{{Short description|Mountain and national park in Guatemala}} {{For|the pacaya palm|Chamaedorea tepejilote}} {{Infobox mountain | name = Pacaya | image = Pacaya erupting in 1976.jpg | image_caption = An eruption of Pacaya in 1976 | elevation_m = 2552 | elevation_ref = <ref name=gvp/> | prominence_m = 1077 | map = Guatemala | map_relief=1 | map_size = | label_position = bottom | listing = List of volcanoes in Guatemala | location = Escuintla, Guatemala | range = | coordinates = {{coord|14|22|51|N|90|36|04|W|type:mountain_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}} | coordinates_ref = <ref name=gvp/> | topo = | type = Complex volcano | volcanic_arc = Central America Volcanic Arc | age = 0-23,000 | last_eruption = February 14, 2021 - ongoing | first_ascent = | easiest_route = }}

'''Pacaya''' is an active complex volcano in Guatemala, which first erupted approximately 23,000&nbsp;years ago and has erupted at least 23 times since the Spanish conquest of Guatemala. It rises to an elevation of {{convert|2552|m|ft|0}}.<ref name=gvp>{{cite gvp|vnum=342110|name=Pacaya|access-date=2020-08-05}}</ref> After being dormant for over 70 years, it began erupting vigorously in 1961 and has been erupting frequently since then. Much of its activity is Strombolian, but occasionally Plinian eruptions also occur, sometimes showering the area of the nearby Departments with ash.<ref name=gvp />

Pacaya is a popular tourist attraction. It is even the home to the popular Guatemala Impact Marathon which pioneered the use of a running route across the lava field created by the 2010 eruption and supports the local communities through runners endeavouring to complete the [http://www.impactmarathon.com challenge].<ref>{{cite web |title=Guatemala Impact Marathon |url=http://www.impactmarathon.com |website=Impact Marathon }}</ref> It lies 30 kilometers (19 miles) southwest of Guatemala City and close to Antigua.<ref name=earth>Google Earth</ref> The volcano sits inside the Escuintla Department.<ref name=earth /><ref>{{citation |title=Departmento de Escuintla |author=Servicio de Informacion Municipal |url=http://www.inforpressca.com/municipal/mapas_web/escuintla/escuintla.php|language=es|access-date=2010-01-14}}</ref> Volcano Boarding is also practiced on the craters of Pacaya.<ref>{{cite web |title=Volcano Boarding in Guatemala |url=https://sand-boarding.com/volcano-boarding-in-guatemala/ |website=Sand-boarding.com |access-date=8 August 2022}}</ref>

Villagers near Pacaya ignored an evacuation request as the volcano threw ash into the air in March 2021.<ref>{{cite news |title=Evacuation request ignored at Guatemala's Pacaya volcano |url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/evacuation-request-guatemalas-pacaya-volcano-76260385 |access-date=March 4, 2021 |publisher=ABC News |date=March 4, 2021}}</ref>

==Geological history== The Pacaya volcano is a part of the Central American Volcanic Arc, a chain of volcanoes stretching from the northwest to the southeast along the Pacific coast of Central America, formed by the tectonic subduction of the Cocos Tectonic Plate beneath the Caribbean Plate. Pacaya lies on the southern edge of a sizable volcanic caldera formed in the Pleistocene age which contains Lago de Amatitlán. This caldera has been the source of at least nine very large explosions over the past 300,000&nbsp;years, erupting a total of about {{convert|70|km3|mi3}} of magma.<ref name=gvp /><ref name="Reif2001">{{citation |author1=Reif, S. |author2=Matias, O. |author3=Rose, W.I. |author4=Bluth, G.J. |author5=Flynn, L.P. |author6=Harris, A.J. |year=2001 |title=Volcanism at Pacaya, Guatemala 1985-2001: Potential of TM Images in Assessing Strombolian Activity |journal=AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts |publisher=American Geophysical Union |volume=Fall Meeting 2001|bibcode=2001AGUFM.V41A0976R }}</ref><!-- the editor who used this ref provided no inline citation. this location is a best guess. -->

After the last caldera-forming eruption 23,000&nbsp;years ago, several smaller vents within and around the caldera have seen eruptive activity. Pacaya is the largest post-caldera volcano, and has been one of Central America's most active volcanoes over the last 500&nbsp;years. It has erupted at least 23 times since the Spanish conquest,<ref name=gvp /><ref name=INSIVUMEH>{{cite web |author=INSIVUMEH |author-link=INSIVUMEH |title=Volcán de Pacaya |publisher=INSIVUMEH |url=http://www.insivumeh.gob.gt/geofisica/pacaya0.htm}}</ref> producing basalt and basaltic andesite.<ref>[http://www.goto-guatemala.com/guatemala-volcanoes.htm Guatemala Volcanoes]</ref>

About 1,100&nbsp; years ago the volcano's edifice collapsed, causing a huge landslide. Deposits from the landslide travelled about {{convert|25|km|mi}} from the volcano down to the Pacific coastal plain. The landslide left a large crater, within which the current active cone has grown. The presence of a magma chamber at shallow depths beneath Pacaya means that distortion of the cone leading to instability and future landslides remains a hazard to the surrounding areas.<ref name=gvp />

==Recent eruptions== thumbnail|300px|right|Pacaya Volcano With its almost continuous activity, the volcano has been a popular location for tourism, and is easily accessible from Guatemala City and from Antigua. Pacaya and the surrounding area now lie within the Pacaya National Park, which was created to supervise and protect tourism in this region. The Pacaya Park generates its income from tour groups who are charged a fee of about 100 Quetzales to enter the park.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pacaya Volcano Tour |url=https://tropicanahostel.com/product/pacaya-volcano-tour/ |access-date=2024-09-17 |website=Tropicana Hostel and Travel Agency |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 1998, several explosive eruptions emitted lava, debris and ash columns with a height of {{convert|1500|m|abbr=on}} to {{convert|5000|m|abbr=on}}. The ash fall affected nearby cities including Guatemala city and La Aurora International Airport.

