Francis 1974

P. W. FRANCIS et al.
- - The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile
The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile

and their hot avalanche deposits
By P. W. FRANCIS, M. J. I~OOBOL~G. P. L. WALKEIt~P. R. COBBOLD, M. COWAIID*)
With 16 figures and 8 tables
Zusammenfassung
Die beiden 6000m hohen Vulkane San Pedro und San Pablo erheben sich etwa
2000 m fiber der breiten, von Ignimbrit gebildeten Hochebene Nordehiles. San Pablo
ist 1/ingst erloschen und tief erodiert; dagegen weist San Pedro mehrere historisehe
Eruptionen und dazu eine noeh aktive Fumarole auf. Bei beiden hat sich die vulka-
nische T~itigkeit im Laufe der Zeit nach Westen verlagert. Die Vulkane sind aus
Pyroxen- und Hornblende-Andesit-Laven gebildet; ihre iiuBeren Flanken bestehen aus
breiten vulkanoklastischen Ablagerungen, die heiBe Erdrutseh-Ablagerungen einschlie-
Ben. Chemisehe Analysen von 80 Gesteinsproben ergeben, dab die Produkte der Vul-
kane nur geringe ehemische Sehwankungen zeigen und dab die SiO2-Werte zwischen
56~o und 66~o liegen; deutlich h/Sher als die SiO~-Werte der quart~iren west-
pazifisehen vulkanischen Serien. Ihrer M~ichtigkeit naeh (100--200 m) miissen die Horn-
blende-Andesit-Laven eine hohe Viskosifiit gehabt haben. Wo solehe Laven hoeh auf
San Pedro ausflossen, verloren gr6gere Teile der Lava ihr Gleiehgewicht und rutsch-
ten ab. Die so gebildeten Erdrutsch-Ablagerungen sind ein wichtiger Teil des ganzen
Vulkans geworden. Die meisten Erdrutsehe entstanden, als die Lava noch in heigem
Znstand war, aber schon so hohe Viskositat hatte, dab sic mit spr6dem Brueh ab-
brach und niederstiirzte. Die gr613eren Brocken dawm zeigen radiale, s~iulige Klfifte,
die senkreeht zur Oberfl~iche laufen. Dies zeigt, dab sic naeh dem Abrutschcn als
einzelne groBe Broeken gekiihlt sind. Es wurde bewiesen, dab der Transportmecbanis-
nms dieser ,,heiBen Erdrutsehe" wahrscheinlich sehr ~ihnlieh den nicht-vulkanisehen
Erdrutschen ist. Bimsstein-pyroklastische Lavadecken sind auch vorhanden, eine befin-
det sieh an der Flanke von San Pedro, w~ihrend andere die Ignimbrit-Hochebene
bilden. Die letztgenannte erh~ilt ebenfalls viele pyroklast~sche Lavadecken yon ge-
ringerer M:,tehtigkeit als jene von San Pedro. Es ist sehr wahrscheinlich, dab auch
diese Ignimbrite ihren Ursprung an den andesitischen Vulkanen fanden. Manche von
den Ignimbriten sind I/hyolithe, viel saurer als die andesitischen Stratovulkane. Die
Trennung der rhyolitisehen und andesitiscben Laven wurde auf der Erdoberfliiche
durch Transport vollzogen: die Andesite wurden nahe am Vulkan angeh~iuft, w~ihrend
die meisten der Rhyolite wegen ihres v611ig anderen Eruptionsvorganges weiter ent-
fernt vom Vulkanzentrum abgelagert sind.
Abstract
The twin 6000 m volcanoes San Pedro and San Pablo rise 2000 m above the extensive
ignimbrite plateau of northern Chile. San Pablo is extinct and quite deeply eroded,
San Pedro has an active fumarole and a record of several historic volcanic eruptions.
Activity on both has on the whole migrated westwards with time. The volcanoes
*) Author's addresses: Dr. P. W. FRANCIS, Department of Earth Sciences, The Open

University, Bletehley, England; Dr. M. J. ROOBOL, Department of Geology, University
of the West Indies, Mona, Kingston 7, Jamaica; Dr. G. P. L. WALKER, and P. R. COB-
BOLD, Department of Geology, Imperial College, London SW 7 2 BP, England; Dr. M.
P. COWARD,Department of Earth Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, England.
357
Aufs~itze
consist of pyroxene and hornblende andesite lavas with broad aprons of volcaniclastie
rocks, including hot avalanche deposits, on their flanks. 80 new chemical analyses
show that the composition range of the rocks composing the volcanoes is small, with
silica varying between 56 and 66Yo, significantly higher than that of Quaternary
volcanic suites of the western Pacific. The hornblende andesite lavas are very thick
(commonly 100 to 200 m) indicating a high viscosity. Where such flows were erupted
high on San Pedro, large portions of them collapsed when they became mechanically
unstable and the resulting avalanche deposits form an important part of the volcano.
Most avalanches took place when the source-lava was still hot, though so viscous that
it broke by brittle fracture when it collapsed. The larger blocks have a prismatic
jointing normal to their outer surface, showing that they cooled down in place after
collapse. Evidence is presented that the mechanism of transport of these hot avalanches
is not likely to be different from that o~ non-volcanic rock avalanches. Pumiceous
pyroclastie flows also occur, one on the flanks of San Pedro, while others comprise
the ignimbrite plateau. The latter is made up of many pyroclastic flows different
from the San Pedro example only in size, and there are good grounds for believing
that the ignimbrites likewise originated by eruptions on the andesitic volcanoes. Many
of the ignimbrites are rhyolites, much more acidic than the andesite stratovolcanoes
and a process of surface transport separation has operated whereby the andesites are
concentrated on and near their source, while most of the rhyolites, because of their
different style of eruption, have spread widely from it.
R6sum6
Les deux volcans San Pedro et San Pablo, hauts de 6000 m, du Chili Septentrional,
s'616vent fi 2000 m au-dessus d'un vaste plateau d'ignimbrites. San Pablo est 6teint et
profond6ment 6rod6, tandis que San Pedro montre une activit6 fumerollienne apr6s
plusieurs 6rnptions survenues au cours de la p6riode historique. L'activit6 volcanique
chez les deux volcans s'est d6plac6e dans le temps vers l'ouest. Les volcans sent
compos6s de laves d'and6site ~t pyrox6ne et fi hornblende, avec, sur leurs flanes, des
roehes volcanoclastiques comprenant des d6p6ts dfis ~t des 6boulements chauds.
80 nouvelles analyses ehimiques montrent que ]es limites de composition sent 6troites,
avec de 56 /t 66~o de silice, soft une composition nettement plus 61ev6e que celle des
roehes voleaniques quaternaires du Paeifique Occidental. Etant donn6 leur 6paisseur
(100 fi 200 m), les laves and6sitiques fi hornblende doivent avoir eu une viscosit6 tr6s
grande. Dans les endroits 61ev6s de San Pedro off de telles coul6es se sent 6panch6es,
une grande pattie d'entre elles se sent effondr6es. Les produits de ces 6boulements
ferment une pattie importante du volean. La plupart des 6boulements se sent produits
quand la lave 6taft encore chaude, mais si visqueuse qu'elle s'est fraetur6e avec une
eassure nette pendant l'effondrement. Les blocs les plus grands sent cass6s le long
de lignes perpendiculaires fi lcur surface ext6rieure, ce qui montre qu'ils se sent
refroidis sur place apr6s leur effondrement. Cela montre avee 6vidence que le
m6canisme de transport de ces <<6boulements chauds>> n'est vraisemblablement pas
diff6rent de celui des 6boulements non-volcaniques. I1 y a aussi des coul6es de laves
pyroclastiques ponceuses, dent une sur les flancs du San Pedro, tandis que d'autres
fomlent le plateau ignimbritique. Le plateau est aussi tempos6 de nombreuses coul6es
pyroclastiques d'6paisseur moindre que eelles du San Pedro. I1 est tr6s vraisemblable
que les ignimbfites aussi proviennent des volcans and6sitiques. Beaucoup d'ignimbrites
sent rhyolitiques, encore plus aeides que les and6sites des stratovoleans. Un processus
de s6paration au tours du transport a concentr6 les and6sites pros du volean, tandis
que la plupart des rhyolites, ~ cause d'un style d'6rnption diff6rent, se sent r6pandues
fi plus grande distance.
358
P. W. FRANCIS eL al. - - The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile
Resumen
Los volcanes gemelos de San Pedro y San Pablo se d e v a n 2000 m. sobre la extensiva
altiplanicie ignimbrltica deI norte de Chile. El San Pablo yaee extinto y fuertemente
erosionado, rnientras que el San Pedro dernuestra actividad furnar61ica y ha registrado
erupciones en tiempos hist6ricos. E n ambos volcanes la actividad se ha desplazado
prpgresivamente hacia el occidente, Los volcanes se hallan consfituidos per lavas de
andesita pirox6nica y hornbl6ndica. Tienen amplias falds de rocas volcanocl~sticas,
con dep6sitos de ripe "hot avalanche". Treinta nuevos anal(sis demuestran que las
rocas no varian mucho en cuanto a composie~6n qulmiea. E1 poreentaje de silice es de
56Yo a 66Yo, cant(dad que supera la de de las rocas volcAnicas cuaternarias del mergen
pacifico occidental. Las laves de andesita hornblendica alcanzan grandes espesores (de
entre 100 y 200 in.), lo que indicaria una alta viscus(dad. Cuando una lava de estas
brotara en la superficie alta del San Pedro, gran parte de ella devendrla inestable,
deslizAndoso y originanado dep6sitos que ahora constituyen una importante fracci6n
del edificio volcAnieo. E n su mayor(A1 los dep6sitos provinieron per disagregaci6n
mecfinica de la lava paterna, la que fractur6 forrnando bloques rnientras se hallaba aun
c~dida. La presencia de un sistema de un sisterna de fracturas perpendicular a la
superficie externa de los bloques mas grandes indicaria que estos alcanzaron ternpera-
turas ambientes en el propio site donde ahora se hallan. E1 mecanismo de transporte
de estos deslizamientos vulcan(cos no serla tony differente al de los deslizamientos
formados per transporte flnicarnente terrestre. Flujos piroel~sticos con piedra p6mez
se hallan, uno sobre las faldas del San Pedro, otros eonstituyendo la altiplanicie
ignimbritica. Estos 61tirnos se distnguen del primero finicamente per su mayor volflmen.
Uno qne otros probablernente originaron per erupci6n en los prop(us volcanes. E n
su mayoria las ignimbritas son rioliticas, es dec(r, rnas acidas que los estratovolcanes
andes((ices. Per lo tan(o, ha operado un proceso de separacj6n en transporte super-
ficial, cual proceso ha concentrado las andesitas cerca de su origien, mientras que
las riolitas, t e n su propio estilo eruptivo, se han dispersado mAs, alcanzando grandes
distancias.
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359
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RaK 60JIbIIleHCTBOpnoJn4TOB OTzoraaoc~, n aaan OW~pawepa.
1. Introduction
S a n Pedro and San Pablo are two large adjoining volcanoes in the Antofagasta
province of northern Chile, near the frontier with Bolivia (fig. 1). They form part
of the high Andean Cordillera, the u p p e r parts of which are composed entirely of
Quaternary volcanoes built on a Cainozoic basement. The Pacific/Andean plate
margin is widely quoted as the best developed example of a subduction zone at a
plate margin, yet surprisingly little is known in detail of the volcanic processes
operating there. The area studied is adjacent to the deepest part of the Peru-
Chile oceanic trench, which closely parallels the coast line (HAYES 1966), and it
overlies the most seismically active part of the Andean Benioff zone. HAYES has
noted that at latitude 25 ~ S there is a difference in surface elevation of 14.7 krn
over a lateral distance of 870 kin. Seismic studies also show that the continental
crust reaches nearly its greatest known thickness of some 6 5 - - 7 0 krn in the Cen-
tral Andes (JAMES 1971). This has some implications for the geochemistry of the
volcanic rock suite. The pair of volcanoes described in this paper are among the
highest summits in the Andes, being both above 6000 in, and they rise some
2000 in above an extensive level surface of ignimbrite which slopes gently west-
wards to the Rio Loa. They form a ridge trending east-west on which the main
peaks, 5 km apart, are separated b y a col at a height of 5250 rn (fig. 2), which is
occupied by a large crater, called Central Crater in this account.
San Pedro has a fumarole near its summit, and there are reports of eruptions in
1877, 1891, 1901, 1911 and 1960 (CASERTANO,1962). Prolonged fumarolic activity
has extensively altered the rocks in the summit region and the deposits of sulphur
there were mined up to the 1930s. The summit is accessible from the north-west
b y mule or on foot, along tracks made b y the sulphur miners. San Pablo is on the
whole older than San Pedro. It is much more dissected b y erosion and is
regarded as extinct.
San Pedro and San Pablo like many of the other high volcanoes in the region
show clear evidence of glaciation, although today they lack glaciers. Terminal
moraines of small valley glaciers are found as low as 4300 in (cf. HOLLINGWORTH
~X:GUEST, 1967), together with striated and polished boulders and rock pave-
rnents. San Pablo has not been active since late-glacial times and Central Crater
on its western side has been eroded by ice and contains erratic blocks. San Pedro
on the other hand shows evidence of considerable post-glacial activity and one
example was found of lavas overlying a glacial moraine containing blocks. The
volcanoes are surrounded by broad aprons of their elastic products, including
conspicuous hot avalanche (nude ardente) deposits, extending up to 20 km from
their source, while extremely thick hornblende andesite and thinner pyroxene an-
desite lava flows extend up to 10 km from their source.
360
P. W. FRANCIS et al. - - The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile
30' 15' 68~

