Nevado de Toluca
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Nevado de Toluca () is a stratovolcano in central
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, located about west of
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...
near the city of
Toluca Toluca , officially Toluca de Lerdo , is the state capital of the State of Mexico as well as the seat of the Municipality of Toluca. With a population of 910,608 as of the 2020 census, Toluca is the fifth most populous city in Mexico. The city f ...
. It is the fourth highest of Mexico's peaks, after
Pico de Orizaba Pico de Orizaba, also known as Citlaltépetl (from Nahuatl = star, and = mountain), is an inactive stratovolcano, the highest mountain in Mexico and the third highest in North America, after Denali of Alaska in the United States and Mount ...
,
Popocatépetl Popocatépetl (; Nahuatl: ) is an active stratovolcano located in the states of Puebla, Morelos, and Mexico in central Mexico. It lies in the eastern half of the Trans-Mexican volcanic belt. At it is the second highest peak in Mexico, after C ...
and
Iztaccíhuatl Iztaccíhuatl (alternative spellings include Ixtaccíhuatl, or either variant spelled without the accent) ( or, as spelled with the x, ), is a dormant volcanic mountain in Mexico located on the border between the State of Mexico and Puebla withi ...
. The volcano and the area around it is now a national park.


Etymology

It is often called by the Nahuatl name Xinantecatl which is usually translated as The Naked Lord, ''Señor Desnudo'' in
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
, although other etymologies have been suggested such as "Lord of the Corn Stalks", Tzinacantecatl or Zinacantepetl (Mountain of the
Bat Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most ...
s). Further evidence regarding the etymologies of this mountain has surfaced after many archeology discoveries in and around the area. It has been concluded that its correct etymology is Chicnauhtecatl meaning "Lord of Nine", probably referring to the various deep lakes at the top of the cone.


Description

The volcano has a wide summit
caldera A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcano eruption. When large volumes of magma are erupted over a short time, structural support for the rock above the magma chamber is ...
which is open to the east. The highest summit, the Pico del Fraile (Friar's Peak), is on the southwest side of the crater and the second highest, the Pico del Aguila (Eagle's Peak), is on the northwest. There are two
crater lake Crater Lake ( Klamath: ''Giiwas'') is a volcanic crater lake in south-central Oregon in the western United States. It is the main feature of Crater Lake National Park and is famous for its deep blue color and water clarity. The lake partly fill ...
s on the floor of the basin at about , the larger Lago del Sol (Sun Lake) and the smaller, but deeper, Lago de la Luna (Moon Lake). A road formerly ran into the caldera to the lakes, but is now gated 2 km before the lakes. From the southeast, Nevado de Toluca looks flat-topped, like shoulders without a head. A Nahuatl legend (recounted as part of the legend of Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl) provides a mythical explanation.


Geology

It is believed that Nevado de Toluca may once have been as tall as
Popocatépetl Popocatépetl (; Nahuatl: ) is an active stratovolcano located in the states of Puebla, Morelos, and Mexico in central Mexico. It lies in the eastern half of the Trans-Mexican volcanic belt. At it is the second highest peak in Mexico, after C ...
, until an enormous eruption nearly 25,000 years ago blasted the top of the cone off and reduced its height by as much as . The same eruption generated thick
lahars A lahar (, from jv, ꦮ꧀ꦭꦲꦂ) is a violent type of mudflow or debris flow composed of a slurry of pyroclastic material, rocky debris and water. The material flows down from a volcano, typically along a river valley. Lahars are extremel ...
, or mudflows, which coated the sides of the mountains. An eruption approximately 500 years later deposited layers of pumice on the mountain's east and northeast slopes. The last major
eruption Several types of volcanic eruptions—during which lava, tephra (ash, lapilli, volcanic bombs and volcanic blocks), and assorted gases are expelled from a volcanic vent or fissure—have been distinguished by volcanologists. These are often ...
of Nevado de Toluca occurred about 10,500 years ago (10.5 ka BP), as the
volcano A volcano is a rupture in the Crust (geology), crust of a Planet#Planetary-mass objects, planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and volcanic gas, gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Ear ...
erupted a total estimated volume of 14 km3 for a VEI strength of 6 (comparable to the 1991 eruption of
Mount Pinatubo Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano in the Zambales Mountains, located on the tripoint boundary of the Philippine provinces of Zambales, Tarlac and Pampanga, all in Central Luzon on the northern island of Luzon. Its eruptive histor ...
). The eruption emplaced of pebble-sized
pumice Pumice (), called pumicite in its powdered or dust form, is a volcanic rock that consists of highly vesicular rough-textured volcanic glass, which may or may not contain crystals. It is typically light-colored. Scoria is another vesicular v ...
in the City of Toluca region and ~ of medium to fine sand in the
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...
region. Distal lahar deposits derived from the Upper Toluca Pumice event incorporated
mammoth A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus'', one of the many genera that make up the order of trunked mammals called proboscideans. The various species of mammoth were commonly equipped with long, curved tusks an ...
bones and other mammals in the basin of Mexico. The volcano became inactive after a volcanic plug formed in the volcano's vent. The plug eventually became known as El Ombligo ("the Navel").


