Where are stratovolcanoes located in the world?
Stratovolcanoes are common at subduction zones, forming chains and clusters along plate tectonic boundaries where oceanic crust is drawn under continental crust (continental arc volcanism, e.g. Cascade Range, Andes, Campania) or another oceanic plate (island arc volcanism, e.g. Japan, Philippines, Aleutian Islands).
What are the types of stratovolcanoes?
Stratovolcanoes are more likely to produce explosive eruptions due to gas building up in the viscous magma. Andesite (named after the Andes Mountains), is perhaps the most common rock type of stratovolcanoes, but stratovolcanoes also erupt a wide range of different rocks in different tectonic settings.
How often do stratovolcanoes erupt?
Like shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are polygenetic; however, they differ from shield volcanoes in that they erupt infrequently, with typical repose intervals of hundreds of years between eruptions. Most active stratovolcanoes worldwide appear to be < 100,000 years old, although some, like Mt.
What is the other name of stratovolcano?
A stratovolcano typically consists of many separate vents, some of which may have erupted cinder cones and domes on the volcano's flanks. A synonym is composite volcano.
Are stratovolcanoes rare?
Stratovolcanoes. Composite volcanoes or stratovolcanoes are the most common type of noted volcanic edifices, and they occur in all regions of volcanic activity and throughout the world. However, they are particularly frequent in subduction zones, for example, along the circum-Pacific belt of convergent plate margins.
Why is it called a stratovolcano?
Composite volcanoes—also called stratovolcanoes—are named for their composition. These volcanoes are built from layers, or strata, of pyroclastic material, including lava, pumice, volcanic ash, and tephra. The layers stack on each other with each eruption.
What will happens if a stratovolcano erupts?
Explosive and Quiet Eruptions The stratovolcano's eruptions of more-viscous lava are the explosive ones, ejecting volcanic rock (old lava) and fresh lava violently to produce both airborne pyroclastics, or tephra, and sweeping slides of fragments downslope.
Which volcano is the least explosive?
Shield volcanoesAnswer and Explanation: Shield volcanoes tend to be the least explosive volcanoes. Most of the material they produce is lava, rather than the more explosive pyroclastic material.
How hot is lava?
The temperature of the lava in the tubes is about 1,250 degrees Celsius (2,200 degrees Fahrenheit).
What is the largest stratovolcano?
Pūhāhonu is so heavy, it has caused Earth's crust to sink hundreds of meters. Two small, guano-covered islands that peek above the waves in the central North Pacific Ocean are merely the tips of our planet's largest single volcano, new research reveals.
How big is a stratovolcano?
Stratovolcanoes (Composite Volcanoes) The stratovolcanoes are made up of layers of lava flows interlayed with sand- or gravel-like volcanic rock called cinders or volcanic ash. These volcano land formations are typically 10-20 miles across and up to 10,000 or more feet tall.
Is Pompeii a stratovolcano?
Located in the Gulf of Pompeii, Mount Vesuvius is a stratovolcano most famous for its eruption in A.D. 79, which destroyed the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. In the last 17,000 years, the volcano has had eight major eruptions.
What are 3 characteristics of stratovolcanoes?
The characteristics of a stratovolcano are as follows: The eruptions are very violent and explosive, hurling volcanic bombs. They have steep sides as high as 7,000 feet, and the shape is a symmetrical cone. It consists of alternating layers of lava and ash.
What are the 3 composite volcano?
Some of the most conspicuous and beautiful mountains in the world are composite volcanoes, including Mount Fuji in Japan, Mount Cotopaxi in Ecuador, Mount Shasta in California, Mount Hood in Oregon, and Mount St.
What are the six eruption types?
The six eruption types are in order from least explosive to the most explosive; Icelandic, Hawaiian, Strombolian, Vulcanian, Pelean, and Plinian.
What are three 3 differences between shield and composite stratovolcanoes?
Size Differences Cinder cone volcanoes are relatively small, rarely exceeding 1,000 feet tall. Composite volcanoes, also known as stratovolcanoes, are towering structures, often rising more than 10,000 feet. Shield volcanoes are broad, typically 20 times wider than they are high. These volcanoes can be massive.
Where are stratovolcanoes found?