' C}H'IL~E ", BOLIVIA ' , "-',, 21~
/'..~ E / ~ ' . , ,'-. k PERu ,) =
' I O udcha ~ r~
~ Z
.~176 < / ~ 1 ~ . !, -.-. ~,
!I "
~ii ~.1,7 6 ~ X6-,

' - ~ \X ((q~IP
. / ; lt5a b ~c~o,,~ .:.::--:--:-~:.:.::--..:-,:.
"~':<:-:' ~':q~<4":'::3 ,~u__, /
o~o. 5997 V':~::::: 9
~:.;::.:~ ~176 .. ~ . ".,

22~
Railway J Basement ~ Graben ~ "
Road ..--'" Salars :iiiiiiiii~: Fumarole v
Ignimbrite ~o:;~176
~ Frontier-'""
outcrop SCALE
0 5 10 15 20 AItEtudesin meters
km Contour lines at lO,OO0ft
{c 30Om) intervals
Fig. 1. Index map of the volcanic chain lying between 21 ~ and 22 ~ S showing the
location of the two volcanoes described in the paper. The inset map shows the location
of this area (B) in relation to those described by KATSUI & GONZALEZ, 1968 (A) and
GUEST, HOLLINGWORTII et al. (C).
361
Aufs~itze
The field work was carried out by the authors in 1969, as part of a broader re-
search project in northern Chile. This paper describes the structure and petrology
of the two volcanoes which were selected from the 80-odd volcanoes mapped
partly because they are relatively accessible and partly because San Pedro is the
only one in the area which has a record of historic activity. This is the first syste-
matic account of any volcanoes in the 400 km stretch of the Andes lying between
latitudes 18 ~ 25' and 2 2 ~ 05' S. At the northern end of this stretch, KATSUI& GON-
o 5
110 ~ Pyroxene andesite lava
_,,,,~i ~:)[- ...... ~ Hornblende andesitelava
['~:,• ~L','{,':',','LDebris flow
:%:TL!f:':: Pumice flow H
- \" . : ? ~ ::."...: Ignimbrite plateau
-..\ ":.:~. ~ Crater
~: M~'(~.J i:~. tlr Fumarole
:"-... Analysed sample number
" \ e%
__ 6- ----~ Z _
~ =col z~/........ ,,~SANPABLO~%,
_-
,,_~ ~:----
~/S~'~ ....
' ~
~%, :[,C,.
~'~'r ;--'=--Summit Gp.]olderlavas
?_iL_Olderlavasj s"PedrO
, Summit Gp.]
~ , Middle Gp, i' S.Pablo
A ~ ~ LowerGp, J
............. z ....... ~- Dip
Fig. 2. Geologieal sketch map of San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes, based in part
on aerial photographs. The nmnbers give the location of analysed samples.
ZALEZ (1968) have described volcanoes in the Nevados de Payachata area just
south of the Peruvian border (fig. 1, inset, A), while at the southern end ignim-
brites and related volcanic and tectonic features of the country arround Toconce
and Toeonao have been described by DINGMAN (1965), HOLLINGWORTH
I~UTLAND (1968), GUEST (1969) and GUEST & SANCHEZ (1969), (fig. 1, inset C).
PETERSEN (1958) has described the large scale setting of the Andean volcanism
in Peru, Chile, Bolivia and Argentina, and summarised its relationship to the
structure and uplift of the Andes.
RUTLAND (1971) has attempted to relate volcanism in this general area with its
plate tectonic setting. HAUSEN (1988) has given petrographic descriptions and
three analyses of rocks from San Pedro and its vicinity. ZEIL (1960 and 1964), ZEIL
.~KPICHLER (1967), PICHLER& ZEIL (1969), EL-HINNAWIet al. (1969) and SIEGERS
et al. (1969) have given accounts of the petrology and trace element chemistry of
rocks collected from many localities distributed over northern Chile, the latter in-
cluding one analysis of a San Pedro andesite.
362
2. Structure of the volcanoes

San Pedro Volcano
The San Pedro volcano itself is a composite of two cones (figs. 2, 8 and 4). The
higher, eastern one is capped by a dissected flatqying pile of pyroxene andesite
and hornblende andesite lavas (The Summit Group) which form the top of a
dominantly pyroxene andesite volcano. The lower, western one consists mainly of
hornblende andesite resting on or banked up against the other cone. The prod-
uets of this younger cone are spread out widely over the western and northern
D -/- . ,. ~._ " - - - ~ . .
Fig. 8. General composite view from the north-west of San Pedro volcano illustrating
the principal structural units: A - - main, eastern summit of San Pedro capped with
flat-lying lavas; B - - younger, western cone of San Pedro with fumarole at top;
C - - thick andesite lava (i9i on Fig. 2); D - - extensive apron of hot avalanche
deposits; E - - prominent collapse scar above D.
slopes of San Pedro and include some very large volume andesite flows and
elastie deposits derived from them. The rounded top of this cone is made of
hornblende andesite and it has a summit crater at 6060 m, and another crater on
its north-east side at 6040 m inside whieh the aetive fumarole is located. These
andesites occupy and overspill an earlier crater 1.2 km in diameter on the north-
west side of the older eastern cone.
The superstructure of the eastern cone is best exposed on its eliffed southern
face where relatively thin lava flows are exposed, non-vesicular andesitie rock al-
ternating with prominent red and black scoria horzons to form a pile which dips
gently westwards. Six steeply-inclined discordances - - they may be unconformi-
ties - - are visible between groups of flows. The oldest group occupies the ex-
treme south-east of the summit area, and later activity has extended the cone
both upwards and to the north-west.
Some of the extensive debris flows which are found on the lower western
slopes of San Pedro probably belong to the older cone. At least one of these
363
Aufs/itze
Fig. 4 a. General view of San Pedro volcano from the north-west (from Polapi railway
station, 15 km distant from the summit) showing A - - main, eastern summit capped
with flat-lying lavas; B - - younger, western cone with fumarole at top; C - - thick
andesite lava (191 on Fig. 2); D - - extensive apron of hot avalanche deposits; E - pro-
minent collapse scar above D.
Fig. 4 b. Close-up of 4 a taken from altitude of c. 5,000 m on rubbly surface of hot

avalanche deposit. A, B, D and E as in (a).
flows, conspicuous on account of the dark-coloured p y r o x e n e andesite boulders in

it, extends 200 km f r o m the volcano as far as the g o r g e of the Rio Loa, Similar de-
posits are also exposed on and b e t w e e n ignimbrites in the Rio San Pedro south of
the volcano.
364
P. W. FRANCISet al. - - The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile
The north-western cone is morphologically a very youthful feature. Much of its

