Popocatépetl

Popocatépetl (pōpəkăt`əpĕtəl, pōpō'kätā`pətəl) [Aztec,=smoking mountain], volcano, 17,887 ft (5,452 m) high, in the Cordillera de Anáhuac, central Mexico, on the Puebla-Mexico state border; the second highest peak in Mexico. The perpetually snowcapped cone is symmetrical, and the large crater has practically pure sulfur deposits only partially exploited. The ascent, which is fairly easy, was probably first made by Europeans in 1519 by one of Cortés's men. Active during the first two centuries of Spanish colonial times, the volcano's last major eruption was in 1702; however, it was active in the 1920s and began erupting again in 1994.

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Popocatépetl

Volcano, Puebla state, southeast-central Mexico, west of the city of Puebla. The perpetually snowcapped, symmetrical cone reaches 17,930 ft (5,465 m). The first Spanish ascent is thought to have been made in 1519. After being inactive for more than 50 years, Popocatépetl erupted in 1994, with frequent recurrences in the years that followed.