stratovolcano
A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a typically conical volcano built up by many alternating layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with ...
es located in the
Andes
The Andes ( ), Andes Mountains or Andean Mountain Range (; ) are the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range ...
of
Ñuble Region
The Ñuble Region (, ) officially the Region of Ñuble (), is — since 5 September 2018 – one of Chile's sixteen regions of Chile, regions. It spans an area of , making it the smallest region in Chile in terms of area, and is administratively ...
,
Central Chile
Central Chile (''Zona central'') is one of the five natural regions into which CORFO divided continental Chile in 1950. It is home to a majority of the Chilean population and includes the three largest metropolitan areas—Santiago, Valparaà ...
, and is one of the most active volcanoes in the region. It consists of three overlapping peaks, Cerro Blanco (Volcán Nevado) in the northwest and Volcán Viejo (Volcán Chillán) in the southeast, with Volcán Nuevo in the middle. Volcán Viejo was the main active vent during the 17th-19th centuries, and the new Volcán Nuevo
lava dome
In volcanology, a lava dome is a circular, mound-shaped protrusion resulting from the slow extrusion of viscous lava from a volcano. Dome-building eruptions are common, particularly in convergent plate boundary settings. Around 6% of eruptions ...
complex formed between 1906 and 1945, eventually growing to exceed Viejo in height by the mid-1980s.
This complex contains two subcomplexes: Cerro Blanco and Las Termas. The subcomplex Cerro Blanco includes the volcanoes Santa Gertrudis, Gato, Cerro Blanco, Colcura, Calfú Pichicalfú and Baños. The subcomplex Las Termas includes the volcanoes Shangri-La, Nuevo, Arrau, Viejo, Chillán y Pata de Perro. In addition, near of the complex there are two pyroclastic satellite cones, the volcanoes Las Lagunillas and Parador.