activity is post-glacial and it is likely that most of the historic eruptions of San
Pedro have taken place there. It eonsists very largely of thick hornblende andes-
ite flows which radiate to the north, west and south-west from a central vent.
Most of the flows are 100 m or more thick, though none exceeds 10 km in length.
Flank eruptions are responsible for two young pyroxene andesite flows which
occur between the hornblende andesite flows on the western slopes, for the ex-
tensive flow from the scoria cone of La Poruna and for the massive hornblende
andesite lava flow on the south-western flanks (fig. 5) which skirts the Rio San
Pedro gorge and has sent a scree of blocks down the side of it at two points. This
last is the largest flow known on the two volcanoes; it has a flow front up to
Fig. 5. Part of Iower reaches of large lava on S.W. flanks of San Pedro (61 on Fig. 2).
Flow here is about 60 metres high, and rests on flat desert surface. Blocky texture,
typical of lavas in this area, is well developed. Age of flow is unknown, but is certainly
more than 100 years.
200 m or more high, covers an area of 19 km ~, and has a volume of the order of
8 km 3. While large for a lava flow, it is substantially smaller than the 24 km a
Chao lava described by G u e s t & SANCHEZ (1969) 80 km south-east of San Pedro.
The flows on the north-western eone can be broadly separated into two age
groups by a particularly prominent white pumice horizon (table 1) which in-
cludes an air-fail deposit and a pumice flow and represents what is for San Pedro
an usually large explosive episode. The older flows include very large ones which
reach the foot of the mountain north of La Poruna (specimens 166, 1 8 4 and 187)
and have pockets of pumice between the flow-ridges on their upper surfaee. The
largest of the younger flows is that which skirts the Rio San Pedro gorge.
The pyroxene andesite flow of La Poruna is also young, though its age relative
to the youngest flows on the north-west cone is mxeertain. According to HAUSEN
(1988) it dates from the late 19th Century, though this seems unlikely to the pre-
sent authors. The lava flow (specimen 64) covers 12 km ~ and has a volume of the
order of 0.8 km a. It is of aa type, contrasting with the block lava of the thick an-
desites, and has well defined lava channels in it. The scoria cone of La Poruna is
365
Aufs/itze
Table 1. Stratigraphic succession established on San Pedro volcano.
North west and Western San Pedro Southern San Pedro
Hornblende andesite lava and hot avalanche N (172)
Hornblende andesite lava and hot avalanche M (169)
Hornblende andesite lava (191) and hot avalanche L
Pyroxene andesite lava (186)
Hornblende andesite lavas (182, 184) Hornblende andesite lava (61)
Hornblende andesite lava (166) Small debris flows F
Hornblende andesite lava and hot avalanche K (174)
Pumice flow H and marker air fall horizon Marker air fall horizon
Boulder Clay
Hornblende andesite lava (167)
Hot avalanche J of hornblende andesite fragments
(168)
Hot avalanche G of pyroxene andesite debris (170)
Avalanche E Debris flow C
Avalanche D Debris flow B
Debris flow A
Pyroxene andesite lavas
m thick ignimbrite
m thick ignimbrite
Hot avalanche of hornblende
andesite debris
80 m thick Rio San Pedro Ignimbrite Rio San Pedro Ignimbrite
80m thick ignimbrite DebriS flow
1 8 0 m high, is extensively reddened by steam action, and contains scattered

spindle-shaped bombs up to 2.5 m long.
San Pablo Volcano
This volcano is sufficiently dissected by erosion to reveal that it is structurally
quite complex. The oldest parts consist of a group (The Lower Group) of three
buried piles of pyroxene and hornblende andesite lavas with much scoria, each
pile having its own radially dipping structures. These are blanketed by two
younger and structurally distinct groups of scoriaceous lavas, here called the
Middle and Summit groups.
Of the three early piles, the north-western one is the largest and probably the
youngest and is cut though b y the Central Crater (figs. 2 and 6). The core con-
sists of thin red pyroxene andesite flows (e. g. specimen 281) whieh are overlain
by thick hornblende andesite flows now well exposed on the southern flanks of
San Pablo. The second pile, in the eastern part of San Pablo, eonsists of horn-
blende andesite flows and the lower part contains sulphur and iron and copper
sulphides. These flows are now exposed as 'flat-irons' and are overlain by red py-
roxene andesite scoria. The andesite lavas of the third pile also occur as 'flat-
irons' on the southern flanks of San Pablo. In the west these dip under the lavas
of the north-western pile, which is therefore younger.
The Middle Group eonsists mainly of pyroxene andesite with a few hornblende
andesite flows, separated b y much red scoria. The total thickness varies from
50 m to 800 m. Where it overlies the southern pile, the difference in dip indicates
that considerable erosion occurred before the Middle Group was superpose& The
366
Group is best exposed in the eastern wall of the Central Crater where it consists
of lavas and red scoria in roughly equal proportions. At the western extremity of
San Pablo a fault trending 25 ~ with a downthrow of about 800 m to the south-
east isolates an outerop of this group.
The Summit Group of San Pablo consists of reddish pyroxene andesite flows,
totalling about 200 m thiek, which are amongst the youngest on the volcano.
These flows, whieh occur only above 5700 m, dip gently outwards and suggest a
source vent somewhere near the present top of the mountain.
Fig. 6. San Pablo volcano from northwest, 2 kin from Polapi railway station. The
volcano has smoother outlines and is more dissected by erosion than S. Pedro.
A - - main smnmit of San Pablo, capped by lavas of Summit Group. B - - flat-topped
ridge in north wall of Central crater, interior only visible from above. C - - flanks of
eastern summit of San Pedro volcano. D - - relatively old pyroclastie deposits.
The Central Crater is elliptical and measures 8.5 km by 2.5 km and is open to
the west. It is developed largely in the Lower and Middle groups which are well
exposed in its walls. The crater is partly infilled with scoriaceous lava and pyro-
elastic material from a low scoria cone in the middle. This later cone has been
rounded by glaciation and a scatter of erratic andesite blocks derived from San Pa-
blo are strewn over it and the rest of the crater floor. The final eruption from this
vent in the crater must therefore pre-date the latest glaciation. The sample col-
lected from it (spee. 280) has the lowest silica content (56 %) of all the rocks ana-
lysed from the two volcanoes.
The distinctive black vesicular lavas and pyroelastics from the Central Crater
interdigitate with red scoriaceous lavas and pyroclastie deposits which can be
correlated with the Summit Groups of both San Pablo and the older cone of San
Pedro. The Middle Group of lavas of San Pablo are truncated in the Central
Crater walls but lavas of the Summit Group of this same volcano drape
the southern walls of the Crater. These relations indicate that the lavas and pyro-
elastics of the Central Crater, the red Summit Groups of San Pablo and the older
cone of San Pedro are all of broadly similar age and that the Central Crater
367
Aufs~itze
formed after the Middle Group of San Pablo b u t before the Summit Groups
ceased to be extruded. The following sequence was observed within the Central
Crater:
Erratic blocks, indicating glaciation
2 4 m Black vesicular lava and bombs from vent in Central Crater
4 m Brown air-fall pumice from vent in Central Crater
1--2 m Red scoriaceous summit group of older San Pedro cone
2 m Black vesicular lavas and bombs from vent in Central Crater
> 4 m Lavas of Summit Group, San Pablo, draping the southern walls of
Central Crater.
Fig. 7. Part of lower reaches of hot avalanche apron, San Pedro volcano. Note boulder
strewn surface of deposit, and tendency for boulders to line up in low ridges, Margin
of flow shows up clearly as contrast between light and dark tones in lower foreground,
left. Large volume extrusive dacite dome of Chanca right middle distance.
3. Debris flows and pyroclastic flows

Fragmental deposits constitute a large proportion, possibly half, of the total
volume of the younger andesite cone of San Pedro. The first type consists of
monolithologic rock avalanche deposits resulting from the gravitational collapse of
hot but highly viscous andesite lava which formed mechanically unstable masses
high on the steep slopes of the volcano. The fragments are largely non-vesicular
and can be matched with parent lava bodies which are marred by collapse scars.
The second type includes various avalanche deposits similar to the first
except that they lack clear evidence of having been hot when they were
formed. Some are polylithologic and these are unlikely to be due to the collapse
of hot lava bodies. The third type consists of mudflows which are always poly-
lithologic. The fourth type is represented by a non-welded scoria flow and a non-
368
P. W. FRANCIS et ah - - The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile
Fig. 8. Prismatic jointed block on surface of hot avalanche deposit on north west slope
of San Pedro. Blocks characteristically resting on surface of deposit rather than buried
within it. Note distinctive polygonal fracturing, particularly on left side. The block
has partially disintegrated since it was transported int(~ its present position.
Fig. 9. Fragment of small prismatic jointed bh)ek from hot avalanche deposit on north-
west slope of San Pedro, showing closer spacing mc the prisms immediately below the
surface than farther in.
24 Geologlschc B.undschau, Bd. 6S 3~9

Aufsiitze
welded pumice flow, both of which are supposed to have resulted from
explosions in a central vent and which are truly pyroelastie in the sense that both
the fragmentation of the magma and the transportation of the fragments were the
direct consequence of explosive aetivity.
Hot avalanche deposits:
The main evidence that some of the rock avalanches were hot when emplaeed is
the presence, both within them and scattered over their surface, of large blocks
which have a well developed prismatic jointing normal to their margin (figs. 7, 8
and 9). Many of these blocks, which mostly exceed 50 em in size, have since fall-
en apart into heaps of polygonal-shaped fragments by separating along this sys-
tem of prismatic joints. The rock avalanche deposits in general may be distin-
guished from mudflows in that they show a "jigsaw structure", where a eon-
tained block has broken almost in situ so that the fracture is infilled with fine-
grained matrix although the fragments have not moved apart.
Five hot avalanche deposits have been mapped on the western flanks of San
Pedro (J, K, L, M and N on fig. 2) and a sixth is exposed between ignimbrites in
the Rio San Pedro gorge. A block from each of the first five or its parent lava
flow has been chemically analysed (specimens 168, 174, 191, 169 and 172 respec-
tively, table 2) and all are leucoeratie hornblende andesites. The deposits range
from large-volume accumulations which locally bury lava flows over 100 m thick
(deposits M and N) to small deposits which are little more than a surface scatter
of blocks (deposit L). The large deposits have well defined flow fronts and a sur-
face pattern of channel and lev6e structures running downslope. Individual de-
posits can be subdivided into flow units as the flow fronts and ridges of one unit
truncate and bury those of older units. The four youngest deposits have been
matched with their parent lava flows which lie immediately above the highest
points of the deposits and are truncated by collapse sears.
The youngest hot avalanche deposit (N) covers 22 km e on the northern slopes of
San Pedro and is derived from the youngest andesite flows on the northwestern
summit (figs. 4, 7 and 8). It is divisible into at least 9 clearly defined flow units
(fig. 10) which on the higher parts of the volcano have channels with lev6es on
either side. Prismatic jointed blocks up to 5 m in size are conspicuous everywhere.
Four flow units of the parent lava are seen immediately upslope draped on 80 ~
slopes and terminate in collapse sears (fig. 4).
The next youngest deposit (M) has a flow front less than 1 m high at its distal
end but traced upslope the surface becomes level with and partly overlaps of
lava flow 166 which, near its lower end, is 140 m thick. Tile avalanche deposit
could therefore be of comparable thickness there. Prismatic jointed blocks up to
2 m across are common, and well-defined surface ridges are developed which
curve around the front of the same lava flow. One flow unit belonging to this de-
posit is particularly conspicuous and has been outlined separately on the map
(M'). Whereas most flow units have flow fronts 1 to 4 m high, this particular unit
has a flow front 25 m high.
Among the oldest and largest avalanche deposits, D (fig. 2) has a flow front
l0 m or more high with good linear ridges on the surface parallel with the direc-
tion of flow and clearly seen on the aerial photographs. Another, E, of nearly the
same age has a flow front 20 m high and is well exposed in railway cuttings,
370
where, for several kilometres, the railway follows the flow front. Neither deposit
possesses prismatic jointed blocks.
Other avalanche deposits and mudflows:
On the southern flanks of San Pedro is a group of three polylithologic debris
flows of uncertain origin. The two oldest flows overlie the ignimbrites on both
~ Young scree apron

