| Chances Peak | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 915 m (3,002 ft)[note 1] |
| Prominence | 915 m (3,002 ft) |
| Coordinates | 16°42′40″N62°10′38″W / 16.71111°N 62.17722°W /16.71111; -62.17722 |
| Geography | |
  Chances Peak Location in Montserrat | |
| Location | Montserrat,Caribbean |
| Country |  Montserrat |
| Geology | |
| Mountain type | Stratovolcano |
| Last eruption | January 3, 2009 |
Chances Peak is a summit of theactive complexstratovolcano namedSoufrière Hills, the youngest volcanic complex on the island ofMontserrat, aBritish overseas territory located in theCaribbean Sea. It was the highest point on the island until the mid-1990s, when fluctuating volcanic domes during the1995–1999 Soufrière Hills eruptions eclipsed the peak in height.[1]TheSoufriere Hills volcano is on a destructive plate margin, and is part of theEastern Caribbean Volcanic Arc. This volcanic arc lies on the Caribbean plate, and has formed by subduction of the North American Plate beneath it.
On 17 September 1965 aBoeing 707 aircraft operating asPan Am Flight 292 flew into Chances Peak near the summit and was destroyed, killing the 30 people on board.[2]
In 1936, the British geologistArchie MacGregor carried out geological fieldwork acrossMontserrat, as a part of aRoyal Society expedition in response to an ongoing seismic crisis.[3] MacGregor noted that the peak of what he called Chance's Mountain formed the highest point on the island (3002 feet, at that time). Following discussions with a local resident,Thomas Savage English, MacGregor's mapping confirmed that the region to the East of Chance's Peak summit was a breached volcanic crater. MacGregor called this 'English's Crater', and identified this structure on the geological map which accompanied his report. MacGregor also confirmed English's interpretation, that English's Crater contained thevolcanic plug or remnants of an oldvolcanic dome, called Castle Peak or Castles Peak. The first recorded eruption of Montserrat of the modern era began within English's Crater, in July 1995.[4]