VOLCANO

WHAT’S THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
VOLCANO AND
MOUNTAIN?
 What is a volcano?

• Volcano: an opening in
Earth’s crust through
which molten rock, rock
fragments, and hot gases
erupt.
 VOLCANO
• A volcano is a mountain where lava (hot,
liquid rock) comes from a magma chamber
under the ground. A volcano usually has a
summit, a slope and base.
WHERE DO VOLCANOS
OCCUR?
 Pacific Ring of Fire
• The Ring of Fire is a region around much
of the rim of the Pacific Ocean where
many volcanic eruptions and earthquakes
occur.
 Where do volcanoes occur?
Most form along plate boundaries ….
1. in subduction zones (one plate sinks
under another)
2. over hot spots
3. where plates are pulling apart
FORMATION OF
VOLCANO?
Subduction
• Volcanoes are made when two tectonic
plates come together. When these two
plates meet, one of them (usually the
oceanic plate) goes under the continental
plate.
• This is the process of subduction.
Afterwards, it melts and makes magma
(inside the magma chamber), and the
pressure builds up until the magma bursts
through the Earth's crust.
• The second way is when a tectonic
plate moves over a hot spot in the
Earth's crust. The hot spot works its
way through the crust until it breaks
through.
HOW VOLCANOES ARE FORMED?
TRIVIA: OLYMPUS MONS in Mars
is the largest volcano in our Solar
System
PARTS OF VOLCANO
• Magma - Molten rock beneath Earth's
surface.
• Parasitic Cone - A small cone-shaped volcano
formed by an accumulation of volcanic debris.
• Sill - A flat piece of rock formed when
magma hardens in a crack in a volcano.
• Vent - An opening in Earth's surface
through which volcanic materials escape.
• Crater - Mouth of a volcano - surrounds a
volcanic vent.
• Flank - The side of a volcano.
• Lava - Molten rock that erupts from a
volcano that solidifies as it cools.
• Conduit - An underground passage
magma travels through.
• Summit - Highest point; apex
• Throat - Entrance of a volcano. The part of
the conduit that ejects lava and volcanic ash.
• Ash - Fragments of lava or rock smaller than 2 mm in
size that are blasted into the air by volcanic explosions.
• Ash Cloud - A cloud of ash formed by
volcanic explosions.
 LET’S RECALL
EXPLAIN THE WORD!
 VOLCANO
MOUNTAIN
CONVERGENT
DIVERGENT
SUBDUCTION
PACIFIC RING OF FIRE
Types of Volcanoes
(Based from its activity)
There are 3 different types of
volcanoes:

• Active 
• Dormant 
• Extinct
 Active Volcanoes
• An active volcano is a volcano which is
either erupting or is likely to erupt in the
future.
• The lifespan of a volcano can vary from
months to several million years.
Mt. Mayon (Albay)
Mt. Hibok-hibok in Camiguin
 Dormant Volcanoes
• Dormant volcanoes are those that
have not erupted for thousands of
years, but are likely to erupt again in
the future. Volcanoes are often
considered to be extinct if there are
no written records of its activity. 
Mt. Makiling in Laguna and
Batangas
 Extinct Volcanoes

• Extinct volcanoes are those that scientists

consider unlikely to erupt again because
the volcano no longer has a magma
supply. 
Mt. Abuyog in Leyte
Types of Volcanoes
(Based from its shape)
 Cinder Cones
• A cinder cone (or scoria cone) is
a steep conical hill of
loose pyroclastic fragments, such
as volcanic clinkers, volcanic ash,
or cinder that has been built around
a volcanic vent. The pyroclastic
fragments are formed by explosive
eruptions or lava fountains from a
single, typically cylindrical, vent.
Cinder Cone Volcano
• Caused by explosive
eruptions
• Granitic lava thrown
high into the air
• Lava cools into
different sizes of
volcanic material called
tephra
• Steep-sided, loose
slopes
Cerro Negro (Nicaragua)
Taal Volcano (Philippines)
 Composite Volcano
(Stratovolcano)
• a volcano built up by many
layers (strata) of
hardened lava and tephra.
Unlike shield volcanoes,
stratovolcanoes are
characterized by a steep profile
with a summit crater and periodic
intervals of explosive
eruptions and effusive eruptions.
 3. Composite Volcano
• A mix of the other two types
• Quiet or violent
• Basaltic or granitic
• Steep or gentle slopes
• Layered of tephra
Mt. Krakatoa/Krakatu
(Indonesia)
• Krakatau
– One of the most violent
eruptions in recent
times occurred on an
island in the Sunda
Straits near Indonesia
in August of 1883.
– Krakatau, a volcano on
the island, erupted with
such force that the
island disappeared.
Mt. Vesuvius (Italy)
Mt. St. Helens (USA)
Mt. Pinatubo (Philippines)
 Shield Volcano - flat
• A shield volcano is a type
of volcano named for its low profile,
resembling a warrior's shield lying on the
ground. It is formed by the eruption of
highly fluid (low viscosity) lava, which
travels farther and forms thinner flows than
the more viscous lava erupted from
a stratovolcano.
 Shield Volcano
• Formed by quiet eruptions
• Slow-moving lava flows
• Basaltic lava builds up in flat layers
• Largest with gently sloping sides
• Ex: Mauna Kea-Hawaiian Islands
Mount Etna (Italy)
Mt. Kilauea (Hawaii)