[~ ~ ~ ,o,
~ ~ ~ | Fumarole
:o:. . . . . ~, Parent lava lobe
~ ~~~ (~/ Hot avalanche
~P '4 ~ ~ ~ ~ subunit. Dashes show
A
~.~z.a z ~ A surface ridge trends
Per cent prismatic
jointed blocks and
size range
Older deposits
ont
1N
Fig. 10. Detailed sketch map of the north flanks of San Pedro volcano, showing
successive flow units in the youngest hot avalanche deposit G, fonning a braided
pattern. The short lines represent flow-ridges on the deposits.
sides of the Rio San Pedro gorge and the older contains a high proportion of py-
roxene andesite fragments and is dark-eoloured in coilsequence. It has a thickness
around the edge of only a few metres. The youngest flow is a massive, lobed de-
posit which has a flow front 120 m high and extends only 8 km from the cone.
Well preserved small mudflow lobes locally overlie it.
The scoria and pumice flows:
The only example of a pumice flow is H (spec. 175) which spreads widely
around the northern and western quadrants of San Pedro and contains pink pumice
blocks up to 1 m in size. Part of the area of this flow is indicated on the map fig-
~4 * 371
Aufs~ttze
ure 2, although it includes some redeposited and air-fall pumice. North of La Po-
ruua the flow front is about 1 m high, and the deposit is probably not very thick.
In a small roadside pit near La Poruna the deposit is 2.5 m thick and is very
coarse. The pink pumice blocks which are abundant in it are distinctly rounded
and reach 30 cm in diameter. A sample of the deposit (spec. 58) from this pit has
been sieved and the cumulative curve and derived statistical parameters are typi-
cal of pyroclastic flows.
The scoria flow G is largely buried beneath younger andesite lavas and the
described avalanche deposits and has been seen at only two localities, several ki-
lometeres apart. It consists of black pyroxene andesite (specimen 170) and is a
monolithologic and unsorted deposit. It contains bombs up to 2 m in diameter
which have a highly vesicular core and a ropey surface which indicates that the
magma was less viscous than that from which the pumice flow formed. The flow
front has been smoothed b y secondary processes and the deposit near its distal
end is only a few metres thick.
The ignimbrite plateau
The extensive ignimbrite plateau forms a gently inclined pedimentlike feature
west of the line of andesite cones along the axis of the Andes in Northern Chile.
It is one of the most striking morphological features of the Andes, and contains
an enormous volume of volcanic material, probably comparable with the andesite
in the cones themselves.
The term 'ignimbrite' is applied in this account to the pumiceous pyroclastic
flows constituting this plateau whether they are welded or not. In fact most in
the San Pedro area are almost totally non--welded. The plateau normally consists
in any one place of several superposed ignimbrites but little is known of the vol-
ume of individual sheets in the area. GUEST (1969) has estimated a volume of at
least 100 km z for one in the Toconao area further south, but some in the San Pe-
dro area are probably much smaller than this.
In the present area, ignimbrites are best exposed in three gorges, those of the
Rio Loa, and its tributaries the Rio La Turbera and the Rio San Pedro. The sec-
tion in the Rio Loa at Conchi Bridge (18 km south-west of San Pedro station)
was described b y BRtrGCEN (1950). Here a partially welded ignimbrite about
15 m thick rests on sediments which unconformably overlie basement rocks, and
is in turn overlain b y lacustrine deposits of the Loa formation including a thin
freshwater limestone.
Individual ignimbrite cooling units are coloured either white or pink. The
greatest thickness observed was 80 m in the Rio Loa, b u t the thickness is very
variable and some iguimbrites occur only as lenses infilling depressions. West of
the Rio Loa they wedge out against the gravel fans extending down from the sills
of basement rocks to the west. In gullies west of the Rio Loa individual ignim-
brites - - as many as four can be seen in one section - - interdigitate with the
gravels and can be traced westwards until they have a thickness of only a few
centimetres.
The two ignimbrites exposed along much of the Rio Loa can be traced into the
gorge of the Rio San Pedro to above San Pedro railway station. The upper one,
the Rio San Pedro Ignimbrite, has a maximum observed thickness of 6 m and is
welded with flattened fiamme near the base. It is conspicuously rich in biotite
372
P. W. FRANOS et al. - - The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile
flakes, which have a parallel orientation. Only 10 m of the lower one is exposed and
it is non-welded and contains abundant pumice and lithic (andesite) fragments. A
hot avalanche deposit about 2 m thick is locally seen between the two ignimbrites
upstream from San Pedro station. It contains prismatic-jointed blocks over i m in
diameter, and is similar to the younger avalanche deposits which occur on the
younger cone of San Pedro, described in the previous section. It is important be-
cause it indicates the existence of San Pedro (or San Pablo) as a high cone at the
time when the ignimbrites were emplaced. An incomplete analysis of one of the
blocks (not quoted in the table of analyses) shows that it is an andesite with
66 % SiO2 lying near the acid end of the San Pedro suite.
The source of the Rio San Pedro ignimbrite is not known but it is possible that
it came from an ancestral San Pedro or a volcano lying farther east. It is signifi-
cant that San Pedro is known to have produced at least one pumice flow, H,
which is in reality an ignimbrite, albeit a small one. Other similar examples, some
welded and some not, were found by the authors high up on the flanks of the
cones of Palpana, Chela and Puntilla 85 to 40 km farther north (fig. 1) showing
that it is not rare for such flows to originate on the stratovolcanoes.
4. Pyroclastie fall deposits
Numerous beds of white, brown and black air-fall pumice occur throughout
the area, generally covered by wind-deposited sand or dust. The most prominent
is the youngest one which may have been produced by the same eruption as the
pumice flow H, possibly during the opening stages of the eruption.
Although the data are very incomplete, isopach and isograde maps have been
compiled for this pumice bed (fig. 11). The deposit is a typical plinian one in
that it is virtually unstratified and is coarse grained to a considerable distance
P%lapi / Polapi
5krn r / ~
/
/ 4;7
/ / 70" 83 4:3
" _d NN
/ /'~ 4.5 /- /
5;5 \
/ /
20 / x 33 / /'~
/" // - " \\Azu~(
14// // // / 52
/ /
i I 2.6 I iI I 1 I 6;5 ~- I
iI I / I I , I/
I I I i i I
l I 1 S.Pedro [' I SPz~dr ~ A
t6 33406~, A S.P~blo/ / / 4;9~ 7.9.10.11 S.Pablo
x
'-- 7.0 . 4"I\ \ 3.7
x .. \ \k
&PEDRO ~ / X \ I
RLY STrt ~ ~ ~ 2+3~ ~
x
Fig. 11. The wrongest pumice fall deposit of San Pedro. Isopach map (left), thickness
given in em;'isograde map (right), giving the average maximum diameter of the five
largest pumice clasts seen at each exposure. There is some uncertainty regarding the
correlations on the south side of the volcano.
373
Aufsatze
from the vent. Thus the 10 em isograde of maximum pumice size encloses an area
of the order of 1000 km 2, and a sample collected from the edge of Salar de Asco-
tan, 27 km north-east of San Pedro, has a median diameter of 5 mm similar to
that of the famous AD 79 deposit of Somma Vesuvius (WALKER& CaOASDALE,
1971; LINERet al., 1972) at the same distanee from the source. The sample is also
well-sorted, and gives a o~b value of 1.2, virtually identical with the AD 79 exam-
ple. The 1 m isopaeh encloses an area of about 500 km 2, about the same as the
AD 79 pumice, and the deposit therefore probably has a comparable volume, of
the order of 2 km 8. Several other pumiee beds thicken towards San Pedro and
seem to have been erupted from it. Such large volume deposits appear to be rather
unusual in the area, however, and on the whole it seems that pyroclastic fall
deposits have a smaller total volume than lava flows, unlike many other areas
around the Pacific where the opposite is true.
5. Petrochemistry
Chemical analyses of 80 rock samples are given, together with norms and
modes, in table 2. Most of the lavas are porphyritic so up to 2 kg of each sample
was crushed. The elements Si, Ti, AI, Fe, Mn, Mg, Ca, K and P were determined
by X-ray fluorescence, Na20 and K~O by flame photometer, FeO by the rapid
volumetric method of Shapiro and Brannock, and water (including other vola-
tiles) by heating and ignition. For the calculation of the norms the analyses were
recalculated to 100~ on a water-free basis, with the ratio Fe20~: FeO adjusted
to 0.8. Modal analyses were by point counter and are given as volume percent-
ages. The roeks are ealc-alkaline, with a Peacock index of 58, and the frequency
distribution is weakly bimodal, with a major peak at 63--64 ~ SlOe and a minor
one at 57--58 ~ though the latter may result from a sampling bias. The rocks
have been divided into two groups, namely pyroxene andesites and hornblende
andesites.
This division was reeognised in the field and has since been found to corres-
pond closely with mineralogical and chemical differences.
The first ten of the analysed rocks in table 2 are pyroxene andesites. They form
relatively thin (usually less than 10 m thiek) and dark-eoloured lava flows asso-
elated with seoria which is commonly red. They generally have less than 60 ~
siliea, less than 10 ~ normative quartz, and normative plagioelase more ealeie than
Ana0. They are sparsely porphyritic and are eharaeterised by the presence of both
ortho- and elinopyroxene and varying amounts of olivine, and the absence of horn-
blende and biotite. The most olivine-rich are specimens 186 and 280. The latter
contains 8 ~ of ill-formed, often skeletal, olivine crystals up to 5 mm in diameter,
together with smaller augite and plagioelase crystals in a groundmass of brown
glass containing plagioelase, elino- and ortho-pyroxene and opaques. The plagio-
elase phenocrysts in this group reach 8 mm in size, are mostly labradorite (the com-
position range, based on refractive index determinations, is An 86 to 60), invariably
strongly zoned, and commonly show partial fusion textures inside the rim. Speci-
men 190 has tridymite infilling amygdales. The prominent flow of La Poruna
(spec. 64) is the most aecessible and also the youngest example of this group.
All but one of the remainder are hornblende andesites (a few are perhaps bet-
ter called daeites, though laeking modal quartz). They form thick (usually 100 to
374
T A B L E 2.
SAN P E D R O / S A N P A B L O A N A L Y S E S , N O R M S A N D M O D E S - Pt. 1
280 186 285 176 190 283 64 287 289 170