Stratovolcanoes are common at subduction zones, forming chains and clusters along plate tectonic boundaries where oceanic crust is drawn under continental crust (continental arc volcanism, e.g. Cascade Range, Andes, Campania) or another oceanic plate ( island arc volcanism, e.g. Japan, Philippines, Aleutian Islands ). The magma forming stratovolcanoes rises when water trapped both in hydrated minerals and in the porous basalt rock of the upper oceanic crust is released into mantle rock of the asthenosphere above the sinking oceanic slab. The release of water from hydrated minerals is termed "dewatering", and occurs at specific pressures and temperatures for each mineral, as the plate descends to greater depths. The water freed from the rock lowers the melting point of the overlying mantle rock, which then undergoes partial melting and rises due to its lighter density relative to the surrounding mantle rock, and pools temporarily at the base of the lithosphere. The magma then rises through the crust, incorporating silica-rich crustal rock, leading to a final intermediate composition. When the magma nears the top surface, it pools in a magma chamber within the crust below the stratovolcano.
What is a stratovolcano?
A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical 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, although some have collapsed summit craters called calderas. The lava flowing from stratovolcanoes typically cools and hardens before spreading far, due to high viscosity. The magma forming this lava is often felsic, having high-to-intermediate levels of silica (as in rhyolite, dacite, or andesite ), with lesser amounts of less-viscous mafic magma. Extensive felsic lava flows are uncommon, but have travelled as far as 15 km (9.3 mi).
Why does lava flow from a stratovolcano?
The lava flowing from stratovolcanoes typically cools and hardens before spreading far, due to high viscosity. The magma forming this lava is often felsic, having high-to-intermediate levels of silica (as in rhyolite, dacite, or andesite ), with lesser amounts of less-viscous mafic magma.
What are the processes that trigger the final eruption?
The processes that trigger the final eruption remain a matter of research. Possible mechanisms include: Magma differentiation, in which the lightest, most silica-rich magma and volatiles such as water, halogens, and sulfur dioxide accumulate in the uppermost part of the magma chamber.
What are some examples of stratovolcanoes?
Two famous examples of stratovolcanoes are Krakatoa in Indonesia, known for its catastrophic eruption in 1883, and Vesuvius in Italy, whose catastrophic eruption in AD 79 buried the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Both eruptions claimed thousands of lives.
How far has felsic lava flowed?
Extensive felsic lava flows are uncommon, but have travelled as far as 15 km (9.3 mi). Stratovolcanoes are sometimes called "composite volcanoes" because of their composite stratified structure built up from sequential outpourings of erupted materials. They are among the most common types of volcanoes, in contrast to the less common shield ...
Which volcanoes pose the greatest danger to civilizations?
Hazards. Mount Etna on the island of Sicily, in southern Italy. Mount Fuji on Honshu (top) and Mount Unzen on Kyushu (bottom), two of Japan 's stratovolcanoes. In recorded history, explosive eruptions at subduction zone (convergent-boundary) volcanoes have posed the greatest hazard to civilizations.
What is strato volcano?
Some strato volcanoes are just a collection of domes piled up on each other. Strato volcanoes are commonly found along subduction-related volcanic arcs, and the magma supply rates to strato volcanoes are lower. This is the cause of the cooler and differentiated magma compositions and the reason for the usually long repose periods between eruptions. Examples of strato volcanoes include Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier, Pinatubo, Mt. Fuji, Merapi, Galeras, Cotopaxi, and super plenty others.
Where do volcanoes feed their eruptions?
Each eruption, regardless of what it produces, is fed from the magma chamber by a dike. Most dikes come up through the center of the volcano and therefore most eruptions occur from at or near the summit. However, some dikes head off sideways to feed eruptions on the flanks.
What is the name of the composite volcanoes?
Strato volcanoes are usually about half-half lava and pyroclastic material, and the layering of these products gives them their other common name of composite volcanoes.
Why are strato volcanoes cooler?
This is the cause of the cooler and differentiated magma compositions and the reason for the usually long repose periods between eruptions.
How deep is the Cotopaxi volcano?
This is a pit that has been dug into the ground at Cotopaxi, a big strato volcano near Quito, the capital city of Ecuador. The pit is about 2 meters deep and in it you can clearly see a number of ash layers exposed.
Which volcano failed in the 1980 eruption?
Of course the most famous example of this is Mt. St. Helens, the north flank of which failed during the first stages of the big 1980 eruption. Mt. St. Helens was certainly not the only volcano to have suffered an eruption such as this, however.
What are the characteristics of a stratovolcano?
