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World's Largest Eruptions

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Below are two lists of the largest eruptions ever measured, based on the amount of material erupted out of the volcano. Eruptions with incomplete or questionable data were excluded from the list. The list are separated into two groups: Explosive eruptions and Non-explosive eruptions. This list is, by definition, incomplete, as new and revised ideas about the scope of ancient eruptions change as science progresses. For a more complete list, see List of large volcanic eruptions.

Explosive eruptions

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These are the more famous and destructive type of eruption, coming from a single felsic and explosive volcanic eruption.[1] All eruptions below are rated an 8, the highest category, in the Volcanic Explosivity Index (or VEI). For reference, the 1980 Mt. St. Helens eruption was 1 cubic km (VEI=5), and the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption was 10 cubic km (VEI=6). The largest eruption in modern history (at least the last 3,000 years) was Mount Tambora in Indonesia, a 160 cubic km (VEI=7) eruption in 1815, which caused 1816 to be "The Year Without a Summer".

Volcano/Eruption Date (Ma)* [2] Location 1000s of Cubic km ejected** [2] Notes
La Garita Caldera/Fish Canyon tuff 27.83 San Juan volcanic field, Colorado 5 Largest tuff ever measured on Earth,[3] part of at least 20 large caldera-forming eruptions in the San Juan volcanic field and surrounding area that formed around 26 to 35 Ma[4]
Windows Butte tuff 31.4 William's Ridge, central Nevada 3.5 Part of the Mid-Tertiary ignimbrite flare-up[5]
Indian Peak Caldera Complex/Wah Wah Springs tuff 29.5 Eastern Nevada/western Utah 3.2 Indian Peak Caldera Complex total volume over 10,000 cubic km, Wah Wah Springs tuff being the largest[6]
Oxaya ignimbrites 19 Chile 3 Really a regional correlation of many ignimbrites originally thought to be distinct[7]
Lake Toba .073 Sunda Arc, Indonesia 2.8 Largest eruption on earth in at least the last 25 million years, responsible for the Toba catastrophe theory, a population bottleneck of the human species[8]
Lund Tuff 29 Great Basin, USA 2.6 Similar in composition to the Fish Canyon Tuff[9]
Pacana Caldera/Atana ignimbrite 4 Chile 2.5 Forms a resurgent caldera; used multiple times[10]
Yellowstone caldera/Huckleberry Ridge Tuff 2.059 Yellowstone hotspot 2.45 Largest Yellowstone eruption on record[11]
Whakamaru .254[12] Taupo Volcanic Zone, New Zealand 2[12] Largest in the Southern Hemisphere in the Late Quaternary[12]
Kilgore tuff 4.3 near Kilgore, Idaho 1.8[13] Last of the eruptions from the Heise volcanic field[13]
Millbrig eruptions/Bentonites 454 England, exposed in Northern Europe and Eastern US 1.509[2] [14] One of the oldest large eruptions preserved[15]
Blacktail tuff 6.5 near Blacktail, Idaho 1.5 First of several eruptions from the Heise volcanic field[13]
Davis Mountains/Gomez Tuff 36.82 Davis Mountains, Texas 1.25 Series of several silicic arc volcanism events[16]
Timber Mountain tuff 11.6 Southwestern Nevada 1.2 Also includes a 900 cubic km tuff as a second member in the tuff
Paintbrush tuff (Topopah Spring Member) 12.8 Southwestern Nevada 1.2 Related to a 1000 cubic km tuff (Tiva Canyon Member) as another member in the Paintbrush tuff
Bachelor/Carpenter Ridge tuff 28 San Juan volcanic field 1.2 Part of at least 20 large caldera-forming eruptions, including the world's largest, the Fish Canyon tuff in the San Juan volcanic field and surrounding area that formed around 26 to 35 Ma[4]
Bursum/Apache Springs Tuff 28.5 Southern New Mexico 1.2 Related to a 1050 cubic km tuff, the Bloodgood Canyon tuff
Huaylillas Ignimbrite 15 Bolivia 1.1 Predates half of the uplift of the central Andes[17]
Bursum/Bloodgood Canyon tuff 28.5 Southern New Mexico 1.05 Related to a 1200 cubic km tuff, the Apache Springs tuff
Yellowstone Caldera/Lava Creek Tuff .639 Yellowstone hotspot 1 Last large eruption in the Yellowstone National Park area[18]
Cerro Galán 2.2 Catamarca Province, Argentina 1 Elliptical caldera is ~35 km wide[19]
Paintbrush tuff (Tiva Canyon Member) 12.7 Southwestern Nevada 1 Related to a 1200 cubic km tuff (Topopah Spring Member) as another member in the Paintbrush tuff
San Juan/Sapinero Mesa Tuff 28 San Juan volcanic field 1 Part of at least 20 large caldera-forming eruptions, including the world's largest, the Fish Canyon tuff in the San Juan volcanic field and surrounding area that formed around 26 to 35 Ma[4]
Uncompahgre/Dillon & Sapinero Mesa Tuffs 28.1 San Juan volcanic field 1 Part of at least 20 large caldera-forming eruptions, including the world's largest, the Fish Canyon tuff in the San Juan volcanic field and surrounding area that formed around 26 to 35 Ma[4]
Platoro/Chiquito Peak tuff 28.2 San Juan volcanic field 1 Part of at least 20 large caldera-forming eruptions, including the world's largest, the Fish Canyon tuff in the San Juan volcanic field and surrounding area that formed around 26 to 35 Ma[4]
Mount Princeton/Wall Mountain tuff 35.3 Thirtynine Mile volcanic area, Colorado 1 Helped cause the exceptional preservation at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument[20]

