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La Palma ((:la ˈpalma)), also San Miguel de La Palma, is the most north-westerly of the Canary Islands, Spain. La Palma has an area of 706 km2 making it the fifth largest of the seven main Canary Islands. The total population is about 86,000, of which 18,000 (2003 data) live in the capital, Santa Cruz de la Palma and about 20,000 (2004 data) in Los Llanos de Aridane. La Palma has "sister city" status with El Dorado Hills, California, United States. In 1815, the German geologist Leopold von Buch visited the Canary Islands. It was as a result of his visit to Tenerife where he visited the Las Cañadas caldera and then later to La Palma where he visited the Taburiente caldera, that the Spanish word for cauldron or large cooking pot - "caldera" - was introduced into the geological vocabulary. ==Origins and geology== La Palma, like the other islands of the Canary Island archipelago, is a volcanic ocean island. The volcano rises almost above the floor of the Atlantic Ocean. There is road access from sea level to the summit at ,〔 which is marked by an outcrop of rocks called Los Muchachos ("The Lads"). This is the site of the Roque de los Muchachos Observatory, one of the world's premier astronomical observatories. La Palma's geography is a result of the volcanic formation of the island. The highest peaks reach over above sea level, and the base of the island is located almost below sea level. The northern part of La Palma is dominated by the Caldera de Taburiente, with a width of and a depth of . It is surrounded by a ring of mountains ranging from to in height. On its northern side is the exposed remains of the original seamount. Only the deep Barranco de las Angustias ("Ravine of Anxiety") ravine leads into the inner area of the caldera, which is a national park. It can be reached only by hiking. The outer slopes are cut by numerous gorges which run from down to the sea. Today, only few of these carry water due to the many water tunnels that have been cut into the islands structure. From the Caldera de Taburiente to the south runs the ridge Cumbre Nueva - the New Ridge, which despite its name is older than the Cumbre Vieja - Old Ridge. The southern part of La Palma consists of the Cumbre Vieja, a volcanic ridge formed by numerous volcanic cones built of lava and scoria. The Cumbre Vieja is active - but dormant, with the last eruption occurring in 1971 at the Teneguía vent which is located at the southern end of the Cumbre Vieja - Punta de Fuencaliente, (The Point of the Hot Fountain). Beyond Punta de Fuencaliente, the Cumbre Vieja continues in a southerly direction as a submarine volcano. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「La Palma」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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