Pyroclastic flows, lava domes, and cinder cones in some places characterize stratovolcanoes. Generally, these types of volcanoes erupt explosively and violently, sometimes completely blowing their tops. Pyroclastic flows do not really look much like ‘flowing’ eruptions, but look more like big explosions, complete with billowing clouds. During a pyroclastic flow, enormous volumes of extremely hot gases, ash, and rocks rush down the side of a volcano like an avalanche. Lava domes are rounded mounds that were built when super thick magma that was too thick to flow squeezed up through a volcanic vent and cooled as it reached the air. Figure 8 provides a schematic view of the typical processes associated with such volcanoes.
How are volcanoes built?
The volcano is built up by the accumulation of material erupted through the conduit and increases in size as lava and pyroclastic particles are added to its slopes. US Geological Survey (2011b) estimates that out of 1511 volcanoes known to have erupted on Earth in the past 10 ka, 699 are stratovolcanoes.
What is the highest active volcano in Costa Rica?
Irazu stratovolcano has the highest active crater of Costa Rica, with 11,259 ft of altitude. Situated north of the city of Cartago, it is also composed of multiple Holocene craters. It has some of the oldest cones, aligned northwest-southeast, ending on the destroyed Las Nubes volcano crater ( Bergoeing, 1979). Irazu Volcano has historical activity: the colonial chronicles mention eruptions from the eighteenth century, with cycles of 40 to 60 years. Since 1723, it has had about 23 eruptions. The 1963 eruption had a lahar flow that buried the urban sector of Taras in the city of Cartago, after heavy rains associated with the volcanic eruption. San Jose and most of the Central Highlands of Costa Rica were then coated with ashes. Tournon (1983) identifies basaltic lava flows in the top as well as basic andesites in the Cervantes and Juan Viñas lava flows. Cartago's plateau is composed of ignimbrites interspersed among andesites (Figure 7.12 ).
What is the name of the volcano in Guatemala?
Moyuta Vol cano. Moyuta stratovolcano, rising to an altitude of 5452 ft, marks the last volcanic structure of Guatemala before entering the volcanic arc of El Salvador. Historical volcanic activity is not known for this volcano. It lies to the south of the Jaltapagua fault, dominating the graben of the same name.
Where is Moyuta volcano located?
Figure 3.16. Moyuta stratovolcano in Santa Rosa Department, situated at the southern edge of the Jaltapagua fault. Its summit is formed by three andesitic lava domes.
How many eruptions have occurred in the Redoubt volcano?
The Redoubt stratovolcano by the Cook Inlet in Alaska has had four moderate eruptions since 1900, the latest occurring in 2009. Lahars are generated in these eruptions due to partial melting of the glacier covering the upper parts of the volcano. The eruptions have been vulcanian in character, melting the glacier through minor pyroclastic density currents and hot debris avalanches originating from the partial collapse of the dome. Such events lead to debris flows down the Drift glacier with melting of ice occurring through mixing of hot pyroclasts with snow and ice. When this happens, large lahars or hyperconcentrated jökulhlaups flow down the glacier and out toward the ocean down the Drift River valley. An oil storage and transfer station is located by the Cook Inlet, 50 km from downstream from Redoubt's crater and in the pathway of lahars. The largest lahars during the eruption of 2009 reached the oil terminal ( Figure 56.10) with the largest event having peak discharge estimated in the range of 100,000 m 3 /s in the upper part of the Drift valley (Waythomas et al., 2013).
What is a volcano made of lava flows and pyroclastic rocks?
Stratovolcano is a volcano constructed of alternating layers of lava flows and pyroclastic rocks.
How high can a stratovolcano be?
Even the lighter weight ash materials can become extremely dangerous. Most stratovolcanoes are high enough, more than 2,000 meters (6,500 feet), to retain snowpack, ice and/or glaciers. When the volcano erupts, the hot gases and molten lava melt the frozen material which combines with the ash to generate massive mudflows, often named the Indian term “lahar.” A lahar may be a highly fluid liquid, that flows like a stream, or so thick that it’s much like concrete. The fast-flowing lahars can do a great deal of damage at considerable distances from the volcano itself.
How are stratovolcanoes formed?
These large mountains are formed beneath the Earth where tectonic plates push against each other , generating fissures that allow magma to extrude from below the mantle. Examining plate tectonics, there is a “Ring of Fire” (Universe Today) around the Pacific Rim that holds a majority of the World’s volcanic activity and supervolcanoes.
What is a volcano made of?
