The Colima Volcano, also known as the Colima Volcano of Fire, located in the western part of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMB), is undergoing passive degassing.
Weather forecast for the volcano area
Mostly clear skies, with visibility toward the volcano area, which would facilitate observation in the event of water vapor, gas, and/or ash exhalation (Image). The volcano is in the passive degassing stage.
Manzanillo Colima Atmospheric Radiosonde (12 UTC), 6:00 a.m. local time, March 19, 2025: At 5,000 m: West-northwest wind at 27 km/h. Between 5,000 and 7,000 m: West wind at 36 km/h. Above 7,000 m: West-southwest wind at 49 km/h.
There is no cloud cover over the volcano area, which would allow detection of volcanic activity through satellite observation (Image 2). The satellite rainfall estimate does not show any signs of precipitation. Accumulated precipitation in the volcano area over the last three hours, with a cutoff at 12:00 p.m. local time today (Figure 3).
In the event of any exhalation of volcanic ash, gas, and/or water vapor, the trajectory forecast by the Hysplit (Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory) model, run by CONAGUA-CGSMN with a potential emission height of 500 meters above the volcanic cone, which is 3,839 meters AMSL “above mean sea level” (2,745 meters AGL “above ground level”), indicates southward trajectories, shifting to the southwest, northwest, north, and northeast (simulating exhalation every following hour, 6), as it passes through the northeast, center-east, south, south-southwest, center-southwest, center, and north of the state of Colima and the southern part of the state of Jalisco, for the first 12 hours of the forecast (2:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.). 2:00 a.m. local time the following day).
Then, for the last 12 hours of the forecast (2:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. local time the following day), the trajectories will continue over the south-southwest, southwest, center, west-central, west, northwest, and north of the state of Colima, and the southwest, south, center, north-central, and north-northeast of the state of Jalisco. These trajectories forecast the main direction of emissions from the gas, water vapor, and/or volcanic ash plume originating from the Colima Volcano of Fire.
The Colima Volcano is also a National Park, with a Federally Protected Natural Area located on the border between Jalisco and Colima. This area is comprised of the Colima Volcanic Complex, which includes the Volcano of Fire and the Nevado de Colima, extending over 6,554.75 hectares.
The area was established as a National Park on September 5, 1936, during the presidency of Lázaro Cárdenas. Its landscape includes slopes forested with pines and oaks, contrasting with the lower semitropical zones, as well as a rich wildlife, giving it the status of an invaluable natural museum of local fauna and flora.
The decree endorses the importance of the Nevado de Colima Volcano National Park for hosting diverse ecosystems and species, a result of its volcanic origin, its complex topography, the high altitude of its peaks, its isolation from other mountains, and its proximity to the Pacific Ocean, factors that together create a unique context.
Although the Colima Volcano is the most active, Popocatépetl is considered the most dangerous due to its potential to seriously affect nearby populations.
This volcano is classified as a stratovolcano because it is made up of multiple layers of solidified lava. Research indicates that its structure is made up of Jurassic rocks and Cretaceous limestone, as well as marine sedimentary rocks and granite formations, the latter dating from the Cretaceous to the Quaternary.
Source: infobae