SiO2 56.03 56.20 57.30 57.60 57.80 57.80 58.10 58.50 58.80 59.30
TiO~ 0.91 0.85 0.84 0.76 0.86 0.95 0.76 0.86 0.79 0.86
AlzO a 16.80 16.50 17.10 15.90 18.20 16.90 16.50 17.30 17.20 18.00
F%O a ~ 1.20 1.65 2.54 2.04 2.77 1.75 2.33 2.26 1.67 1.94
FeO 5.87 5.05 4.05 4.42 3.76 4.56 4.01 3.95 4.17 3.61
MnO 0.12 0.11 0.10 0.11 0.10 0.09 0.10 0.09 0.10 0.08
MgO 5.65 5.75 5.16 5.65 3.56 3.91 4.95 3.58 3.66 2.71
CaO 6.94 6.98 6.83 6.33 6.56 6.48 6.38 6.23 6.20 6.10
Na20 3.56 3.57 3.93 3.64 3.95 3.72 3.72 3.76 3.88 4.38
K20 1.65 1.63 1.84 1.86 1.72 2.03 3.27 2.15 1.66 2.35
P205 0.20 0.19 0.21 0.18 0.22 0.25 0.12 0.24 0.21 0.23
H20 + 0.74 0.78 0.44 0.96 0.14 0.72 0.49 0.51 0.75 0.48
H20- 0.32 0.33 0.11 0.21 0.14 0.30 0.12 0.26 0.18 0.12
100.25 99.60 100.45 99.65 99.77 99.46 100.75 99.69 99.27 100.93
F e 2 0 a : FeO 0.24 0.33 0.63 0.46 0.74 0.38 0.58 0.57 0.40 0.54
C. I. P. W. N O R M S (calculated to 100~o water free)
QZ 5.12 5.26 4.70 6.87 7.42 8.33 3.37 8.95 10.15 7.45
OR 9.81 9.75 18.88 11,17 10.22 12.18 18.68 12.83 9.99 13.95
PLAG 55.44 55.13 58.84 53.07 60.69 55.66 50.32 56.36 58.45 59.72
DI 6.74 7.60 7.35 7.24 3.63 6.01 9.67 4.57 4.11 5.24
HY 18.33 17.90 16.01 17.62 13.74 13.31 14.17 13.04 13.33 9.65
MT 2.39 2.26 2.17 2.17 2.16 2.13 2.09 2.07 1.97 1.84
IL 1.73 1.63 1.60 1.46 1.65 1.82 1.44 1.65 1.52 1.63
AP .44 .44 .46 .39 .48 .55 .26 .52 .46 .52
COR 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
Total 100.00 99.98 100.00 100.00 100.01 99.99 100.00 100.00 99.99 100.00
An
Percent 43.9 43.0 40.1 39.7 43.1 41.2 36.2 41.5 41.4 36.4
MODES
Phenocrysts 26.2 6.8 42.1 27.6 2.9 16.4
Plag. 7.0 2.6 9.2 36.1 21.8 0.3 13.6
Qtz. -- . . . .
Oliv, 8.1 1.2 tr -- 0.7 - - tr

Cpy. 5.2 1.3 7.3 1.9 2.1 0.6 0.4
Opy, 4.6 1.7 5.0 1.9 2.9 2.0 1.4
Hb. -- . . . .
Bio . . . . . - - tr
Opaques 2.3 tr 0.1 2.3 0.1 -- tr
150 m thick) a n d l i g h t - c o l o u r e d lava flows. T h e i r silica c o n t e n t is m o r e t h a n

60 ~ t h e r e is m o r e t h a n 10 ~ of n o r m a t i v e q u a r t z , a n d t h e n o r m a t i v e plagio-
clase is less calcic t h a n An40. T h e y are h i g h l y p o r p h y r i t i c a n d c o n t a i n p h e n o e r y s t s
of h o r n b l e n d e a n d b i o t i t e in a d d i t i o n to v a r i a b l e a m o u n t s of clino- a n d ortho-
pyroxene.
T h e h o r n b l e n d e is g e n e r a l l y a d a r k b r o w n v a r i e t y ( l a m p r o b o l i t e ) e x c e p t in spe-
c i m e n 175 w h e r e a g r e e n v a r i e t y is p r e s e n t . H o r n b l e n d e forms well s h a p e d
prisms, c o m m o n l y 1 to 2 m m long, occasionally r o u n d e d a n d w i t h a n o p a q u e oxi-
d i s e d rim. Biotite is g e n e r a l l y sparse a n d is d a r k b r o w n a n d m o r e s t r o n g l y oxi-
375
Aufs~itze
T A B L E 2 - pt. 2
487 281 490 56 187 184 169 182 61 284

SiO 2 60.20 61.00 61.60 61.90 62.30 62.50 62.80 62.90 63.00 63.10
TiOz 0.66 0.68 0.65 0.75 0.72 0.63 0.64 0.66 0.77 0.65
A120 3 17.50 18.10 17.30 16.60 16.20 15.90 16.20 16.20 15.00 16.40
Fe203 1.59 2.87 2.01 2.25 1.62 1.29 1.92 1.66 1.80 2.06
FeO 3.55 2.44 3.06 2.95 3.11 3.31 2.50 2.82 2.88 2.46
MnO 0.09 0.10 0.08 0.08 0.07 0.07 0.07 0.07 0.07 0.07
MgO 2.15 1.84 2.20 2.70 2.95 3.53 2.29 2.70 2.41 2.19
CaO 5.10 5.19 4.75 5.36 4.67 4.57 4.52 4.46 4.16 4.47
Na20 4.27 4.31 2.69 3.18 4.11 4.19 4.13 4.23 5.01 4.22
K20 2.33 2.21 2.59 2.92 2.93 2.81 2.87 2.93 2.44 2.93
P20 5 0.21 0.24 0.21 0.17 0.19 0.17 0.24 0.22 0.25 0.17
H~O + 1.15 0.19 0.55 0.37 0.77 1.26 1.14 1.04 1.06 0,23
H20- 0.63 0.58 0.62 0.18 0.30 0.53 0.32 0.34 0.31 0.74
99.73 99.75 98.31 99.37 99.95 100.76 99.64 100.23 99.16 99.69
FezOz : FeO 0.45 1.17 0.54 0.76 0.52 0.39 0.77 0.59 0.63 0.84
C. I. P. W. N O R M S (Recalculated to 100~o water free)
QZ 11.23 12.30 21.65 15.88 12.53 11.93 14.60 13.30 12.79 13.97
OR 14.13 13.18 15.84 17.44 17.49 16.79 17.26 17.49 14.72 17.55
PLAG 59.23 60.58 46.59 49.83 52.39 52.27 53.03 52.89 54.79 53.61
DI 1.95 .68 0.00 2.64 4.05 4.42 3.21 3.53 6.58 3.35
HY 9.94 9.68 10.59 10.68 10.13 11.47 8.66 9.55 7.47 8.38
NIT 1.75 1.74 1.61 1.73 1.58 1.55 1.48 1.49 1.58 1.49
IL 1.29 1.31 1.27 1.44 1.39 1.22 1.23 1.27 1.50 1.25
AP .48 .52 .48 .37 .44 .37 .52 .48 .59 .37
COR 0.00 0.00 1.95 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
Total 100.00 99.99 99.99 100.01 100.00 100.01 100.00 100.01 100.02 100.02
An
Percent 36.2 37.8 48.0 44.0 31.7 30.3 31.7 30.4 20.0 31.2
MODES
Phenocrysts 27.5 50.9 54.2 43.6 28.6 39.0 37.1 36.4 39.6
Plag. 19.8 39.1 39.0 30.4 21.9 27.7 25.1 28.7 26.8
Qtz. -- tr . . . . . .
Oliv. -- -- tr 0.5 . . . .
Cpy. 0.64 2.4 1.1 5.0 2.9 3.1 2.6 1.2 0.6
Opy. -- 4.8 3.1 5.8 2.2 1.3 7.5 5.5 2.2
Hb. 5.0 0.5 5.1 -- 0.5 3.8 -- tr 7.9
Bio. -- 0.5 tr -- 0.5 1.8 0.2 tr tr
Opaques 2.1 3.4 0.8 2.5 0.1 1.3 1.7 1.0 2.1
dised than the hornblende. It is particularly a b u n d a n t in the ignimbrite s p e c i m e n

