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Kasuga 2

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Kasuga 2, also referred to as Minami Kasuga (South Kasuga), is the central of three volcanoes forming the Kasuga seamount chain, which trends SSW from the volcanic front of the Izu-Marianas arc.

Facts Block

Location: Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

Latitude: 21.6° N

Longitude: 143.637° E​​​​​​​

Elevation: -274 (m) -899 (f)​​​​​​​

Volcano type: Submarine​​​​​​​

Composition: Basalt - Andesite​​​​​​​ - Trachyandesite​​​​​​​

Most recent eruption: unknown

Threat Potential: Very low*

*based on the National Volcano Early Warning System

Kasuga 2 is the central of three volcanoes forming the Kasuga seamount chain, which trends SSW from the volcanic front of the Izu-Marianas arc. It rises from about 3,000 m depth to within 170 m of the ocean surface. Two subsidiary cones are located low on the east flank. The morphology is more complex than Kasuga 1 to the north, and prominent ridges separate slopes of interspersed volcaniclastic and lava flow fields. Radiometric dating indicates an age of less than 8,000 years and probably less than 1,000 years; radium/thorium disequilibrium ratios suggest the flows may be only a few centuries old. Active hydrothermal vents are located at the summit, at the base of summit ridges, and on the lower flanks.

Publications

Volcanic hazards in the Pacific U.S. Territories

The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and American Samoa lie along the western side of the famed Pacific Ring of Fire. Here, the processes of active island and submarine volcanoes produce activity both underwater and in the atmosphere that poses potential hazards to the daily lives of residents and travelers. Since 2000, CNMI volcanoes have erupted six times, and one submarine vo
Authors
Gabrielle Tepp, Brian Shiro, William W. Chadwick

2018 update to the U.S. Geological Survey national volcanic threat assessment

When erupting, all volcanoes pose a degree of risk to people and infrastructure, however, the risks are not equivalent from one volcano to another because of differences in eruptive style and geographic location. Assessing the relative threats posed by U.S. volcanoes identifies which volcanoes warrant the greatest risk-mitigation efforts by the U.S. Geological Survey and its partners. This update

Authors
John W. Ewert, Angela K. Diefenbach, David W. Ramsey

Volcanic investigations in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, April to May 1994

A team of U.S. Geological Survey geologists, a seismologist, and technicians gathered new geologic, seismic, and deformation data in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Nine volcanic islands on the active East Mariana Ridge north of Saipan were examined between April 20 and May 3, 1994. In addition, a new radio-telemetry seismic station was installed on the island of Agrihan (

Authors
M. K. Sako, F. A. Trusdell, R. Y. Koyanagi, George Kojima, R. B. Moore