About Floreana
Floreana is a shield rising to 640 meters (2,100 feet) in Ecuador's Eastern Pacific Volcanic Regions. No historical eruptions have been recorded, though the volcano is classified based on geological evidence of past activity.
Geography & Climate
Floreana is located in Ecuador, within the Galapagos Hotspot Volcano Group of the broader Eastern Pacific Volcanic Regions. Situated at 1.30° S, 90.45° W in the Southern Hemisphere, the volcano lies within a tropical climate zone. With a summit elevation of 640 meters above sea level, Floreana is a moderately sized peak that remains accessible to hikers and researchers for much of the year. The volcanic landform is characterized as a shield, which describes the physical shape and structure of the volcanic edifice as observed from the surface.
GVP Reference Summary
The low shield volcano of Floreana Island, also known as Charles Island or Santa María Island, is densely covered with cinder cones. A 5-km-wide caldera at the center of the island has an irregular floor. Several young lava flows were considered to have been as young as few thousand or even a few centuries old based on their youthful morphology (McBirney and Williams, 1969), but a surface exposure age of 26 +/- 7 ka was obtained on the youngest flow (Kurz and Geist, 1999). An 1813 eruption attributed to Floreana in the Catalog of Active Volcanoes of the World is considered to have actually occurred at Sierra Negra volcano on Isabela Island (Simkin 1980, pers. comm.). The most conspicuous of the cinder cones on the island is Cerro de Pajas, which rises 335 m above its surroundings. It fed a massive pahoehoe lava flow, perhaps the youngest on Floreana, that reached the SW coast over a broad 6.5 km area.
— Smithsonian Institution, Global Volcanism Program
0 Recorded Eruptions
No eruption records available for Floreana.
Real-Time Data
USGS Alert Level
Thermal Anomalies
Frequently Asked Questions About Floreana
Is Floreana an active volcano?+
Floreana is not currently classified as active. Its activity evidence is listed as "unknown." No recorded eruptions have been documented. However, no volcano is ever considered permanently extinct.
How high is Floreana?+
Floreana has a summit elevation of 640 meters (2,100 feet) above sea level. At 640 meters, it is a relatively low-elevation volcano.
What type of volcano is Floreana?+
Floreana is classified as a Shield. Shield volcanoes have distinct geological characteristics that set them apart from other volcanic types.
Where is Floreana located?+
Floreana is located in Ecuador, in the Eastern Pacific Volcanic Regions. More specifically, it lies within the Galapagos Hotspot Volcano Group. Its exact coordinates are -1.300° latitude, -90.450° longitude.
Is it safe to visit Floreana?+
Floreana can generally be visited, but as with any volcano, visitors should check local conditions and any advisory notices before traveling. Ecuador may have specific regulations for accessing volcanic areas. Guided tours are often the safest and most informative way to experience a volcano.