56, w h i c h is also n o t e w o r t h y because it is the only rock w h i c h contains m o d a l
quartz. O r t h o p y r o x e n e is invariably present as well-formed, faintly pleochroic
prismatic crystals, generally smaller t h a n those of hornblende, and is c o m m o n l y
r i m m e d b y h o r n b l e n d e or elinopyroxene. T h e plagioclase phenocrysts are v e r y
similar in overall a p p e a r a n c e to those in the basaltic andesites, but are distinctly
less calcic b e i n g mostly andesine (the plagioelase for the most part covers the
range An 60 to 40 t h o u g h it is sometimes m o r e calcic, as in 281). Specimens 184
and 187 are anomalous in containing a small a m o u n t of olivine. The r e m a i n i n g
sample, 462 is rhyolite.
376
P. W . FIIANCIS et al. - - The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes o f n o r t h e r n C h i l e
T A B L E 2 - pt. 3
177 174 54 172 500 175 191 166 168 462

SiO2 63.20 63.20 63.30 63.40 63.50 63.80 63.80 63.90 66.00 78.26
TiOz 0.64 0.66 0.51 0.63 0.65 0.56 0.64 0.65 0.46 0.13
A12Oa 15.80 15.80 16.70 16.40 16.10 15.40 15.90 15.90 16.00 12.29
F%O3 1.73 1.88 1.72 2.11 1.47 1.61 1.65 1.88 1.36 0.53
FeO 2.67 2.57 1.46 2.32 2.84 2 . 1 9 . 2.60 2.50 1.68 0.38
MnO 0.07 0.07 0.05 0.07 0.07 0.06 0.06 0.07 0.05 0.06
MgO 2.39 2.58 1.62 2.35 2.18 2.02 2.56 2.37 1.06 0.19
CaO 4.20 4.18 3.83 4.47 4.48 3.16 4.15 4.15 3.29 1.00
Na=O 4.25 3.90 4.43 4.18 4.18 4.11 4.21 4.01 4.45 4.13
KzO 3.08 2.94 2.78 2.91 2.95 3.21 3.09 3.02 3.17 2.99
P=O5 0.21 0.20 0.22 0.18 0.22 0.21 0.17 0.22 0.16 0.03
H20 + 1.03 1.24 3.40 0.44 nil 1.81 0.57 0.55 0.99 --
H=O- 0.33 0.43 0.33 0.14 0.06 0.63 0.14 0.16 0.46 --
99.40 99.65 100.35 99.60 98.70 99.22 99.54 99.38 99.13 99.99
Fe=Oa : FeO 0.65 0.73 1.18 0.91 0.52 0.75 0.64 0.75 0.81 1.39
C. I. P. W. NORMS (Recalculated to 100% water free)
QZ 13.92 16.01 16.64 14.46 14.85 16.99 14.59 16.18 19.26 40.02
OR 18.56 17.73 16.90 17.38 17.67 19.56 18.44 18.09 19.15 17.67
PLAG 51.86 50.91 56.55 53.24 52.57 50.43 51.52 51.02 53.15 39.73
DI 3.91 2.23 .19 3.05 3.72 2.18 3.45 2.35 .90 0.00
H3, 8.57 9.91 7.18 8.80 7.99 7.96 8.98 9.17 5.28 1.45
MT 1.48 1.49 1.06 1.46 1.45 1.29 1.42 1.45 1.01 .29
IL 1.23 1.27 .99 1.22 1.25 1.10 1.23 1.25 .89 .25
AP .46 .44 .50 .41 .48 .48 .37 .48 .35 .07
COR 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 .52
Total 100.00 100.00 100.01 100.02 99.99 100.00 100.01 100.00 99.99 100.00
An
Percent 28.1 32.5 30.5 31.6 30.5 27.7 29.0 31.4 26.4 11.4
MODES
Phenocrysts 33.3 21.9 39.2 15.0 28.8 33.0 40.0
Plagioclase 23.5 16.1 26.8 10.4 16.9 22.5 33.8
Qtz.
Oliv.
Cpy. . . . . 1.6 -- 0.7
Opy. 3.6 -- 1.7 1.5 2.7 5.0 4.0
Hb. 2.2 3.9 1.7 4.7 5.9 4.6 --
Bio. 2.5 1.9 7.5 tr 0.5 1.1 0.1
Opaque 1.4 -- 1.9 -- 1.2 1.0 1.4
Ahnost all of the analysed rocks are porphyritic. T h e content of phenoerysts

ranges from 8 ~ (specimen 287) to 55 ~ (specimen 56) and averages roughly
30 ~ No a t t e m p t was m a d e to analyse the groundmass separately. Some small
xenoliths occur in some of the lavas. T h e y are of volcanic rocks. Most of the
h o r n b l e n d e andesite lavas are m o r e or less non-vesicular, b u t the p y r o x e n e ande-
sites are sometimes highly vesicular, for e x a m p l e nos. 287 and 64.
O n e of the analysed samples (sp. 56) is a densely w e l d e d ignimbrite. It is con-
spicuously rich in crystals of biotite and plagioclase, w h i c h together constitute
a b o u t 50 0/0 of the total volume. Orthopyroxene, h o r n b l e n d e and q u a r t z a r e also
present in subordinate amounts in a glassy matrix. Since there is reason to d o u b t
377
Aufs~itze
Table 8. Specimen localities.

280 - - Pyroxene andesite lava, small vent, Central Crater, San Pablo
186 - - Pyroxene andesite lava, W. San Pedro, Lower flanks
285 - - Pyroxene andesite lava, Older cone, E. San Pedro
176 - - Pyroxene andesite bomb. Near roadside, W. San Pedro
190 - - Pyroxene andesite lava, Corry, high flanks S. San Pedro
283 - - Pyroxene andesite lava, Middle Group, San Pablo, N. side central crater
64-- Pyroxene andesite lava, La Pornna flow
289 - - Pyroxene andesite semi-breadcrnst bomb, roadside, W. San Pedro
287 - - Pyroxene andesite vesicular lava, Col between San Pedro and San Pablo
170-- Pyroxene andesite bomb. Scoria flow, W. San Pedro
487 - - Hornblende andesite. Breadcrust bomb, E. Cone San Pablo
281 - - Hornblende andesite lava, cliffs in E face Central crater (collected from scree)
490 - - Hornblende andesite lava, Lower Group, N. E. San Pablo
56-- Hornblende andesite upper Ignimbrite, Rio San Pedro Gorge
187 - - Pyroxene andesite lava, W. flanks San Pedro
184 - - Hornblende andesite lava, W. flanks San Pedro
169 - - Hornblende andesite "hot" block from hot avalanche deposit. W. San Pedro
182 - - Hornblende andesite lavas, W. flanks, San Pedro
61-- Pyroxene andesite lava, massive flow S. W. San Pedro
284 - - Hornblende andesite lava, summit group, E. cone, San Pedro
177 --- Hornblende andesite lava W. flanks, San Pedro
174 - - Hornblende andesite "hot" block from avalanche deposits, W. San Pedro
54-- Hornblende andesite Pumice, lower ignimbrite, Rio San Pedro gorge
172 - - Hornblende andesite "hot" block from youngest avalanche, W. San Pedro
500 - - Hornblende andesite breadcrust bomb. Adjacent to massive lava, S.W. San
Pedro
175 -- Hornblende andesite pumice. Pumice flow W. San Pedro
191 -- Hornblende andesite lava, thick flow high flanks W. San Pedro
166 -- Hornblende andesite lava, coul6e flow, roadside, W. San Pedro
168 -- Hornblende andesite hot block from avalanche deposit, W. San Pedro
462 -- Rhyolitic pumice from lowest ignimbrite i n Polapi gorge, 20 kin. N.W. San
Pedro
whether a whole rock analysis of an ignimbrite is representative of the source

magma, because of crystal concentration processes operating during eruption and
transportation of the material 1) (HAY, 1959; LIPMAN 1967; WALCER 1972), the other
analyses relating to ignimbrites (specimens 54, 462) have been made on large pu-
mice clasts separated from the ignimbrite. A pumice sample (175) from the pu-
mice flow on San Pedro was also analysed. Of these three pumice samples, 54
and 175 are hornblende andesite containing abundant plagioclase and hornblende
phenocrysts, while the third (462) is a rhyolite containing mostly biotite pheno-
crysts. The last is the only rock which is chemically distinguishable from the la-
vas of San Pedro.
Great care was taken to collect the freshest material possible but the rocks
show variable degrees of oxidation with the ratio Fe~O3: FeO varying from 0.15
to 1.4 and averaging 0.6, and in many of the andesites the biotite and horn-
blende are partially to completely oxidised. This average is lower than that of
other published Andean data and in particular is m u c h lower than the average
1) In this connection it is worth noting that the analysed wholerock welded ignim-
brite (spec. 56) has a composition incompatible with the phenocryst assemblage
present: the silica content is 61.9, yet there is a great abundance of biotite and even
a little modal quartz. This, coupled with the very high content of crystals, suggests
that there has been a substantial loss of siliceous glass.
378
~
F F Fe203+ FeO
M MgO
A Na20+ K20
9 Lava fl?w
A M
F
Fe0 + Fe203
MgO
N a20 + K20
Lava flow
/' Ignimbrite
/ \
j ~ \
/~ ~• ~ o
// ~• \\\
Fig. 12. (above) FMA plot of the \
new analyses of San Pedro and San / .z~ • * ~ \
Pablo. (below) Comparative FMA ,,/xx x 9 \\
diagrams of rocks from northern
Chile from A - - KATSUI & GON-
ZALEZ (1968); B - GUEST (1969);
and C - - ZEIL & PICHLER (1969). '\,M
of 14.0 given by sixteen analyses of ignimbrites (GuEsT 1969) which presumably
reflects a systematic difference in cooling conditions between lavas and ignim-
brites.
The major element data is plotted on F M A , CaO - - Na~ - - K~O, alkali-silica
and potash-silica diagrams (figs. 12--15). Plots for other Andean analyses also
given show a remarkable similarity in major element chemistry for volcanic rocks
in N. Chile between the latitudes of 18 ~ 25' S and 22 ~ 05' S.
There is a complete gradation both mineralogieally and chemically from the
pyroxene andesites to the hornblende andesites. Some hornblende andesites
which contain 60 to 68 ~ silica have only a sparse scattering of partly resorbed
hornblende and there is no sharp break between the chemical and normative
differences listed for the groups. There does not appear to be any systematic
change of composition with time, but the pyroxene andesites predominate
amongst the earliest products of each volcano and the hornblende andesites
379
Aufs~ttze
amongst the latest. The single analysis of the La Poruna flow (spec. 64) is, how-
ever distinctly richer in potash than the other lavas of similar silica content.
The detailed discussion of the volcanic chain between latitudes 21 and 22 ~
south is at present being prepared. KATSUI (1972) has discussed the large scale
significance of the petrochemistry of the volcanic rocks of the Central Andes in
the light of the available analyses as part of a study of Cenozoic volcanic prov-
inces in the Andes and Antarctica, so the discussion here is therefore limited, and
will be confined to a few general points.
Firstly, the overall range in composition of the analysed rocks of San Pedro - -
San Pablo is rather small. All but one of the 80 analyses fall in the range
CaO
.~ Lavaflow
Na20/ .~ \K20
Fig. 18. CaO/Na~O/K~O plot of the new analyses.
56--66 ~ SIO2, with a main peak in the frequency curve at around 68 to 64 ~

