Taupo, New Zealand

 

            Mt.Taupo last erupted over 1,800 years ago. It started erupting 300,000 years ago.

The present day caldera was created by an eruption 27,000 years ago. This eruption was

named the Oruani eruption which was the most violent eruption in the last 50,000 years.

         The eruption plume reached 50 km in the air which is well into the stratosphere.  All

of New Zealnad recieved at least 1 cm of ash and areas near the volcano were burried in

100 meters of pyroclastic flow.

        Taupo has had 26 small eruptions between the Oranui (27,000 years ago) the

eruption that created the caldera and the Taupo erution (1,800 years ago) which formed

lava domes and spread ash and pumice.