It is impossible not to feel humble when confronted by that monster, which has been extremely active in recent years. It has always intrigued me what locals might think about living so close to an area of potential danger. There is no doubt that they are a brave community.
In my mid-teenage years, I had the opportunity to visit the beautiful city of Puebla. I represented the state of Chihuahua in the Mexican national baseball tournament.
Over the course of my stay, one thing that caught my attention was the magnificent beauty of that active volcano that rested in the background of the amazing city of Puebla and its surroundings. This was especially true in the mornings, when fumes could be seen and smelled from the natural giant's summit.
Popocatépetl's formation can be traced back to the ancestral volcano Nexpayantla. A volcanic eruption about 200,000 years ago led to Nexpayantla collapsing, leaving a caldera in which El Fraile developed. It collapsed due to another eruption about 50,000 years ago, and Popocatépetl rose from the ashes.
Paleomagnetic studies suggest that the volcano is around 730,000 years old. It consists of a cone-shaped base with a diameter of 25 km (16 mi) and a peak elevation of 5,450 m (17,880 ft).
In Mexico's Cordillera Neo-Volcánica, Popocatépetl lies about 10 miles (16 km) south of Iztacchuatl, its twin volcano.
The summit crater of Popocatépetl is 400 x 600 meters wide and is located 70 km southeast of Mexico City. There has been activity here since the 14th century. Within the summit caldera, numerous episodes of lava-dome growth and destruction have taken place since January 2005.
According to Mexican official sources, the explosions in the late 1990s and early 2000s were followed by daily minor-to-moderate explosions and gas, steam, and ash emissions.
Popocatepetl re-emerged in 1994 after decades of dormancy, there were periods of greater activity from 2000 to 2003 and 2012 to 2016.
The large migrations that settled Teotihuacan are believed to have been caused by a violent eruption that occurred in the middle to late first century. There have also been eruptions in 1363, 1509, 1512, 1519-1528, 1530, 1539, 1540, 1548, 1562-1570, 1571, 1592, 1642, 1663, 1664, 1665, 1697, 1720, 1802, 1592, 1662–1570, 1571, 1592, and basically every year since 2012, including some instances in which more than one eruption took place in a year.
Several days ago, on May 19th 2023, there was a great deal of volcanic activity and ashfall. This caused officials to temporarily close Benito Juarez Mexico City International Airport (MEX), serving Mexico City, early on May 20 as a result. On that same day, Felipe Angeles International Airport (NLU) was also temporarily closed.
Mexico city and Puebla enjoy breathtaking views of two of the highest volcanoes in the hemisphere: Popocatepetl and Iztacchuatl. Throughout history, these millenary volcanoes have held an enormous significance for a number of societies, providing inspiration for many myths and legends about their creation and origin.
Aside from the scientific explanation, it is impossible to imagine this legendary natural beauty without a story behind it, since most things of significance in Mexico are accompanied by a legend, a tale that has been told by the Mexicans for centuries, thus becoming part of Mexican folklore.
Several centuries ago, weary of Aztec oppression, the chief of the Tlaxcaltecas, bitter enemies, fought for his people's freedom.
Iztaccihuatl was one of the chief's daughters. Known as the most beautiful princess among all the princesses, she professed her love for young Popocatepetl, one of her father's people and a handsome warrior. Princess Iztaccihuatl was Popocatepetl's beloved, so before he left for war, he asked the chief for her hand.
The father promised to give him the hand of his daughter after he returned victorious from the battle. With the promise that the princess would wait for him for their marriage, the brave warrior accepted, prepared everything, and departed. Following this, a jealous rival of Popocatepetl told Princess Iztaccihuatl that her beloved had died in battle.
The princess died crushed and sad without knowing she had been lied to. A victorious Popocatepetl returned to his people, hoping to find his beloved princess. However, when he arrived he discovered Iztaccihuatl had died.
The news devastated him, and he wandered the streets for several days and nights. He decided he must do something to honor her love and ensure she would never be forgotten. In order to build a magnificent tomb under the sun, he piled ten hills together. As he carried her body to the summit of the mountain in his arms, he laid her body on the mountain's crest.
The warrior kissed his beloved's cold lips, grabbed a torch, and kneeled before her to watch her eternal sleep. The two remained facing each other from that point forward. Snow covered their bodies over time, forming two enormous volcanoes that remained together for eternity.
Legend has it that Popocatepetl's heart, which holds the fire of eternity, shakes and smokes when he remembers his beloved. It is for this reason that the Popocatepetl volcano continues to spew fumaroles to this day.
Puebla is now living in a world where ashes fall from the sky, which can be extremely dangerous to breathe.
Observing the increasing frequency and strength of the explosions, many ask whether it's a sign that an eruption of catastrophic magnitude is lurking in the shadows.
Approximately 25 million people live within a 60-mile (100-kilometer) radius, most of whom live in the metropolitan region of Mexico City, so if the gigantic beast ever fully awakens, it will cause a lot of damage to this highly populated area.