Climate

Near the summit, Nevado de Toluca has a cold
alpine climate Alpine climate is the typical weather (climate) for elevations above the tree line, where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate. Definition There are multiple definitions o ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
''ET'') with cold temperatures year round. There is little variation in the temperatures and frost and snow can occur in any month. The winter season covers from November to April and precipitation is low, averaging in March, the driest month. Temperatures during this time are cold, averaging in January. The summer season spans from May to October and precipitation is very high, averaging in July. Temperatures during this time are warm, averaging in May. The summit is often foggy, averaging 110 days with fog, most of it during the monsoon season. The wettest record month was July 2008 when of precipitation fell and the wettest recorded day was July 16, 1999 when of precipitation fell. The highest temperature ever recorded was on August 16, 1993 and the lowest temperature recorded was on February 2, 2004.


Archeological sites

There are 18 registered archeological sites in the park, as this was a ritual center during pre-Hispanic periods.
Bernardino de Sahagún Bernardino de Sahagún, OFM (; – 5 February 1590) was a Franciscan friar, missionary priest and pioneering ethnographer who participated in the Catholic evangelization of colonial New Spain (now Mexico). Born in Sahagún, Spain, in 1499, ...
wrote about the lakes as a place where the indigenous held ceremonies and sacrifices. The lakes themselves are considered to be two sites, as a large number of offerings, especially
copal Copal is tree resin, particularly the aromatic resins from the copal tree ''Protium copal'' (Burseraceae) used by the cultures of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica as ceremonially burned incense and for other purposes. More generally, copal includes re ...
, were deposited in the lakes. These deposits can be found all over the lakebed as the burning copal was set adrift on the lakes’ waters until it sank. Other objects have been found such as ceramics and sculpted stones. Divers used to sack many of the pieces found here but now authorities carefully monitor those who dive. Most of the other sites are found on the crater's walls and peaks. One of the sites is called Xicotepec which is at the top of a rocky dome known as the Cerro de Ombligo (Spanish for "the navel"). Principally green obsidian blades and multicolored
ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...
has been found here. On the north side of the crater is Pico Sahagun, with ceramic pieces, Picos Heilprin North and South in which various types of objects have been found, and El Mirador, which is thought to be related the marking of the
zenith The zenith (, ) is an imaginary point directly "above" a particular location, on the celestial sphere. "Above" means in the vertical direction ( plumb line) opposite to the gravity direction at that location ( nadir). The zenith is the "high ...
of the sun. A stele found here seems to indicate this. The site at the highest altitude is Pico Noreste at 4,130 meters above sea level. It is a small platform with drainage on which has been found highly deteriorated ceramic pieces. On the west side is the Cerro Prieto Cave, which is really a rock shelter which is more than 60 meters high. Not only does it contain evidence of pre-Hispanic visits but also has been a shrine to the
Archangel Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...
since the colonial period. There have been intermittent archeological
excavations In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...
here with the most recent occurring in 2010 sponsored by INAH which found artifacts dating from the Epi-Classic (650-900 AD) and Post-Classic (900-1200 AD) periods and showed that the crater was a meeting place for
astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies – in either ...
priests to predict the growing season.


Gallery

File:Nevado de Toluca con bosque.jpg File:Laguna del sol.jpg File:Zacatonal I - Nevado de Toluca, Estado de México.jpg File:Nevado de Toluca-1981.jpg File:Zacatonal II - Nevado de Toluca, Estado de México.jpg File:Nevado de Toluca, cráter 1.jpg File:Nevado de Toluca, cráter 2.jpg File:One Art (3324323765).jpg


See also

*
List of mountain peaks of North America This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaksThis article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence, and a major summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence. All ...
**
List of mountain peaks of Mexico This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaksThis article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence, and a major summit as a summit with at least on topographic prominence. All sum ...
*** List of volcanoes in Mexico ***
List of Ultras of Mexico The following sortable table comprises the 26 ultra-prominent summits of México. Each of these peaks has at least of topographic prominence.This article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence, and ...
*
Nevado de Toluca National Park The Nevado de Toluca National Park is located southwest of the city of Toluca, Mexico State. It was decreed a park in 1936, primarily to protect the Nevado de Toluca volcano, which forms nearly the park's entire surface and is the fourth highest ...
* Arqueologia Mexicana


Notes


References

* * * *


External links

{{Authority control Mountains of Mexico Religious places of the indigenous peoples of North America Stratovolcanoes of Mexico Landforms of the State of Mexico Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt Volcanic crater lakes 9th millennium BC VEI-6 volcanoes Holocene stratovolcanoes Inactive volcanoes North American 4000 m summits Volcanoes of the State of Mexico Pleistocene stratovolcanoes