Volcanic Eifel

{{For|the administrative district named after this region|Vulkaneifel}}

File:Laacher See - Luftaufnahme.jpg, the largest volcanic crater lake in Central Europe near Andernach]]

File:Dauner Maar.jpg or Totenmaar, one of three maars near Daun]]

File:WeibernV.JPG layers in a quarry near Weibern in the Brohl Valley]]

File:Laacher See, Mofetten.jpgs on the southeastern shore of the Laacher See]]

The Volcanic Eifel or Vulkan Eifel ({{langx|de|Vulkaneifel}}) consists of three areas of volcanic activity, known as the West Eifel, High Eifel, and East Eifel volcanic fields. Volcanic Eifel is a region in the Eifel Mountains in Germany that is defined to a large extent by its volcanic geological history. Characteristic of the volcanic fields are their typical explosion crater lakes or maars, and numerous other signs of volcanic activity such as volcanic tuffs, lava streams and volcanic craters, for example the Laacher See. The Volcanic Eifel is still volcanically active today. One sign of this activity is the escaping gases in the Laacher See.

Geographical location

File:Wingertsbergwand Laacher See 2010.jpg

The Volcanic Eifel stretches from the Rhine to the Wittlich Depression. It is bordered in the south and southwest by the South Eifel, in the west by Luxembourg and Belgian Ardennes and in the north by the North Eifel including the Hohes Venn. To the east the Rhine forms its geographical boundary, with no volcanicity immediately beyond it.

The Volcanic Eifel is divided into three natural regions:

Volcanic West Eifel (West Eifel Volcanic Field): Manderscheid, Daun, Gerolstein, Obere Kyll, Hillesheim (within the parish of Nohn)
Volcanic High Eifel (High Eifel Volcanic Field): (Adenau, Kelberg, Ulmen and Nohn)
Volcanic East Eifel (East Eifel Volcanic Field): (Brohltal, Vordereifel, Mendig, Pellenz)

The centre of the Volcanic Eifel is the region around Daun and Manderscheid and the areas within the Mayen-Koblenz district.

The landscape of the Volcanic Eifel is dominated by recent volcanism. Volcanic craters, thick pumice and basalt layers and maars create a diverse landscape that clearly witnesses to very recent events in geological terms.

The entire Volcanic Eifel covers an area of about {{convert|2000|km2|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}} and {{as of|2007|lc=y}} has a population of about 200,000.

= Volcanoes =

The following volcanoes belong to the Eifel, sorted by height in metres (m) above sea level (Normalhöhennull, NHN){{GeoQuelle|DE|BGR-Viewer}}:

Ernstberg (also: Erresberg), {{convert|699.9|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel – west
Scharteberg, {{convert|691.4|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel; with the Eifel Transmitter (SWR) – west
Prümscheid, {{convert|681|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel – not volcanic (eponymous quartzite ridge; other summits being the Scharteberg and Dietzenley)
Hochkelberg, {{convert|674.9|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel; with a transmission mast on its south summit – Tertiary
Nerother Kopf, {{convert|651.7|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel; with the castle ruins of the Freudenkoppe – west
Dietzenley, {{convert|617.6|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel; with a wooden observation tower – west
Arensberg, approximately {{convert|590|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel – Tertiary
Hochsimmer, {{convert|587.9|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Mayen-Koblenz – east
Gänsehals, {{convert|573.3|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Mayen-Koblenz – east
Engelner Kopf, {{convert|575.1|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Ahrweiler (near Kempenich-Engeln) – east
Hochstein, {{convert|563|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Mayen-Koblenz – east
Steineberger Ley, {{convert|557.8|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel; with a Volcano Information Platform (observation tower) – Tertiary
Rockeskyller Kopf, {{convert|554.6|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel – west
Hoher List, {{convert|549.1|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel; with the Hoher List Observatory – west
Wartgesberg, approximately {{convert|475|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Vulkaneifel (near Strohn) – west
Veitskopf, {{convert|428.1|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Ahrweiler; near Laacher See; with an observation tower, the Lydia Tower – east
Ettringer Bellberg, {{convert|427.5|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Mayen-Koblenz (south of Ettringen) – east
Karmelenberg, {{convert|372.5|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Mayen-Koblenz – east
Mayener Bellberg, {{convert|363.2|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Mayen-Koblenz (north of Mayen) – east
Korretsberg, {{convert|295|m|-1|adj=on|abbr=on}}, county of Mayen-Koblenz (near Kruft) – east

=Laacher See=

Of particular note is the volcanic caldera known as Laacher See, the site of an eruption around 12,900 years ago that had an estimated VEI of 6.

Geopark and museums

Geology

The tephras deposited by past eruptions of the Volcanic Eifel are lithological deposits that are radiometrically dateable via argon-argon dating of K-feldspar grains. These have in turn been utilised to ascertain the ages of climatic changes such as transitions from glacial to interglacial states during the Pleistocene.{{Cite journal |last=van den Bogaard |first=P. |last2=Hall |first2=C. M. |last3=Schmincke |first3=H.-U. |last4=York |first4=D. |date=30 November 1989 |title=Precise single-grain 40Ar/39 Ar dating of a cold to warm climate transition in Central Europe |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/342523a0 |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=342 |issue=6249 |pages=523–525 |doi=10.1038/342523a0 |issn=1476-4687 |access-date=19 December 2023|url-access=subscription }}

Future activity

There is thought that future eruptions may occur in the Eifel, because:[https://www.geopark-vulkaneifel.de/en/geo-area/faq/583-still-volcanic-activity.html Is there still volcanic activity in the Eifel?][http://www.q-mag.org/germany-a-danger-of-volcanic-eruptions.html Germany: a danger of volcanic eruptions?]

Each year the Eifel rises by about a millimetre.
Geophysicists found that crust under the Eifel is thinner than most continental crust, suggesting that under the Eifel is a hot zone where magma is rising.
Persistent small earthquakes and underground heating.
Map of flood lake that may happen if the Rhine is blocked by a voluminous eruption in the Eifel{{Cite web| title=Eifel flood danger map | url=http://www.q-mag.org/_media/img/medium/eifel-danger.jpg | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131208060426/http://www.q-mag.org/_media/img/medium/eifel-danger.jpg | archive-date=2013-12-08}}

In 2020, Professor Kreemer noted that Eifel was the only region within an area of Europe studied where ground motion happened at significantly higher levels than expected.{{cite news |last1=Kettley |first1=Sebastian |title=Volcano warning: 'Something is brewing under Europe' Geologists make incredible discovery |url=https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1293841/Volcano-news-Europe-volcanism-Eifel-mantle-plume |access-date=5 May 2021 |work=Express |date=11 June 2020}} It is possible that such movements originate from a rising magma plume. This activity does not imply an immediate eruptive danger, but might suggest an increase in volcanic and seismic activity in the region.