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What is a Volcano?
A volcano is a vent or chimney which transfers molten rock known as magma from depth to the Earth's surface. Magma erupting from a volcano is called lava and is the material which builds up the cone surrounding the vent.
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| The Sakurajima Volcano in Japan is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. Credit: Kimon Berlin. Source: Nasa. |
A volcano is active if it is erupting lava, releasing gas or generates seismic activity. A volcano is dormant if it has not erupted for a long time but could erupt again in the future. Once a volcano has been dormant for more than 10 000 years, it is termed extinct.
The explosiveness of a volcanic eruption depends on how easily magma can flow and the amount of gas trapped within the magma. Large amounts of water and carbon dioxide are dissolved in magma causing it to behave in a similar way to gas expanding in fizzy drinks, which forms bubbles and escapes after opening.
As magma rises quickly through the Earth's crust, gas bubbles form and expand up to 1000 times their original size.
Volcanoes can be different in appearance with some featuring perfect cone shapes while others are deep depressions filled with water. The form of a volcano provides a clue to the type and size of its eruption which is controlled by the characteristics and composition of magma. The size, style and frequency of eruptions can differ greatly but all these elements correlated to the shape of a volcano. Three common volcanoes are:
Shield volcano
When magma is very hot and runny, gases can escape and eruptions are gentle with considerable amounts of magma reaching the surface to form lava flows. Shield volcanoes have a broad, flattened dome-like shape created by layers of runny lava flowing over its surface and cooling. Because the lava flows easily, it can move down gradual slopes over great distances from the volcanic vents. The lava flows are sufficiently slow for humans to outrun or outwalk them. This type of magma has a temperature between 800°C and 1200°C and is called basaltic magma.
Composite volcano (Strato)
Also known as strato-volcanoes, these volcanoes are characterised by an explosive eruption style. When magma is slightly cooler it is thick and sticky, or viscous, which makes it harder for gas bubbles to expand and escape. The resulting pressure causes the magma to foam and explode violently, blasting it into tiny pieces known as volcanic ash. These eruptions create steep sided cones. They can also create lava flows, hot ash clouds called pyroclastic flows and dangerous mudflows called lahars. This type of magma has a temperature between 800°C and 1000°C and is called andesitic magma.
Caldera volcano
These erupt so explosively that little material builds up near the vent. Eruptions partly or entirely empty the underlying magma chamber which leaves the region around the vent unsupported, causing it to sink or collapse under its own weight. The resulting basin-shaped depression is roughly circular and is usually several kilometres or more in diameter. The lava erupted from caldera volcanoes is very viscous and generally the coolest with temperatures ranging from 650°C to 800°C and is called rhyolitic magma. Although caldera volcanoes are rare, they are the most dangerous. Volcanic hazards from this type of eruption include widespread ash fall, large pyroclastic surges and tsunami from caldera collapse.
Volcanic hazards
Volcanic hazards include explosions, lava flows, bombs or ballistics, ash or tephra, pyroclastic flows, pyroclastic surges, mudflows or lahars, landslides, earthquakes, ground deformation, tsunami, air shocks, lightning, poisonous gas and glacial outburst flooding known as jökulhlaups. Each hazard has a different consequence, although not all occur in all eruptions or in association with all volcanoes.
Volcanic eruptions are measured using a simple descriptive index known as the Volcano Explosivity Index which ranges from zero to eight. The index combines the volume of material ejected with the height of an eruption column and the duration of the eruption.
Interesting fact: Volcanic ash clouds can damage aircraft engines but ash is not visible by radar, the main navigation aid for aircraft. There are nine Volcanic Ash Advisory Centres around the world which use satellites to help track volcanic ash clouds and provide warnings for aircraft.
Source: Geoscience Australia.
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