SiO2. This distribution is typical of 115 other analyses made by the authors and is
in agreement with the findings of ZEro & PICnLEa (1967) who analysed 24 speci-
mens collected over a wide area of northern Chile. ZEIL & PICnLER, though they
preferentially collected "olivine-bearing dark rocks of basaltic appearance", found
no rocks with less than 520/o SiO2 and this, in conjunction with the present evi-
dence shows that, contrary to earlier views (e. g. PETEaSEN, 1958) basalts are rare
or absent from the Central Andes. Secondly, the Andean volcanic suite appears
to be significantly more siliceous than the volcanic suites of the western Pacific
area (see, for instance, the average andesite of NOGKOLDS, 1954, and TAYLOR~x:
WHITE, 1965, 1966, and the compilations of DICKINSON,1968). This is not merely
a difference in terminology (though some of the San Pedro rocks would be called
dacites by other authors), but does seem to reflect a basic difference between the
most abundant 'andesitic' rocks of the western and eastern Pacific. Typical an-
desites from the Western USA and Mexico are more similar to those of the Andes
than the West Pacific andesites, but the andesites of both the West Pacific and
of the USA are associated with basalts to varying degrees which may be a func-
tion of the variation in thickness of the continental crust in different areas around
the circum-Pacific belt. Thirdly, ZEIL & PICHLERshowed in their analytical work
380
9 Lava flow
x
x Ignimbrite
x x
ool
9 .7. :'.~x•
Na2o j,
•
+ o
Q oo
K2o
0
50 60 70 50 60 70
SiO 2 SiO:z
Fig. 14. Plot of total alkalies against silica for the new analyses of San Pedro and San
Pablo (left) and other rocks from northern Chile (right) by KxrsvI & GONZALEZ(1968),
GUEST (1969), and ZEIL & PICHL~R(1969).
x
i: 9 Lava .flow
x Ignimbrite
x x x
9 x x
• x x x Xe
Xx xX •
9 x xX xx
x X Xx~ >.:x :
34 .Xl~x iel
9 t o 9
K~O ...
9 9 A
2~ 9 % , -~-3
i 9 9 %
- - :'7.-;" -2
50 60 Si02 70 50 dO SiO:~ 70
Fig. 15. Plot of potash against silica for the new analyses of San Pedro and San Pablo
(left) and other rocks from northern Chile (right) by KATSUI & GONZALEZ (1968),
GUEST (1969), and ZEro & PICHLER (1969). The dashed lines are for other circum-
Pacific areas (after DICKINSON, 1968); 1 - - Izu Islands and Peninsula; 2 - - Central
North Honshu; 8 - - Central Mexico; 4 - - Ryukyu Islands and Kyushu.
that the andesites from the Central Andes are notably rich in potassium, and sug-
gested that there might be a broad zonation of potash content along the length of
the Andes. KaTSUI (1972) has compiled the available data and eommented that
the volcanic rocks of the Southern Andes are eharacterised by the occurrence of
a b u n d a n t high-alumina basalts ass 9 with calc-alkaline rocks, while rhyolites
are rare or absent, whereas in Patagonia, east of the main Cordillera alkali-olivine
basalts predominate. The extension of the Andean range in the South Sandwich
islands is charaeterised by tholeitic basalts notably poor in KeO.
The average K20 content of the 80 new analysed rocks is '2.8 ~ strikingly
higher than that of the andesites from many other areas. DmKINSON (1968) and
381
Aufs~itze
others have shown the importance of the K~O content of andesites in inter-
preting their origin, and it is well established that andesites from different
regions show very different K20:SiO2 trends. On DIGKINSON'S plot, the An-
dean andesites occupy a distinctly different field, having higher potassium
contents than other eireum Pacific groups (fig. 15). High potassium contents in
igneous rocks have often been used to infer an origin by the melting of silica con-
tinental crust, to the KzO content has been related to the crustal thickness and to
the distance above the Benioff zone. Zeil and Piehler concluded from this and
other evidence that the andesites of the Central Andes were in fact derived by
such crustal melting. KATSm (1972) has discussed the problems of the genesis of
the high-potassium high silica Andean andesites more extensively.
6. Discussion
San Pablo, San Pedro and La Poruna form a 25 km long ridge aligned eastwest
across the trend of the Andes. Other notable alignments within the same general
area are the 25 km long Aucanquileha ridge, trending west north-west, and the
85 km long line of volcanoes Carasilla, Polapi, Cebollar, Ascotan and Palpana
(fig. 1). Only Aucanquilcha and San Pedro have had any postglacial volcanic ac-
tivity and in both cases this occurred at the western end of the ridge. The San
Pablo--San P e d r o - - L a Poruna ridge is the best known structurally, and shows
evidence of a westwards migration of activity on each cone as well as from one
cone to another. In contrast, plutonic foci in the Central Andes have been migrat-
ing towards the east since early Mesozoic times (RuIz FULLER et al. 1960; GILLETTI
& DAY 1968; FaRRAR et al. 1970) and the same appears to apply to the Meso-
zoic and Tertiary volcanics (RuTLaND 1971). This has lent support to current
ideas on the evolution of the South American Plate margin and it is supposed
that the present andesite volcanoes are located above the youngest plutonic foci
(HAMILTON1970). However, what evidence there is in the present area suggests a
samller-scale migration in the reverse direction, the significance of which is un-
certain.
Very thick andesite flows are conspicuous on the volcanoes, and the thickness
(commonly 200 m or more) indicates that the lava had a high viscosity. A large
part of the clastic rocks which form an extensive apron around the lower slopes
of San Pedro are coarse monolithologie breccias made of nonvesicular horn-
blende andesite. These breecias are interpreted as the product of the gravitational
collapse of large masses of lava built up on steep slopes high on the volcano. In
many cases this lava was hot, at the time of its collapse being in the condition ei-
ther of a solid rock or a highly viscous melt, though behaving as a brittle rather
than a plastic material. It is also evident that many of the avalanches originated
from lava bodies some distance down-slope from the eruptive vent, the collapse
scars left by these avalanches being in some cases clearly preserved, and this is
cogent evidence that explosions are not likely to have partieipated in causing the
collapses. Well authenticated small-scale examples of such collapses are known
on Ngauruhoe (GREGG, 1956) and were seen by some of the present authors in
1970 on Santiaguito, Guatemala.
The authors have used the term 'hot avalanche' advisedly because they regard
the phenomenon as secondary to the effusion of lava and not directly related to
382
primary happenings in the vent area. The deposits described here are nu6es ar-
dentes pel6ean d'avalanche in the classification of LAc~OiX (1980) and MAcGRE-
COR (1952) or nu6es ardentes in the strict sense in that proposed by ArtAUAKI
(1957). ARAMAKI& YAMASAKI(1968) subsequently revised this classification, and
proposed another based on the volumes and densities of the pyroclastie flows,
suggesting that the most dense and least pumiceous flows were also those of
smallest volume. The present authors have found that while in the Pedro area
there may be a crude correlation between volume of flow and density (and hence
vesicularity) of material it is difficult to apply divisions based on volumes; the
dense pyroclastic flows listed by ARAMAKI& YAMASAKIall have volumes less
than 0.8 km, whereas some on San Pedro are probably much larger than this.
The hot avalanche deposits are remarkably similar to those of conventional
'cold" rock avalanches such as are found in non-volcanic areas, for instance those
described or collated by CRANDELL& FAHNESTOCK (1965), KENT (1966), SHREVE
(1966, 1968) and WATSON& WalCHT (1969). These similarities include the ratio of
the vertical fall V to the horizontal distance travelled H (this ratio being called
the "coefficient of friction" by SHREV~, 1968). A plot of V against H (fig. 16) for
described examples shows that cold avalanches occupy a well defined field with
V/H ranging from 0.8 to less than 0.1, and the hot avalanche deposits of San Pe-
dro plot within the same field, giving values lying between 0.2 and 0.15.
Many of the described nudes ardentes of other volcanoes have also been plot-
ted on this figure. They include hot avalanche deposits which, from the available
descriptions, appear to be similar to those of San Pedro, for instance the 1930
nude ardente of Merapi (BEMMELEN 1949) and probably also Chaos Jumbles and
the 1916 nu6e ardente of Lassen Peak (WILLIAMS1928, 1982; FINCH, 1985;
HEATH, 1960). Several others, attributed to directed explosion, such as M. Pelbe
(LAcaolx, 1904, 1980); could be of similar origin. These likewise plot in the same
field as the cold rock avalanches. While there is evidence from San Pedro of
purely mechanical instability being the cause of collapse, it is of course possible
in other instances that explosions triggered the avalanche, and this must be so in
the 1888 Bandai-san (SEKIYA& KIKUCHI,1890) and 1956 Bezymianny (GORSHKOV,
1959) examples.
Figure 16 also includes nu6es ardentes rich in pumiceous material which are
manifestly not due to the gravity collapse of lava bodies, examples being Mayon,
1968 (MooRE & MELSON, 1969), Hibok Hibok 1950--1 (MACDONALD& ALCA~AZ,
1956), Komagatake, 1929 (MuRAl, 1960) the 1788 Agatsuma flow on Asama (ARA-
MAKI, 1956, 1957) and the pumice flow H on San Pedro. These plot in the same
field and their flow could be by the same mechanism.
The mechanism of transport of hot avalanches, such as those on San Pedro,
and of nu6es ardentes in general may not therefore be any different from that of
'cold" rock avalanches. It has been concluded by SHREVE and others that a
cold rock avalanche or landslide starts as a simple rock fall high on the steep
slopes of a mountain and then travels by "overriding and trapping a cushion of
compressed air upon which it traverses the gentle slopes below with little fric-
tion" (SHREVE, 1968, p, 87). There is no reason to doubt that the same mechanism
applies to the hot avalanches, and the fact that they are hot may be of little sig-
nificance, although McTACCAaT (1960) showed that the heating of trapped air
could increase to some extent the distance travelled. For the Saidmarreh land-
383
Aufsiitze
slide, however, WATSON& WmGrIT (1969) concluded that sliding took place on
pulverised marl and gypsum bedrock.
It is noteworthy that, perhaps contrary to expectation, the hot avalanche and
pumiceous nu6e ardente deposits on the whole give a larger V/H value than the
large cold avalanches. The authors suspect that the horizontal distance travelled
for a given vertical drop is related more to the size of the debris flow than to its
temperature: the greater the volume of the flow the farther it is likely to travel.
Measurements on the volume of the debris flows are included on fig. 11 where
they are available, though the data are insufficient to test fully this rela-
tionship.
V o Nude ardente deposits