Non-explosive eruptions

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In general, these are mafic eruptions in the class of Large igneous provinces, oceanic plateaus, and/or flood basalts, large outpourings of generally lower viscosity magma that cover large areas over many years. For reference, the modern eruption on Kīlauea on Hawai'i (1983-present) has produced 2.7 cubic km of lava.

Volcano/Eruption Date (Ma)* [2] Location Millions of Cubic km ejected** [2] Notes
Ontong Java Plateau 121 Southwest Pacific Ocean 57 Largest igneous body on earth[21][22]
Kerguelen Plateau 112 South Indian Ocean, Kerguelen Islands 10 LInked to the Kerguelen hotspot[23]
North Atlantic Igneous Province 55.5 North Atlantic Ocean 6.6[2][24] LInked to the Iceland hotspot[25]
Caribbean large igneous province 88 Caribbean-Colombian oceanic plateau 4 LInked to the Galápagos hotspot[26]
Siberian Traps 249.4 Siberia, Russia 3 Largest outpouring of lava on land ever recorded, thought to have caused Permian-Triassic extinction, largest mass extinction event ever[27]
Karoo-Ferrar 183 Southern Africa, Antartica 2.5 Formed as Gondwana broke up[28]
Paraná and Etendeka traps 133 Brazil/Angola and Namibia 2.3 LInked to the Tristan hotspot[29][30]
Central Atlantic Magmatic Province 200 Laurasia continents 2 Formed as Pangea broke up[31]
Deccan Traps 65.5 Deccan Plateau, India 1.5 May have helped kill the Dinosaurs[32][33]
Emeishan Traps 256.5 Southwestern China 1 Along with Siberian Traps, may have contributed to the Permian–Triassic extinction event[34]
Afro-Arabian flood volcanism 28.5 Ethiopia/Yemen/Afar, Arabian-Nubian_Shield .35 Associated with silicic, explosive tuffs (Sam ignimbrite, etc.), with max eruption 850 cubic km, 5000 cubic km total[35][36]
Columbia River Basalt Group 15.95 Pacific Northwest, USA .18 Well exposed by Missoula Floods in the Channeled Scablands[37]
  • *Dates are an average of the range of dates of volcanics, listed in annum, where Ma=1,000,000 years ago.
  • **Cubic km ejected refers to an estimated total (dense rock/magma equivalent) erupted, based on all volcanic deposits, and converted with respect to rock type.

