Mount Pinatubo

An active stratovolcano on Luzon in the Philippines, Mount Pinatubo is best known for its catastrophic 1991 eruption, which reshaped the mountain and affected global climate.

Plinian eruption: A sustained explosive volcanic eruption that sends ash and gas high into the atmosphere. Pinatubo's 1991 eruption produced a towering ash column characteristic of this eruption type.
Subduction zone: A region where one tectonic plate descends beneath another into Earth's mantle. Subduction beneath Luzon supplies magma to Pinatubo and other regional volcanoes.
1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo: A major explosive eruption in June 1991 that devastated areas around Pinatubo and injected sulfur dioxide into the stratosphere. This eruption defines the volcano's modern history and its global significance.
Global dimming: A reduction in sunlight reaching Earth's surface, often caused by particles or clouds in the atmosphere. Pinatubo's sulfate aerosols reduced incoming sunlight and cooled the planet temporarily.
Pyroclastic flow: A fast-moving, ground-hugging mixture of hot gas, ash, and volcanic fragments. These flows swept down Pinatubo's slopes during the 1991 eruption.
Manila Trench: An oceanic trench west of Luzon marking the boundary where the South China Sea plate descends beneath the Philippine Mobile Belt. This subduction system is part of the tectonic setting that feeds western Luzon's volcanism.
Mount Pinatubo sulfur dioxide cloud: The stratospheric sulfur dioxide plume released by Pinatubo in June 1991, which formed sunlight-reflecting sulfate aerosols. The plume carried the eruption's strongest global climate effect.
Stratospheric sulfate aerosols: Tiny droplets of sulfuric acid and water suspended in the stratosphere after sulfur dioxide oxidizes. They reflected sunlight after Pinatubo's eruption and contributed to global cooling.
Lahar: A destructive flow of water mixed with volcanic debris that moves down a volcano or river valley. Monsoon rain remobilized Pinatubo's ash into lahars for years after the eruption.
Luzon: The largest island of the Philippines, containing the capital Manila and several active volcanoes. Pinatubo rises in the Zambales Mountains of this island.

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