Irazu Volcano

Irazu Volcano rises in the Cordillera Central of Costa Rica, near the city of Cartago, and at about 3,432 meters is the highest active volcano in the country. It is a complex stratovolcano built from repeated eruptions of basaltic to andesitic lava and pyroclastic material, with a summit area holding several craters, including a large main crater with a striking green-tinted acidic lake. Irazu is best known for a prolonged eruptive episode that ran from 1963 to 1965, during which repeated ashfalls blanketed the nearby capital, San Jose, and surrounding agricultural land, disrupting the region for the length of the eruption and contributing to flooding and mudflows once the ash-laden slopes were hit by heavy rain. It has remained largely quiet since that episode, though it is still classified as active and monitored for renewed unrest. This entity documents Irazu Volcano specifically as a geological formation, Costa Rica's highest active volcano, whose 1963 to 1965 eruption blanketed San Jose in ash.