Nyamulagira (3058 m a.s.l.) is a shield volcano located in the Virunga (North Kivu, D.R. Congo), a volcanic province of the western branch of the East African Rift. Its summit is occupied by a 2 x 2.3 km caldera and more than 100 adventive cones are scattered along its flanks and in the lava plain at its base.
Nyamulagira erupted 30 times since the beginning of the 20th century, with an increase in eruption frequency in the last 30 years. These eruptions are characterized by lava fountains building up a pyroclastic cone around the vent, long lava flows able to reach tens of kilometers, together with the emission of very large amount of SO2. Lava flow volumes estimated or reported in Smets et al. (2010) vary from 1 to 202 x 106 m3, with 6 eruptions (i.e. 20 %) producing more than 100 x 106 m3 of erupted lava. Most eruptions take place along a NW-SE fracture network that crosses the main edifice.
Reference
Smets B., Wauthier C., d’Oreye N. (2010). A new map of the lava flow field of Nyamulagira (North Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo) from satellite imagery. Journal of African Earth Sciences 58 (5), 778-786.
