a parasitic cone to its current makeup of alumina basaltic lava flows and pyroclastic debris.[5] A cone made of tuff tops the mountain, built over the ancient calderas of the volcano. Dating suggests that the last eruptions on the island, from East Cape, were at least 2,000 years ago, and may have possibly taken place before the Holocene.[6]

Flora and fauna

The island supports a limited variety of flora and fauna.[5] The population of Aleutian cackling geese contributed to a re-expansion of the species, preventing their extinction.[5]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Buldir Volcano". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. March 31, 1981. Retrieved June 12, 2009.
  2. ^ a b Wood and Kienle, page 18.
  3. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Bering Island, Sea and Strait" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 775; see 6 lines from end. Under Bering on his last voyage (1741)....this officer reached the Alaskan coast and explored a considerable stretch of it
  4. ^ "Ask The Globe: Published on September 1, 1988". September 1, 1988. Retrieved April 12, 2009.
  5. ^ a b c "Buldir description and statistics". Alaska Volcano Observatory. Retrieved April 11, 2009.
  6. ^ "Buldir". Global Volcanism Program. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved June 27, 2021.

Bibliography

External links

The 113 most isolated major summits of the United States of America
State of Alaska
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