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Meru volcano, Tanzania
Meru volcano (upper right), Africa's fourth highest mountain, is seen from the ice-covered summit plateau of neighboring Kilimanjaro volcano.
The 4565-m-high Meru stratovolcano is cut by a 5-km-wide breached caldera on the east side that formed about 7800 years ago when the summit of the volcano collapsed.
A massive debris avalanche and lahar traveled to the east as far as the western flank of Kilimanjaro volcano.
Meru volcano, Africa's fourth highest mountain, is dwarfed by neighboring Kilimanjaro volcano, but is an impressive peak in its own right.
Seen from the west, Meru has a conical profile, but it contains a 5-km-wide breached caldera on the east side that formed about 7800 years ago when the summit of the volcano collapsed.
Associated massive debris avalanches and lahars traveled as far as the western flank of Kilimanjaro volcano. Parasitic cones and lava domes are located on all sides; a maar field is present on the lower north flank.
The historically active Ash Cone forms a prominent symmetrical cone inside the breached caldera.
A second vent between it and the caldera headwall has fed lava flows that cover much of the caldera floor.
PHOTO SOURCE: Photo by Tom Jorstad, 1991 (Smithsonian Institution).
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