Volcán Santo Tomás (original indigenous name Qaqpekul) is a

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 ...

in southern

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

. Its highest point lies at an altitude of 3,542 m (11,621 ft) above sea level. It is also known as "Volcán Pecul", or as "Cerro Zunil", the name of its youngest and most prominent dome which was last active approximately 84,000 years ago (K-Ar dating).

Geothermal activity Geothermal activity is a group of natural heat transfer processes, occurring on Earth's surface, caused by the presence of excess heat in the subsurface of the affected area, usually caused by the presence of an igneous intrusion underground. Geot ...

can be observed in the form of

Solfatara A fumarole (or fumerole) is a vent in the surface of the Earth or another rocky planet from which hot volcanic gases and vapors are emitted, without any accompanying liquids or solids. Fumaroles are characteristic of the late stages of volcani ...

s and thermal springs which are located on the west of the ridge between Santo Tomás and Zunil.

References

Santo Tomas Santo Tomas

Volcano A volcano is commonly defined as a vent or fissure in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most oft ...

Santo Tomas Pleistocene stratovolcanoes North American 3000 m summits {{NorthAm-protected-area-stub

See also

References