Mt Lassen, Lassen Volcanic Center.
Over the course of the last two-hundred years, volcanic activity in the continental United States
has been confined to the Cascade Mountain Range (7). The Cascade Range is home to eighteen different
active volcanoes and located in the Pacific Ring of Fire (7). Located at the Southern end of the Cascade
Mountain Range lies the Lassen Volcanic Center, home to Mt. Lassen (1,2,3,4,5,6,7). The Lassen Volcanic
Center covers over 200 square miles (2), and has been volcanically active for around 3 million years (3)
with eruptions starting about 600,000 years ago (3). Over the course of the Lassen Volcanic center,
there have been many different eruptions from the various vents scattered through the region (2).
Over the last 1,500 years there have been 3 eruptions noted at Lassen Mountain Center (2,3).
These eruptions were the Chaos Crags eruption, Cinder Cone eruption, and Lassen Peak eruption (2,3).
The most recent of these eruptions was Lassen Peak which occurred in 1915 (2,3,4,5,6,7). The Mt.
Lassen eruptions took place between 1914-1917 in series with the largest one being on May 22, 1915
(2,3,4,5,6,7). This event caused devastation to the region through different hazards over the eruption
cycle (3,4,6). The eruptions at Mt. Lassen spewed ash, volcanic gas and steam into the air, created rock
slides and lahars, as well as releasing lava (2,3,4,6). Flooding throughout the valley occurred through
Lost Creek and Hat Creek for approximately 15 miles within a few days of the eruption (4,6). When
another eruption occurs the hazard zones are expected to follow similar paths as well as potentially
going other directions that include Warmer Creek, Baily Creek, and Manzanita Lake (1).
Mt. Lassen and the Lassen Volcanic Center are active volcanoes along the Cascade Mountain
