Turrialba

Image: ^©S van Manen, 2008

Turrialba is the easternmost active volcano in Costa Rica. Its name is likely to originate from the Indian name ‘Toriáraba (pronounced Turiarva) which means river (turiri) of fire (aban) (Gagini , 1917 as referenced in Alvarado & Soto, 2008).

It is a 3340 m high basaltic-andesitic densely vegetated stratovolcano in the Cartago region of Costa Rica. It has erupted explosively at least 5 times between 1850-1866, but appeared quiescent until 2001. Degassing has intensified since 2007 and in recent years there has been increased evidence of acidification of the ground around Turrialba, with large areas of plants being severely damaged.

Dairy farming and root crops occurs on its lower slopes, while the upper parts are shrouded in cloud forest.

References

Alvarado GE, Soto GJ (2008) Volcanoes in the pre-Columbian life, legend, and archaeology of Costa Rica (Central America). Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research 176(3):356-362

Gagini C (1917) Los aborigenes de Costa Rica. Tip. Trejos Hnos., San Jose, Costa Rica, p 208