Stratovolcanoes are massive, cone-shaped, inverted funnels composed of many different materials with at least one, and possibly more, vents down through the mountain that allow molten rock, or magma from beneath the Earth’s crust, to rise up through the mountain and become lava. Sometimes referred to as “composite” volcanoes, they are made up of layers, or “strata” (hence stratovolcano), from solidified and molten (1) lava, (2) tephra and (3) ash.
What are the most famous volcanoes in the world?
Stratovolcanoes are some of the most notable, visible, famous geographic forms in the World. In the United States, such mountains as Rainier and St. Helens, Shasta, Hood, Redoubt, Kilauea and Maui are widely known through photographs. Worldwide, Mt. Fuji, Mt. Kilimanjaro, Mt. Etna, Mt. Ararat and Mt. Popocatepetl are a few well publicized peaks. Their massive size, height and obvious shape set stratovolcanoes completely apart from all other volcanic processes.
How does lava form in a volcano?
1. Generally, the lava from stratovolcanoes is viscous, or thick and slow moving, so it solidifies quickly when ejected from the interior and exposed to air or water and ice. When the thick lava cools suddenly, it leaves a plug or core in the central vents and then dikes of solid rock fill the side vents or other fissures in the mountain. Often, the solidified lava is basalt, although many stratovolcanoes have higher levels of silica in the magma that forms their lava, so the rock composites will be made up of andesite or dacite. A few lava flows will be rhyolite, which can form glass-like obsidian on the surface. For most stratovolcanoes, the solid lava will produce domes that cap the columns of lava in the vents. Very deep, at the base of the mountain and below, it is possible there may be liquid lava, or even magma, pushing upwards against the layers of other materials.
What is the most dangerous feature of a stratovolcano?
One of the most dangerous features of stratovolcanoes is the potential for pyroclasm when a mountain erupts. There are pyroclastic flows and surges which have important differences. A flow is combined gases and the composite materials, mainly high-density tephra, from the stratovolcano that blast out of the vent (s), with temperatures above 100 to more than 800 celsius, and move at incredible speeds (50 kmh or more, up to an estimated 700 kmh) scorching and pummeling everything in the way, with sheer wind forces and particle impacts leveling the landscape.
What is a surge in a volcano?
A surge is lower density, made up of heavier composites, and may be less than 100 celsius (cold surge) or well above that temperature (hot surge). A surge tends to travel regardless of topography, where a flow normally goes down the flanks of the stratovolcano and stays within the forms of valleys and river channels. One of the most dangerous features of pyroclastic blasts is that sulphurous materials may combine with the snow, water or ice and produce sulphuric acid droplets which can devestate an area.
Which volcanoes are more common than shield volcanoes?
The magma that forms this lava is generally felsic. Stratovolcanoes are more common than shield volcanoes. One of the famous stratovolcanoes is Vesuvius which destroyed Herculaneum and Pompeii in 79 CE.
How do volcanoes form?
This process occurs at different pressures depending on the minerals. The water lowers the mantle rock’s melting point, causing partial melting and its rise to the lithosphere forming a temporary pool. The magma then continues to rise through the crust collecting rock rich in silica. The magma finally pools in the magma chamber which is either within or under the volcano. The low pressure at this point causes the volatiles compounds such as water, carbon dioxide, and sulfur dioxide dissolved in the magma to escape. When the magma and gas accumulate to a critical level, they overcome the rock blockage of the volcanic cone and erupts violently.
What volcanoes are in the Caribbean?
In the Caribbean, a notable stratovolcano is Martinique’s Mount Pelée which erupted in 1902 and destroyed its capital city killing over 30,000 people. In Africa, there is Mount Kenya in Kenya, the dormant Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, and Alid Volcano in Eritrea.
What volcanoes were active during the Holocene?
The Global Volcanism Program from the Smithsonian Institution has a database with over 700 active stratovolcanoes in the Holocene period. Some of these volcanoes include Mount Tambora in Asia which erupted in 1815 causing the 1816 Year Without a Summer. In the Caribbean, a notable stratovolcano is Martinique’s Mount Pelée which erupted in 1902 and destroyed its capital city killing over 30,000 people. In Africa, there is Mount Kenya in Kenya, the dormant Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, and Alid Volcano in Eritrea. Stratovolcanoes in North America include Hoodoo Mountain, Nevado de Toluca, Frosty Peak Volcano, and Mount Taylor.
What causes the volatiles compounds in the volcanic cone to escape?
