Eruptive and structural history of Teide Volcano and rift zones of Tenerife, Canary Islands

Abstract

The Teide and Pico Viejo stratocones and the Northwest and Northeast Rifts are products of the latest eruptive phase of the island of Tenerife, initiated with the lateral collapse of its northern fl ank that formed the Las Cañadas Caldera and the Icod-La Guancha Valley ca. 200 ka. The eruptive and structural evolution of this volcanic complex has been reconstructed after detailed geological mapping and radioisotopic dating of the signifi cant eruptive events. A set of 54 new 14 C and K/Ar ages provides precise age control of the recent eruptive history of Tenerife, particularly Teide Volcano, the third-highest volcanic feature on Earth (3718 m above sea level, >7 km high), and unique in terms of its intraplate setting. The development of the Teide-Pico Viejo Volcanoes may be related to the activity of the Northwest and Northeast Rifts. Volcanic and intrusive activity along both rift zones may have played an important role in activating the gravitational landslide and in the subsequent growth, nested within the collapse embayment, of an increasingly higher central volcano with progressively differentiated magmas. The coeval growth of the central volcano with sustained activity along the rifts led to a clear bimodal distribution in composition of eruptive products, with the basaltic eruptions in the distal part of the rifts and phonolitic and more explosive eruptions in the central area, where the differentiated stratocones developed. Current volcanic hazard in Tenerife is considered to be moderate, because eruptive frequency is low, explosivity is modest, and the eruptive activity of the Teide stratocone seems to have declined over the past 30 k.y., with only one eruption in this period (1150 yr B.P.).

Volcanic hazard assessment for the Canary Islands (Spain) using extreme value theory

“…For the island of Tenerife alone, Carracedo et al (2007Carracedo et al ( , 2011 have conducted a systematic geochronological study for Teide and the volcanism associated with the rift zones, but this study is still far from being complete. Therefore, the data catalog to be used for statistical and probabilistic assessment of the Canary Islands to establish the eruption recurrence is formed uniquely by historical records.…”

“…We have also considered the eruption of Montaña Cangrejo in Tenerife (Erupción de Colón in Table 1), that is supposed to have been observed by Columbus on his way to America and that has now been confirmed by Carracedo et al (2007Carracedo et al ( , 2011 Romero (1991) as different episodes but they are clearly related in terms of timing, petrology and location of vents on the same eruptive fissure, so we may assume the three eruptive events were related to the same batch of magma. We consider them as part of the same eruption event if the location of the vent is not the same, but the eruptions (Romero, 1991).…”

Gravity‐driven deformation of Tenerife measured by InSAR time series analysis

“…SVC is mostly submerged, forming about 90% of the island volume. From more than 10 Ma to present, the ascent of mantle-derived basaltic magmas has been focused along two main rift zones trending NE and NW and on a third subsidary S-trending rift [Carracedo et al, 2007]. CVC comprises the Las Cañadas composite volcano (from more than 3.5 Ma to 0.18 Ma) and the current active Teide-Pico Viejo stratovolcano (from 0.18 Ma to present).…”

Aquifer Recharge Estimation through Atmospheric Chloride Mass Balance at Las Cañadas Caldera, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain

“…[30,32,33] (Figure 2). The existence of a low-permeability clay-rich debrisavalanche deposit at the IGV bottom related to the landslide origin of this valley [24,31,34,35] enhances the relatively fast groundwater flow along this valley from TPVC and LCC to the northern coast ( Figure 2). This conceptual hydrogeological functioning of Las Cañadas aquifer [33] is in accordance with the conceptual hydrogeological functioning proposed by [3,36] for this type of volcanic islands [5,6,37,38].…”

“…Las Cañadas aquifer is contained within the collapse-forming LCC, the Teide-Pico Viejo Volcanic Quaternary Complex (hereafter TPVC), and the landslide-formed Icod-La Guancha Valley (hereafter IGV) ( [24], and references herein) (Figure 1a). The huge elevation from the coast to the Teide Volcano (peak elevation, 3718 m a.s.l.)…”