Everything about The Pico De Orizaba totally explained
The
Pico de Orizaba, or
Citlaltépetl (from
Nahuatl citlal(in) = star, and
tepētl = mountain), is a
stratovolcano, the highest
mountain in
Mexico and the
third highest in
North America. It rises 5,636 meters (18,490 feet) above sea level in the eastern end of the
Eje Volcánico Transversal mountain range, on the border between the states of
Veracruz and
Puebla. The volcano is currently
dormant but not
extinct; the last eruptions occurred in
1687, with previous eruptions in
1630,
1613,
1569,
1566,
1545-
65? and
1537.
General Information
The Pico overlooks the valley and city of
Orizaba, from which it gets its name. The name Citlaltépetl isn't used by Nahuatl speakers of the Orizaba area, who instead call it
Istaktepetl (
Iztactépetl in the traditional orthography for
Classical Nahuatl) 'White Mountain'.
A regionally dominant peak, and in fact the highest peak between
Colombia and the
Yukon, the Pico de Orizaba is ranked
7th in the world in
topographic prominence. It is the second most prominent
volcanic peak in the world after Africa's
Mount Kilimanjaro. Although it's about 110 km (75 miles) inland, to the west of the port of
Veracruz, its peak is visible to ships approaching the port in the
Gulf of Mexico, and at dawn rays of sunlight strike the Pico while Veracruz still lies in shadow. The Pico is ranked 16th in the world for
topographic isolation.
The peak is one of three volcanoes that contain permanent snow and
glaciers in Mexico. The others are
Popocatépetl and
Iztaccíhuatl.
A companion peak lying about six km to the southeast of the Pico de Orizaba is the
Sierra Negra, at . This subsidiary peak, though far lower than its massive neighbor, is still higher than anything in the 48 contiguous states of the U.S., and on its summit, serviced by the highest road in North America, is one of the world's premier astronomical instruments, the
Large Millimeter Telescope.
The Pico de Orizaba was important in such pre-Hispanic cultures as those of the Nahuatl-speaking
Aztecs and the
Totonacs.
The summit and its surrounding foothills are part of a
national park. There are many routes for approaching and climbing the volcano, and many people visit it.
Picture gallery
Image:Pico Orizaba1.jpg|The Pico de Orizaba looking south
Image:Citlaltepetl_Crater_01.jpg|Citlaltépetl's Crater as seen from the top
Image:Pico_Orizaba_Dawn.jpg|Citlaltépetl at dawn
Image:Orizaba_&_Pico.jpg|Citlaltépetl and the Orizaba valley
Image:Orizaba&SierraNegra.jpg|Citlaltépetl and Sierra Negra from the west
Image:PicoOrizabaAvion.jpg|The Pico de Orizaba (southern face) from the air
Image:PicoOrizabaLights.jpg|Orizaba and the Pico before dawn
Image:Pico from Fortin 2 enhanced.jpg|The Pico as seen from Fortín de las Flores (looking northwest)
Further Information
Get more info on 'Pico De Orizaba'.
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