Protector Shoal, South Sandwich Islands

Protector Shoal is a submarine volcano. The volcano erupted in March of 1962. The euption produced great volumes of rhyolitic pumice. The pumice raft covered an area of at least 2,000 square miles! Pumice from the eruption eventually drifted west to New Zealand. Unlike most of the South Sandwich Islands, which are made of basalt, Protector Shoal is the only volcano in the arc that has erupted rhyolite. Steve Mattox

Sources of Information:
Click here to view the sources used in the South Sandwich Islands section.

 Images of Volcanoes      To VolcanoWorld