the world's most active

volcanic mass
Mt. Mauna Loa (Hawaii)
 Lava Dome Volcanoes

• Lava Dome, any steep-sided mound that

is formed when lava reaching
the Earth’s surface is so viscous that it
cannot flow away readily and accumulates
around the vent. Sometimes domes are
produced by repeated outpourings of short
flows from a summit vent
Mt. Merapi (Indonesia)
Katla Volcano (Iceland)
What determines how explosive an eruption is?

1. Water Vapor:
Vapor more water=bigger explosion
2. Trapped gases (water and CO2):
– Easy escape (low pressure)=quiet eruption
– Difficult to escape (high
pressure)=explosive/violent eruption
3. Magma Type:
– Basaltic (thin) =quiet eruption
– Granitic/Andestic (thick)=violent eruption

**NOTE: A Pyroclastic flow is a fast moving mixture of

water, gases and ash that can be deadly
 Scientists monitor volcanoes.
• Warning signs include:
– Earthquakes
– Changes in the tilt of the ground
– Rising temperatures of openings
– Changes in volcanic gases being tested.
Types of Volcanic
Eruption
HYDROTHERMAL ERUPTION
• Hydrothermal eruption
An eruption driven by the heat in a
hydrothermal systems. Hydrothermal
eruptions pulverise surrounding rocks and
can produce ash, but do not include
magma. These are typically very small
eruptions.
 PHREATIC ERUPTION
• Phreatic eruption
An eruption driven by the heat from
magma interacting with water. The water
can be from groundwater, hydrothermal
systems, surface run-off, a lake or the sea.
Phreatic eruptions pulverise surrounding
rocks and can produce ash, but do not
include new magma.
 PHREATOMAGMATIC
• Phreatomagmatic eruption
An eruption resulting from the interaction
of new magma or lava with water and can
be very explosive. The water can be from
groundwater, hydrothermal systems,
surface runoff, a lake or the sea.
 STROMBOLIAN ERUPTION
• Strombolian and Hawaiian eruptions
These are the least violent types of
explosive eruptions. Hawaiian eruptions
have fire fountains and lava flows,
whereas Strombolian eruptions have
explosions causing a shower of lava
fragments.
 VULCANIAN
• Vulcanian eruptions
Vulcanian eruptions are small to moderate
explosive eruptions, lasting seconds to
minutes. Ash columns can be up to 20 km
in height, and lava blocks and bombs may
be ejected from the vent.
 PLINIAN ERUPTION
• Plinian eruptions
Eruptions with a high rate of magma discharge,
sustained for minutes to hours. They form a tall,
convective eruption column of a mixture of gas
and rock particles, and can cause wide
dispersion of ash.
 Magma Composition
Basaltic
rock structures shaped
like tubes, balloons, or • Volcanoes with basaltic
underwater
pillows. pillow lava produce:
lava formations
•If the same lava flows at a
lower temperature, a stiff,
slowly moving aa (AH-ah) lava
forms.

As pahoehoe (pa-HOY-hoy)
lava cools, it forms a
ropelike structure .
Magma Composition
Basaltic

Examples
• You can find volcanoes
with basaltic lava
– Hawaiian Volcanoes,
including
• Kilauea
• Mona Loa
– Iceland
• Heimaey
• Hekla
Magma Composition
Granitic Lava
• Some examples of granitic
volcanoes are
– Yellowstone Caldera
• It is a super voclano!
– Katmai, Alaska
• Last eruted in 1912.
Magma Composition
Andesitic Lava
Mount Pelee, Martinique
– Famous for the May 8, 1902 eruption
which killed 29,000 people and
destroyed the city of St. Pierre. This is
the largest number of causalities for a
volcanic eruption this century.

• Mayon, Phillipines
– It is the most active volcano in the
Philippines. Since 1616, Mayon has
erupted 47 times.
– It’s 1814 eruption killed 1,600.