References and Notes

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  1. ^ Certain felsic provinces, such as the Chon Aike province in Argentina and the Whitsunday igneous province of Australia are not included in this list since they are composed of many seperate eruptions.
  2. ^ a b c d e f (Data in this column is Ward (2009) unless noted otherwise) Ward, Peter L. (2 April 2009). "Sulfur Dioxide Initiates Global Climate Change in Four Ways" (PDF). Thin Solid Films. 517 (11): 3188–3203. doi:10.1016/j.tsf.2009.01.005. Retrieved 2010-03-19. Supplementary Table I: "Supplementary Table to P.L. Ward, Thin Solid Films (2009) Major volcanic eruptions and provinces" (PDF). Teton Tectonics. Retrieved 2010-03-16. Supplementary Table II: "Supplementary References to P.L. Ward, Thin Solid Films (2009)" (PDF). Teton Tectonics. Retrieved 2010-03-16.
  3. ^ "La Garita Caldera". Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  4. ^ a b c d e Lipman, Peter W. (2006). "Geologic Map of the Central San Juan Caldera Cluster, Southwestern Colorado". USGS Investigations Series I-2799. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  5. ^ "4. Petrology - The Mid-Tertiary Ignimbrite Flare-Up". Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  6. ^ Best, Myron G.; Christiansen, Eric H.; Blank, Jr., Richard H. (1989). "Oligocene caldera complex and calc-alkaline tuffs and lavas of the Indian Peak volcanic field, Nevada and Utah". GSA Bulletin. 101 (8): 1076–1090. doi:10.1130/0016-7606(1989)101<1076:OCCACA>2.3.CO;2. Retrieved 5 August 2010.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  7. ^ Wörner, Gerhard (200). "Geochronology (40Ar/39Ar, K-Ar and He-exposure ages) of Cenozoic magmatic rocks from Northern Chile (18-22°S): implications for magmatism and tectonic evolution of the central Andes". Revista geológica de Chile. 27 (2). Retrieved 5 August 2010. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Late Pleistocene human population bottlenecks, volcanic winter, and differentiation of modern humans". Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  9. ^ Maughan, Larissa L.; Christiansen, Eric H.; Best, Myron G.; Grommé, C.Sherman; Deino, Alan L.; Tingey, David G. (2002). "The Oligocene Lund Tuff, Great Basin, USA: a very large volume monotonous intermediate". Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. 113 (1–2): 129–157. doi:10.1016/S0377-0273(01)00256-6. Retrieved 5 August 2010. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  10. ^ Lindsay, J. M.;de Silva, S.;Trumbull, R.; Emmermann, R. and Wemmer, K. (2001). La Pacana caldera, N. Chile: a re-evaluation of the stratigraphy and volcanology of one of the world's largest resurgent calderas, Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 106 (1-2), 145–173. {{doi|10.1016/S0377-0273(00)00270-5
  11. ^ "DESCRIPTION: Yellowstone Caldera, Wyoming". Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  12. ^ a b c Froggatt, P. C.; Nelson, C. S.; Carter, L.; Griggs, G.; Black, K. P. (13 February 1986). "An exceptionally large late Quaternary eruption from New Zealand". Nature. 319 (6054): 578–582. doi:10.1038/319578a0. The minimum total volume of tephra is 1,200 km³ but probably nearer 2,000 km³, ...
  13. ^ a b c "Timing and development of the Heise volcanic field, Snake River Plain, Idaho, western USA". Geological Society of America Bulletin. 117 (3–4): 288–306. March 2005. doi:10.1130/B25519.1. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |authors= ignored (help)
  14. ^ (also 972, 943 cubic km eruptions)
  15. ^ "Plate Tectonics from the Middle of the Plate". Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  16. ^ Henry, Christopher D.; Kunk, M. J.; McIntosh, W. C. (1994). "40Ar/39Ar chronology and volcanology of silicic volcanism in the Davis Mountains, Trans-Pecos Texas". GSA Bulletin. 106 (11): 1359–1376. doi:10.1130/0016-7606(1994)106<1359:AACAVO>2.3.CO;2. Retrieved 5 August 2010.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  17. ^ "http://www.chile.ird.fr/pdf/isagPDF/thouret.pdf" (PDF). Retrieved 5 August 2010. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  18. ^ "Yellowstone Lake Geology Talk Transcript". Archived from the original on 2004-05-01. Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  19. ^ "How Volcanos Work - Cerro Galan". Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  20. ^ "Wall Mountain Tuff". NPS. Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  21. ^ "the Manihiki and Hikurangi Plateaus [...] we interpret as remnants of a formerly contiguous Ontong Java–Manihiki–Hikurangi large igneous province". Worthington, Tim J.; Hekinian, Roger; Stoffers, Peter; Kuhn, Thomas; Hauff, Folkmar (30 May 2006). "Osbourn Trough: Structure, geochemistry and implications of a mid-Cretaceous paleospreading ridge in the South Pacific". Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 245 (3–4): 685–701. doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2006.03.018. Retrieved 2007-03-14.
  22. ^ Brian Taylor (31 January 2006). "The single largest oceanic plateau: Ontong Java-Manihiki-Hikurangi". Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 241 (3–4): 372–380. doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2005.11.049. Retrieved 2007-05-22. Summary.
  23. ^ Weis, D. "KERGUELEN PLATEAU—BROKEN RIDGE: A MAJOR LIP RELATED TO THE KERGUELEN PLUME" (PDF). Seventh Annual V. M. Goldschmidt Conference. Retrieved 5 August 2010. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  24. ^ Actually several provinces, ranging in size from 6.6-1.5 million cubic km
  25. ^ The North Atlantic Igneous Province: Stratigraphy, Tectonic, Volcanic and Magmatic Processes; Editors: Jolley and Bell; The Geological Society of London, 2002; Contents[1]
  26. ^ Kaj Hoernle, Folkmar Hauff and Paul van den Bogaard, 70 m.y. history (139–69 Ma) for the Caribbean large igneous province, Geology; August 2004; v. 32; no. 8; p. 697-700 Abstract
  27. ^ "The Siberian Traps". Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  28. ^ Segev, A (2002). "Flood basalts, continental breakup and the dispersal of Gondwana: evidence for periodic migration of upwelling mantle flows (plumes)" (PDF). EGU Stephan Mueller Special Publication Series. 2: 171–191. doi:10.5194/smsps-2-171-2002. Retrieved 5 August 2010.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: unflagged free DOI (link)
  29. ^ O'Neill, C.; Müller, R. D.; Steinberger, B. (2003). "Revised Indian plate rotations based on the motion of Indian Ocean hotspots" (PDF). Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 215: 151–168.
  30. ^ O'Connor, J. M.; le Roex, A. P. (1992). "South Atlantic hot spot-plume systems. 1: Distribution of volcanism in time and space". Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 113 (3): 343–364. doi:10.1016/0012-821X(92)90138-L.
  31. ^ "CAMP site". Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  32. ^ "India's Smoking Gun: Dino-Killing Eruptions". Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  33. ^ Chatterjee, Sankar; Mehrotra, Naresh M. "The Significance of the Contemporaneous Shiva Impact Structure and Deccan Volcanism at the KT Boundary". 2009 Portland GSA Annual Meeting (18-21 October 2009). pp. 50–9.
  34. ^ Lo, Ching-Hua; Chung, Sun-Lin; Lee, Tung-Yi; Wu, Genyao (2002). "Age of the Emeishan Flood magmatism and relations to Permian-Triassic boundary events" (PDF). EPSL. 198 (3–4): 449–458. doi:10.1016/S0012-821X(02)00535-6. Retrieved 5 August 2010.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  35. ^ Peate, Ingrid Ukstins; Baker, Joel A.; Al-Kadasi, Mohamed; Al-Subbary, Abdulkarim; Knight, Kim B.; Riisager, Peter; Thirlwall, Matthew F.; Peate, David W.; Renne, Paul R.; Menzies, Martin A. (2005). "Volcanic stratigraphy of large-volume silicic pyroclastic eruptions during Oligocene Afro-Arabian flood volcanism in Yemen". Bulletin of Volcanology. 68 (2): 135–156. doi:10.1007/s00445-005-0428-4.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link).
  36. ^ Ukstins Peate, Ingrid; Baker, Joel A.; Kent, Adam J.R.; Al-Kadasi, Mohamed; Al-Subbary, Abdulkarim; Ayalew, Dereje; Menzies, Martin (30 June 2003). "Correlation of Indian Ocean tephra to individual Oligocene silicic eruptions from Afro-Arabian flood volcanism". Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 211 (3–4): 311–327. doi:10.1016/S0012-821X(03)00192-4. Retrieved 5 August 2010.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  37. ^ "Columbia Plateau". Retrieved 5 August 2010.
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