Volcán de Colima

Volcán de Colima has 85 recorded eruptions — more than any other volcano in Mexico and one of the highest totals in the Western Hemisphere.

The 1913 VEI 4 eruption produced an eruption column reaching 21–23 km (69,000–75,000 ft) — the tallest ever recorded from a Mexican volcano.

Seven of Colima's eruptions have reached VEI 4, producing major Plinian eruption columns and devastating pyroclastic flows.

Major debris avalanches from the Colima complex have traveled over 30 km from the summit, depositing thick volcanic debris on the Pacific coastal plain of Jalisco.

Colima's summit crater was carved by the 1913 eruption and has been repeatedly filled and destroyed by lava dome growth at least four times since.

The volcano shares its alternate name, 'Volcán de Fuego' (Volcano of Fire), with Guatemala's Volcán de Fuego — both are among the most active stratovolcanoes in the Americas.

The dormant Nevado de Colima (4,320 m), just 5 km to the north, is the older twin of the volcanic complex and the highest point in western Mexico.

The 1869 eruption created El Volcancito, a parasitic cone on the northeast flank that remained active into the 1870s — a rare feature on a large stratovolcano.

Colima's eruptive cycle — decades of dome growth followed by explosive summit destruction — makes it a textbook example of a dome-building stratovolcano.

The University of Colima operates one of Latin America's most advanced volcanological observatories, with continuous monitoring of seismicity, deformation, gas emissions, and visual activity.

Colima sits within the Colima Graben, a tectonic rift that intersects the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt and has focused volcanic activity for hundreds of thousands of years.

The current repose period since the last VEI 4 eruption (1913) — over 110 years — is the longest gap between major eruptions in Colima's historical record, raising concern among volcanologists.