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Parícutin

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Central & South American
Geography

                 Parícutin
   Parícutin in 1994
   Elevation     3,170 metres (10,400 ft)
   Location      Michoacán, Mexico
   Prominence    424 metres
   Coordinates   19.493° N 102.251° W
   Type          Cinder cone
   Age of rock   1943-present
   Last eruption 1952

   Parícutin (or Volcan de Parícutin) is a volcano in the Mexican state of
   Michoacán, close to a lava-covered village of the same name. It appears
   on many versions of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World list.

   It started as a fissure in a cornfield owned by Tarascan Indian farmer
   Dionisio Pulido on February 20, 1943. Pulido, his wife, and son, all
   witnessed the initial eruption of ash and stones first-hand as they
   plowed the field. Much of the volcano's growth occurred during its
   first year, while it was still in the explosive pyroclastic phase.
   Nearby villages Paricutín (after which the volcano was named) and San
   Juan Parangaricutiro were both buried in lava and ash, the residents
   relocated to vacant land nearby.

   At the end of this phase after roughly one year the volcano had grown
   336 metres tall. For the next eight years the volcano would continue
   erupting, although this was dominated by relatively quiet eruptions of
   lava that would scorch the surrounding 25 km² of land. The volcano's
   activity would slowly decline during this period until the last six
   months of the eruption, during which violent and explosive activity was
   frequent. In 1952 the eruption ended and Parícutin went quiet,
   attaining a final height of 424 metres above the cornfield from which
   it was born. The volcano has been quiet since. Like most cinder cones,
   Parícutin is a monogenetic volcano, which means that it will never
   erupt again.

   Volcanism is a common part of the Mexican landscape. Paricutín is
   merely the youngest of more than 1,400 volcanic vents that exist in the
   Trans-Mexican volcanic belt. The volcano is unique in the fact that its
   formation was witnessed from its very conception. Amazingly not one
   recorded death was caused by the eruption, although three people died
   as a result of lightning strikes caused by the eruptions.
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Par%C3%ADcutin"
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