The low pressure at this point causes the volatiles compounds such as water, carbon dioxide, and sulfur dioxide dissolved in the magma to escape. When the magma and gas accumulate to a critical level, they overcome the rock blockage of the volcanic cone and erupts violently.
What are the hazards of volcanic ash?
Hazards from Ash and Volcanic Bombs. Explosive eruptions create volcanic clouds full of ash, which pose hazards to health, building, and aviation, as well as causing air pollution. Over the past 20 years, over 60 airplanes have encountered volcanic ash resulting in damages.
How does lava affect humans?
Stratovolcanoes produce highly viscous lava that flows slowly and may not endanger human and animal life since they have a chance to flee. This lava may damage property. Mount Nyiragongo in the Democratic Republic of Congo is an exception since it produces lava with less silica content, which makes it quite fluid and may travel down the steep volcano at speeds of up to 60 miles per hour. The mixture of water and volcanic debris forms lahar, which may vary in thickness. The flow of lahar flattens or drowns everything in its path due to its speed and strength. Lahar created from Nevado del Ruiz’s eruption in 1985, killed around 25,000 people in Armero, Colombia.
Where do stratovolcanoes form?
Stratovolcanoes form at subduction zones, where one plate at a tectonic boundary is pushed below another. This may be where the oceanic crust slips below an oceanic plate (near or underneath Japan and the Aleutian Islands, for example) or where the oceanic crust is drawn below the continental crust (underneath the Andes and Cascades mountain ranges).
What are the different types of volcanoes?
There are several different types of volcanoes, including shield volcanoes, composite volcanoes, dome volcanoes, and cinder cones. However, if you ask a child to draw a volcano, you'll almost always get a picture of a composite volcano.
Why do volcanoes form cones?
The volcanoes form steep cones, rather than rounded shapes, because the magma is viscous. Composite volcano magma is felsic, which means it contains silicate-rich minerals rhyolite, andesite, and dacite. Low-viscosity lava from a shield volcano, such as might be found in Hawaii, flows from fissures and spreads.
How many people have died from volcanoes since 1600?
Lahars are basically volcanic landslides down the steep slope, traveling so quickly that they are difficult to escape. Nearly a third of a million people have been killed by volcanoes since 1600. Most of these deaths are attributed to stratovolcanic eruptions. Semeru Volcano in Indonesia is an active stratovolcano.
Why do composite volcanoes have tall peaks?
Because they are built of layers of viscous material, rather than fluid lava, composite volcanoes tend to form tall peaks rather than rounded cones. Sometimes the summit crater collapses to form a caldera.
What are some examples of composite volcanoes?
Famous examples of composite volcanoes include Mount Fuji in Japan, Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens in Wash ington State, and Mayon Volcano in the Philippines.
Which type of volcano is responsible for the most catastrophic eruptions in history?
Composite volcanoes are responsible for the most catastrophic eruptions in history.
How are shield volcanoes built?
They are built up slowly by the accretion of thousands of highly fluid lava flows called basalt lava that spread widely over great distances, and then cool as thin, gently dipping sheets. Lavas also commonly erupt from vents along fractures (rift zones) that develop on the flanks of the cone. Some of the largest volcanoes in the world are shield volcanoes. In northern California and Oregon, many shield volcanoes have diameters of 3 or 4 miles and heights of 1,500 to 2,000 feet. The Hawaiian Islands are composed of linear chains of these volcanoes including Kilauea and Mauna Loa on the island of Hawaii-- two of the world's most active volcanoes. The floor of the ocean is more than 15,000 feet deep at the bases of the islands. As Mauna Loa, the largest of the shield volcanoes (and also the world's largest active volcano), projects 13,677 feet above sea level, its top is over 28,000 feet above the deep ocean floor.
Where do volcano domes occur?
Volcanic domes commonly occur within the craters or on the flanks of large composite volcanoes. The nearly circular Novarupta Dome that formed during the 1912 eruption of Katmai Volcano, Alaska, measures 800 feet across and 200 feet high.
What type of volcano is C inder cone?
C inder cones are the simplest type of volcano. They are built from particles and blobs of congealed lava ejected from a single vent. As the gas-charged lava is blown violently into the air, it breaks into small fragments that solidify and fall as cinders around the vent to form a circular or oval cone. Most cinder cones have a bowl-shaped crater at the summit and rarely rise more than a thousand feet or so above their surroundings. Cinder cones are numerous in western North America as well as throughout other volcanic terrains of the world.
What is the name of the mountain that is made of lava flows?
