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Mud volcano is situates 70 km south-east off Baku within Khamamdagh-Dashly Island anticline belt. It is one of the largest and active island mud volcanoes within Baku archipelago. It is characterized by diversity of various gryphons and salses seeping gas, water and mud with oil films. Its first eruption was recorded in the second half of XIX century, when two eruptions occurred with inflamed gas and high column of fire in February and March, 1876.
While mud volcano eruption in 1923 there were outburst about 60-70 th cu m. Most extensive and long in time (two days) mud volcano eruption occurred in Aprel, 1977.
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And finally, last mud volcano eruption without
blazing and outburst breccias was recorded in 1993 when the crumble zones along
with numerous 1m deep and up to 700m long fractures appeared over the previous
breccias cover (200 X 25-50m) within the central and east parts of the island. A
concise description of 1977 mud volcano eruption is submitted below (Yagubov, Aliyev, 1978)
Mud volcano stayed dormant over half a century then erupted with skyrocketed column of fire over 500m high which glow was seen by many Baku residents.
According to eye witnesses, eruption started in the evening by strong ground rumble. A column of black fire appeared over the island along with mushroom like cloud of vapor. Oilmen working at nearby drilling sites suffered strong heating of the flame. Small pieces of shale and volcanic ash were spread even upon Khara-Zira mud volcano 15 km off the erupted volcano. Seismology station “Baku” recorded local tremor.
According to eruption magnitude, its duration and volumetric amount of outburst mud breccias this eruption is considered to be one of the considerable within Baku archipelago. A series of concentric and radial fractures, making terrane difficult of access, appeared around volcano crater situated within north-west part of the island. Many sockets 1m in diameter and depth appeared as a result of solid outburst falling over the freshly outburst mud breccias. Volumetric amount of outburst breccias exceeds 1.5M cu m that covered three thirds of island surface. There are many oil saturated sandstones among mud volcano solid outbursts.
During several days burnt breccia patches appeared within volcano crater and everyone could feel the heat coming out from subsurface where hydrocarbon gases were still burning.
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