k~ 9 San Pedro avalanche deposits .........
Fig. 16. Plot of vertical drop V

against horizontal distance tra-
J~ /. .'/ * / o velled, H, for cold rock avalan-
/ / /o.~ ." o / ,8 ches in non-volcanic areas; hot
/ / "% / ~ o/ 15 avalanches and pumiceous
nu6e ardente deposits; and two
cold avalanches of San Pedro.
x O0 0
Lines of specified V/H ratio are
given. The figures, below some
of the numbers give the volume
~b i~ is H ~s km of the deposit in units of 108m 3.
Large-volume ignimbrites are highly pumiceous deposits which have a remark-

ably wide extent. It is usually not possible to determine the vertical fall, V, be-
cause caldera collapse consequent on the ignimbrite eruption has also removed
the top of the volcano, but many ignimbrites must plot well below and to the
right of the field of debris flows recorded on fig. 16. Ignimbrites are thought to
be transported in a fluidised state as what can justifiably be called "pyroclastie
flows". The transportation and maintenance of the fluidised state of the flows
may have been aided by the evolution of juvenile gas. The long distance of travel
is no doubt facilitated by the relatively low density of the pumice fragments, but
it is possible that the large volume of erupted material is also important. Mud-
flows likewise often give very low V/H values, flow being facilitated in this case
by water.
One of the main problems of the area is the surce of the ignimbrites which
form an extensive inclined plateau west (and probably also east) of the andesitic
volcanoes. In many other volcanic areas, ignimbrite eruptions are related to the
formation of calderas, but calderas are conspicuously lacking in northern Chile.
The present work throws light on the problem in three ways. Firstly, the pumice
flow which occurs on the western slopes of San Pedro is known to have originat-
ed from that volcano, and there is no reason to believe that the style of eruption
responsible for it was in any way different from that responsible for the ignim-
brites, the only difference being that the pumice flow is less extensive and smaller
384
in volume than most of the ignimbrites. Secondly, the hot avalanche deposit
and debris flow deposits between ignimbrites in the Rio San Pedro gorge indicate
that the period of eruption of the ignimbrites overlaps that of the andesite cones.
The hot avalanche deposit indicates the existence of a steep cone before the top-
most ignimbrite was emplaced. Moreover the ignimbrites contain andesite clasts
which must have come from andesite volcanoes. Thirdly, the chemical composi-
tion of the pumice in some of the ignimbrites is similar to that of the andesite
volcanoes proper, suggesting a common source.
The ignimbrite plateau of northern Chile covers more than 150,000 km e and
undoubtedly has a volume of at least several tens of thousands of km 8 (ZEIL,
1964). In any one place it is generally seen to consist of several separate ignim-
brites and the plateau as a whole is probably composed of a great many separate
ignimbrites. An analogy can be drawn here to the structure of a typical plateau
basalt pile made up of many separate lava flows. Available data on the volumes
of individual ignimhrites are scarce but two (GuEsT, 1969) are an order of magni-
tude larger than the largest known lava flow in the area. (GUEST• SANCHEZ,
1969). However, there is likely to be a wide range in size and the smallest could
be comparable in size with the pumice flow on San Pedro.
Various authors have drawn attention to the striking contrast in the Central
Andes between the andesitic stratovolcanoes (the 'Andesite Formation' of some)
and the ignimbrite plateau (the "Rhyolite Formation"), this contrast being chemi-
cal, morphological and apparently also a stratigraphieal one. Ilegarding the
chemical contrast, the two groups overlap in composition and plot on the same
variation curves, and this might imply a common source, but they appear to con-
stitute separate populations. Thus the published chemical analyses of rocks from
the stratovolcanoes of northern Chile (CASERTANO, 1962; KATSUI&GONZALEZ,
1968; ZEIL& PICHLEI/, 1967; SIEGERS, PICHLEB~: ZEIL, 1969; GUEST& SANCItEZ,
1969) mostly lie in the range 55--64 ~ SiO,, and the 30 new San Pedro/San Pa-
blo analyses are mostly in the range 5 3 - - 6 6 ~ SiO2. In contrast, the 50-odd
available analyses of ignimbrite in northern Chile and Southern Pern (JENKS & -
GOLDICH, 1956; KATSUI~x:GoNZALEZ, 1968; ZEIL &PICHLER, 1967, GUEST, 1969,
this paper and unpublished analyses from the country north of S. Pedro) mostly
lie between 60 and 76 ~ SiO,, with a peak in the frequency curve between 70
and 75 ~ SiO,,. The difference must be a real one and is not due to a collecting
bias.
Regarding the stratigraphic contrast, the statement has often been made that
the ignimbrites on the whole precede the stratovolcanoes. Thus for example, PICH-
LER & ZEIL (1969, p. 167) state that "The young andesitie stratovoleanoes pierce
vast sheets of rhyolite to rhyodaeite ignimbrites", and KATSUI& GONZALEZ (1968,
p. 6), state that "Two groups of volcanoes overlie the Rhyolite Formation". A
contrary opinion is, however, stated by GUEST (1969) who suggests that the nmin
period of ignimbrite eruptions was both preceded and followed b y the eruption
of andesite lavas, There is no doubt that morphologically the stratovolcanoes ap-
pear to be built upon the ignimbrite plateau. Available K/Ar dates for the ignim-
brites range from U p p e r Miocene to Lower Pleistocene (CLAm; et al. 1967; HOL-
LINGWOltTH, 1964; DINGMAN, 1965; RUTLAND et al. 1965); but dates are still lack-
ing for the stratovoleanoes. Some volcanoes are morphologically youthful but lit-
tle is known of the rate of erosion in this part of Chile, and at present the rate is
385
Aufs~itze
certainly exceptionally low. Some of the morphologically youthful volcanoes

could well be relatively ancient.
The reason for the contrast stems from differences in the prodominant style of
eruption of the andesite-rhyolite magmas. The former tend mostly to produce
lava flows which do not travel far, and their gravitational collapse derivatives. In
contrast the more acid magmas tend to form pyroclastic flows which travel a long
distance from the source. W e have here an example of a process which might
perhaps be termed "transport separation", whereby volcanic products of differ-
ent compositions are transported to different distances from their source and ac-
cumulate in different areas as a result of their differing styles of eruption.
Evidence presented above suggests that in the San Pedro area at least, the
eruption of lavas and ignimbrites proceeded concurrently and this suggests the
need for caution in interpreting the relative ages of the volcanoes and plateau ig-
nimbrites, and the need for more age data especially on the volcanoes them-
selves.
Pyroclastic fall deposits, though they do occur, and locally can have a large
volume comparable with that of an andesite lava, are less abundant relative to
lava flows than in many other areas around the Pacific. This may be taken to im-
ply a generally low gas content of the eruptive magmas.
Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge the financial support of the Royal Society and of the
Imperial College Exploration Board towards the cost of the field work in northern
Chile; of the Natural Environment Research Council towards the cost of the follow-
up work; the help of Drs. B. Gunn and G. BoRImY at the Geology Department,
Imperial College, and Dr. G. HoanuNC of the University of Leeds for providing XIRF
analytical facilities. They are greatly indebted to the Instituto de Investigaeiones Geo-
logicas de Chile for assistance and the loan of aerial photographs, and to Drs. G.
Caono and C. CHAVES of the Antofagasta office for their help and hospitality, also
to Dr. J. MrEns for assistance in the field.
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P. W. FRANCIS et al.

- - The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile

The San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes of northern Chile

With 16 figures and 8 tables

*) Author's addresses: Dr. P. W. FRANCIS, Department of Earth Sciences, The Open

30' 15' 68~

.~176 < / ~ 1 ~ . !, -.-. ~,

~ii ~.1,7 6 ~ X6-,

o~o. 5997 V':~::::: 9

~:.;::.:~ ~176 .. ~ . ".,

~ =col z~/........ ,,~SANPABLO~%,

2. Structure of the volcanoes

D -/- . ,. ~._ " - - - ~ . .

Fig. 4 b. Close-up of 4 a taken from altitude of c. 5,000 m on rubbly surface of hot

flows, conspicuous on account of the dark-coloured p y r o x e n e andesite boulders in

The north-western cone is morphologically a very youthful feature. Much of its

1 8 0 m high, is extensively reddened by steam action, and contains scattered

3. Debris flows and pyroclastic flows

24 Geologlschc B.undschau, Bd. 6S 3~9

~ Young scree apron

4. Pyroclastie fall deposits

280 186 285 176 190 283 64 287 289 170

Oliv, 8.1 1.2 tr -- 0.7 - - tr

Opaques 2.3 tr 0.1 2.3 0.1 -- tr

150 m thick) a n d l i g h t - c o l o u r e d lava flows. T h e i r silica c o n t e n t is m o r e t h a n

487 281 490 56 187 184 169 182 61 284

dised than the hornblende. It is particularly a b u n d a n t in the ignimbrite s p e c i m e n

177 174 54 172 500 175 191 166 168 462

Ahnost all of the analysed rocks are porphyritic. T h e content of phenoerysts

Table 8. Specimen localities.

whether a whole rock analysis of an ignimbrite is representative of the source

56--66 ~ SIO2, with a main peak in the frequency curve at around 68 to 64 ~

V o Nude ardente deposits

Fig. 16. Plot of vertical drop V

Large-volume ignimbrites are highly pumiceous deposits which have a remark-

certainly exceptionally low. Some of the morphologically youthful volcanoes

MACDONALD, G . A . , & ALCARAZ, A.: Nu6es ardentes of the 1948--1958 eruption of

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