Momotombo Volcano, Nicaragua

false color shortwave infrared
natural color

For the first time in more than a century, Nicaragua’s Momotombo Volcano awoke with an explosive eruption. The Advanced Land Imager (ALI) on the Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite acquired these images of the area on December 4, 2015.

The false-color image (top) highlights hot areas, primarily the lava flow that extends to the northeast. The natural color image (bottom) shows a close up view of the volcano. The ash plume moved west and southwest, dropping ash on nearby communities.

The last confirmed eruption of Momotombo occurred in January 1905.

NASA Earth Observatory image by Jesse Allen, using EO-1 ALI data provided courtesy of the NASA EO-1 team. Caption by Kathryn Hansen.

References & Resources

  • Smithsonian Institution, Global Volcanism Program (2015, December) Momotombo. Accessed December 9, 2015.