Mt St Helens

Mt St. Helens and Mt Adams seen from the air while flying over the Cascade Ranges in the US Pacific Northwest. Mt St. Helens (also known as Lawetlat'la to Cowlitz people, and Loowit to the Klickitat people) is a stratovolcano that erupted spectacularly in 1980 after a century of dormancy. The collapse of its northern flank after an earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale sent the explosion out from the north rather than the typical eruption from the top and created the 1.6km (1 mile) wide horseshoe-shaped crater that you see in this photo. The eruption killed fifty-seven people, destroyed 250 homes, 47 bridges, 24km (15 miles) of railways, and 298km (185 miles) of highway, and reduced the elevation of the mountain's summit from 2,950m (9,677 ft) to 2,549m (8,363 ft). Mt Adams 3,743 m (12,281 ft), seen in the background, has not erupted in more than 1,000 years however is not considered extinct. Cascade Volcanic Arc, Washington State, USA.

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Robert Downie
Love Life, Love Photography

_{All images in this post were taken by and remain the Copyright of Robert Downie - http://www.robertdowniephotography.com}