Novarupta

Novarupta, on the Alaska Peninsula in Katmai National Park and Preserve, is the vent created by the largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century. Beginning on June 6, 1912, the VEI 6 eruption lasted about 60 hours and released immense volumes of ash and tuff, far exceeding the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption. As magma erupted from beneath the Mount Katmai area, Katmai’s summit collapsed into a caldera and a vent opened that was later sealed by a rhyolite lava dome now called Novarupta. Pyroclastic flows formed the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, and the disaster reshaped both nearby Alaska Native communities and the later protection of the region.

Karluk, Alaska · United States