During 2006, a slight increase in Pacaya's volcanic activity brought about the creation of several lava rivers that slowly flowed down its slope.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McCullaugh |first=Jim |date=2014-03-04 |title=Volcano Eruption Stuns Guatemala |url=https://guardianlv.com/2014/03/volcano-eruption-stuns-guatemala/ |access-date=2024-09-17 |website=Guardian Liberty Voice |language=en-US}}</ref> Word about these phenomena spread, and local tourism increased significantly.{{Citation needed|date=January 2010}}

===May 2010 eruption=== {{see also|Tropical Storm Agatha (2010)}} On May 27, 2010, the Pacaya volcano erupted, followed by several tremors. At approximately 20:00 hours there was a strong eruption ejecting debris and ash columns up to {{convert|1500|m}}. Ash rained down in many Guatemalan cities to the northwest of the volcano, including Guatemala City.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Volcano Discovery|date=May 28, 2010|access-date=May 30, 2010|title=Pacaya Volcano (Guatemala)|url=http://www.volcanodiscovery.com/en/Guatemala/Pacaya/activity_updates.html}}</ref> The volcanic ash fall pelted Guatemala City, and the international airport, La Aurora. The National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction (CONRED) declared a red alert for the communities near the volcano and recommended the evacuation of some of them. Noti7 reporter Anibal Archila, one of the first to cover the event, was reportedly killed by volcanic debris.<ref>{{cite web |title=Hundreds flee Guatemala volcano |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/latin_america/10186112.stm |publisher=BBC News |date=May 28, 2010 |access-date=May 31, 2010}}</ref>

President Álvaro Colom declared a state of calamity in the region adjacent to the volcano, and the Ministry of Education closed the schools in the departments of Guatemala, Escuintla, and Sacatepequez. Heavy rainfall from Tropical Storm Agatha worsened the emergency situation, causing lahars, landslides and widespread flooding across the country. However, people working in coffee fields considered the rain brought by the storm to be helpful, removing ash from their trees.<ref>{{cite web |last=Campbell |first=Robert |title=Guatemala girds for first Pacific storm of season |url=http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64S1A620100529 |url-status=unfit |publisher=Reuters |date=May 29, 2010 |access-date=May 29, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100601070939/http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64S1A620100529 |archive-date=June 1, 2010}}</ref>

===2026 unrest=== Starting in early 2026, Pacaya began showing increased unrest. On March 9, 2026, the Instituto Nacional de Sismologia Vulcanlogia Meteorologia e Hidrologia reported that unrest has continued. Gas and vapor plumes were observed rising from inside the crater.<ref>{{cite web |title=Pacaya Volcano (Guatemala) activity update Mar 9, 2026 - Unrest |url=https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/pacaya/news/297210/Pacaya-Volcano-Guatemala-activity-update-Mar-9-2026-Unrest.html |website=Volcano Discovery |access-date=10 March 2026 |date=10 March 2026}}</ref>

==See also== {{Commons category|Pacaya|<br/>Pacaya}} * Central America Volcanic Arc * Pizza Pacaya

==References== {{reflist}} <!-- A source added without an inline citation. The reference as it originally appeared in this section: Laca flows in 2006 at Pacaya. # Reif S., Matias O., Rose W.I., Bluth G.J., Flynn L.P., Harris A.J. (2001) ''Volcanism at Pacaya, Guatemala 1985-2001: Potential of TM Images in Assessing Strombolian Activity'', American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2001 --> <!-- Suggested inline reference: <ref name="Reif2001" /> -->

==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20040817080303/http://volcano.und.nodak.edu/vwdocs/volc_images/south_america/guat/pacaya.html Pacaya images and information] from VolcanoWorld (archived) * [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/662338.stm BBC News article about an eruption in 2000] * [http://www.vulkanfaszination.de/Pacaya92/index.htm ''Pacaya 1992 auf Vulkanfaszination'']

==Image gallery== <!--Code for the second example--> <!--This version has a few options--> <gallery widths="150px" heights="150px" align="center" caption="Pacaya"> File:II2A0950.jpg|Runners at the Impact Marathon race on Pacaya File:Volcan Pacaya.jpg|Volcán Pacaya (2005). File:Pacaya2.jpg|Tourists climbing Pacaya (2004). File:Pacaya.jpg|Noxious gas cloud (2002). File:Pacaya 92-37.jpg|Pacaya after a strombolian eruption (1992). File:Pacaya-08.jpg|Strombolian eruption of Pacaya (1992). File:Pacaya-12.JPEG|Strombolian eruption of Pacaya (1992). File:Rios de lava pacaya.jpg|Lava flow (2006). </gallery>

{{Central American volcanoes}} {{National parks of Guatemala}} {{Authority control}}

Category:Active volcanoes Category:Escuintla Department Category:Mountains of Guatemala Category:National parks of Guatemala Category:Complex volcanoes Category:Stratovolcanoes of Guatemala Category:Subduction volcanoes Category:Sierra Madre de Chiapas Category:Protected areas established in 1956 Category:Two-thousanders of North America