"Three volcanic eruptions"...reveal the secret of the birth of Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak

[Anchor]
Jeju Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has been known as a volcanic body created by a single volcanic eruption.

However, recent research has revealed that it was created by several volcanic eruptions, including the identification of underwater fire zones in the surrounding waters.

It has also been published in a world-class academic journal.

I'm reporter Kim Kyung-im of KCTV Jeju Broadcasting.

[Reporter]
Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak is listed as a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site in recognition of its outstanding landscape and geological value.

It is a water-based volcano formed by exploding in the sea, and has been known as a single volcanic body formed by one magma eruption.

However, a paper in 2012 raised the possibility of a new crater on the seabed around Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak.

The Jeju World Heritage Headquarters conducted research with research institutes such as Jeju National University,

Precision undersea topographic exploration discovered a round, flat topography with a diameter of about 600m, estimated to be a crater, 600m southeast of the center of Ilchulbong Peak.

As a result of confirming the type and date of the rock through marine drilling, the terrain was identified as an undersea crater made 6,700 years ago.

[Yoon Woo-seok / Dr. Geology, Department of Earth and Ocean Science, Jeju National University] In particular, distinct stratification is found in the tuff layer on the ocean floor. Through such a sedimentary structure, we were able to estimate the tuff layer (accumulated with volcanic ash). As a result of the analysis of the undersea topography, it has almost the same scale as the current Seongsan Ilchulbong crater..]

The formation process of Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak has also been newly identified as the surrounding undersea crater has been confirmed.

About 6,700 years ago, two volcanic activities in shallow waters created an early volcanic body, or subsea crater, after which magma erupted to create a crater and lava kite inside the crater.

Five thousand years ago, magma rose again from the current location of Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak, overlapping three volcanoes, and it was cut by waves for a long time to take on the shape of Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak.

Contrary to what has been known so far, this study has revealed that Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak is a complex volcanic body created through three volcanic eruptions.

[Ki Jin-seok / Jeju World Heritage Headquarters: Through this study, we have confirmed the actual location and existence of the undersea crater through research in various fields such as rock, sedimentation, geochemistry, and stratigraphy as well as marine geology.]

The results of the study, which newly identified the formation process of Seongsan Ilchulbong Peak, which has not been properly identified for a long time, were published in the September issue of the journal Geological Society, an internationally renowned geological journal.

Based on the results, Jeju Island plans to find hidden values through various academic surveys.

I'm Kim Kyung-im from KCTV News.