Volcanoes
summit of the cone.
“Vulcano” – a volcanic island in the Aeolian Islands of
Italy.
- Vulcan, the God of fire in Roman mythology.
Volcano
- a vent or chimney that contains molten rocks
(magma) from within the Earth’s crust to the Earth’s
surface.
- includes surrounding cones of erupted material.
How Volcanoes are formed?
- When Plates collide and one of them goes under the
other, the heat coming from the mantle will cause
these rocks to melt. The fluid that forms from this
process is called magma. Bc. magma is very hot and
the pressure in this layer is high, it tends to melt other
rocks above it as it tries to break into the surface.
- When this happens, magma released into the
surface is now called lava. The lava eventually
solidifies into different types of rocks. Upon constant
eruption over time, the layers of lava will pile up,
which will give rise to the volcano.
Diff. features of a volcano:
 Cone
- most sticking part of the volcano, usually
composed of lava and pyroclastic. Viscous and
slow-moving granitic magma forms from high-
sided steep cones; while fast-moving basaltic
magma creates low to almost flat cones.
 Vent
- The opening through which an eruption
takes place. This main part of a volcano
supplies the magma from the underlying
source to the top of the volcano. They can be
straight or convoluted.
 Magma Chamber
- the large underground pool of liquid rock
found beneath the earth’s crust.
 Crater
- a basin-like depression over a vent at the
 Caldera – a volcanic depression much larger
than the original crater.
 Lava - rock or magma expelled from a volcano
during eruptions. Its temperature upon
ejection can reach up to 700 C, hence it flows
until it cools down and hardens.
 Dikes - barriers or obstacles in a volcano.
 Sills - intrusive sheets; solidified lava flow that
originally forced its way between and parallel
to older layers of rocks.
 Conduit - a channel or pipe conveying liquid
materials such as magma.
 Flank - side of a volcano
 Summit - highest point or apex of a volcano.
 Throat – entrance of a volcano.
 Ash Cloud – expelled in the atmosphere;
volcanic ash or ash cloud is composed of
pulverized rock and glass created during the
eruption.
 Volcanic Bombs – chunks of lava blasted into
the air which solidify before reaching the
ground. Their sizes may vary and can measure
up to 64mm in diameter.
 Pyroclastic Flow – fast-moving currents of hot
gases and rock traveling downhill from a
volcano.
 Tephra Fall – fragmented material that
consists of pumice scoria, lithic materials,
crystals, or a combination of the 4.
 Lahar – mudflows; flowing mixtures of
volcanic debris and water. They are classified
as primary or hot when associated with
volcanic eruption, or as cold lahar when they
are caused by heavy rainfall.
Different Pyroclastic Materials
  Volcanic Ashes – very fine-grained fragments - basaltic magma has relatively low silica content. It is
of pulverized rock, materials, and volcanic less viscous and gases can escape readily from it.
glass.

 Lapillus – made up of molten or semi-molten Shield Volcano

lava that is ejected from a volcanic eruption
and falls on earth while still partially molten. - wide base with gentle sloping sides. The cone is
made up of purely lava that has poured out and
 Volcanic Blocks – ejected from explosive solidified during a mild or quiet eruption.
volcanic eruptions and may consist of broken
pieces of the volcanos’s edifice.
Cinder cone volcano

- built almost entirely of loose fragments called

Why do Volcanoes erupt?
- Hot molten rock (magma) is buoyant (has a
lower density than the surrounding rocks) and will rise
up through the crust to erupt on the surface.
cinders (pyroclast and tephra) Formed by explosive
eruptions ejected lava and rocks into the air.
Composite Volcano / Stratovolcano

- altering layers of the lava and cinders (pyroclast)

they are formed when volcanic eruptions vary
Explosive eruptions between quiet and violent or explosive.
- catastrophic
- erupt 10’s -100’s km3 of magma.
- sends ash clouds >25 km into the
stratosphere
- has severe environmental and climatic
effects
- Hazardous
 3 products from an explosive
eruption: Ash fall, pyroclastic flow,
and surge.

Types of Volcano according to activity

 Active Volcanoes – have erupted over the last

10k years and still continue to erupt.
 Inactive Volcanoes – do not erupt as of today
but have the potential to do so.
 Extinct volcanoes – have not shown signs of
activity for a long period of time; has no
record of eruptions in the past 1k years.

Explosive or Violent Eruptions

- lava ejected is torn into shreds, forming pieces of

pyroclastic materials called tephra. It can eject a large
amount of materials into the air.

Quiet or non-explosive eruptions