Composite volcanoes. S ome of the Earth's grandest mountains are composite volcanoes--sometimes called stratovolcanoes. They are typically steep-sided, symmetrical cones of large dimension built of alternating layers of lava flows, volcanic ash, cinders, blocks, and bombs and may rise as much as 8,000 feet above their bases.
What happens when a volcano is dormant?
W hen a composite volcano becomes dormant, erosion begins to destroy the cone. As the cone is stripped away, the hardened magma filling the conduit (the volcanic plug) and fissures (the dikes) becomes exposed, and it too is slowly reduced by erosion. Finally, all that remains is the plug and dike complex projecting above the land surface--a telltale remnant of the vanished volcano.
What is composite volcano?
T he essential feature of a composite volcano is a conduit system through which magma from a reservoir deep in the Earth's crust rises to the surface. The volcano is built up by the accumulation of material erupted through the conduit and increases in size as lava, cinders, ash, etc., are added to its slopes.
Where is the Mauna Loa volcano?
Mauna Loa Volcano, Hawaii, a giant among the active volcanoes of the world; snow-capped Mauna Kea Volcano in the distance.
What is an active volcano?
The term “active volcanoes” is not exclusive to the volcanoes with perpetual volcanic eruptions. The widely-accepted definition of the term refers to those volcanoes that have experienced eruptions in the Holocene era. Many of the earth’s active volcanoes experience at least one major eruption after a couple of centuries.
What are the threats of volcanic eruptions?
The threats from a volcanic eruption can also have global ramifications, as the ash from a violent eruption can plunge the world into a volcanic winter. 10. Mount Erebus - the World's Most Southern Active Volcano. Mount Erebus is situated in Antarctica’s Ross Island, making it the southernmost active volcano on earth.
What volcano caused mass destruction?
Soufriere Hills - the Volcano That Caused Mass Destruction. The Soufriere Hills is an active volcano, whose elevation to the summit is 3,002 feet above sea level. The stratovolcano is situated on the island of Montserrat in the Caribbean. Volcanic activity on the mountain has been ongoing since its eruptions of 1994.
How tall is Mount Etna?
Mount Etna is an active stratovolcano in Italy, and its height of 10,922 feet above sea level and 87-mile basal circumference makes it the country’s largest active volcano. The mountain has experienced 49 major eruptions since 1955, with seven of them measuring three on the Volcanic Explosivity Index. In 2015, the mountain had a violent eruption that featured a lava fountain that was 3,300 feet in height and spewing 23,000-foot high ash plume. The volcano is seated on the the border between the Euroasian and the African plate and it is the highest active volcano located outside of the Caucasus.
What is the most dangerous volcano in the world?
Mount Vesuvius is situated in Italy’s Campania region. The mountain is not notably high, as its elevation to the summit is only 4,203 feet, but it is among the most violent active volcanoes on earth. The eruption that the mountain is most infamous for is the 79 CE eruption that resulted in the annihilation of Herculaneum and Pompeii, two cities of the Roman Empire. During the eruption, the mountain ejected volcanic gases, ashes, and stones as high as 21 miles, while spewing pulverized pumice and molten rocks at the rate of 7.8x105 cubic yards per second. It is estimated that it released energy equivalent to 100,000 times the thermal energy that was released by the Nagasaki and Hiroshima bombings. The exact number of the people who died is not known, but it is estimated to be at least 1,000. The mountain is often labeled as “the world’s most dangerous volcano,” a reputation it gets due to its violent eruption history compounded by the dense population that reside around the base of the mountain (more than 3 million people are thought to live in areas around Mount Vesuvius).
How old is Kilauea volcano?
The volcano is thought to be about 300,000 to 600,000 years old, and in approximately 10,000 years ago it started emerging above the sea level. The volcano is the second youngest of the Hawaiian hotspot region. Kilauea has one of the longest periods of eruptions of any of the world’s volcanoes, as the mountain has been continuously erupting since January 1983. Eruptions in the mountain often feature dramatic lava fountains, some rising hundreds of feet into the atmosphere. The eruptions have adverse effects on the ecology of the island, due to the resultant acid rains from the sulfur dioxide fumes emitted during the eruptions.
Which mountain is responsible for the majority of eruptions in Africa?
Mount Nyiragongo - Responsible for the Majority of Eruptions in Africa. Nyiragongo is another of the world’s active stratovolcanoes, whose summits stands 11,380 feet in elevation. The stratovolcano is part of the Virunga Mountains found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
