Rotorua caldera - Definition and Overview

The Rotorua Caldera is one of several large volcanoes located in the Taupo Volcanic Zone on the North Island of New Zealand. Its last major eruption was about 140,000 years ago. At this time, the Mamaku Ignimbrite, covering about 4000 square km, was deposited. After the eruption, the magma chamber underneath the volcano collapsed. The circular depression left behind is the current caldera, about 16 km (10 miles) in diameter and now occupied by a lake. Mokoia Island, close to the centre of the lake, is a rhyolite dome.

The Whakarewarewa geothermal area contains many thermal features similar to those found at Yellowstone National Park in the United States.

External link

• Rotorua at Volcano World (http://volcano.und.nodak.edu/vwdocs/volc_images/australia/new_zealand/rotorua.html)