Volcanoes Flashcards
(38 cards)
What causes Volcanoes
Ocean-ocean, ocean-continent, subduction zone, mantle plumes, rift zones
Magma
is melted rock material beneath the surface.
Lava
melted rock material when it erupts at the surface.
Active Volcano
has erupted in historic times (or at least within the last 10,000 years.)
Dormant Volcano
has not erupted recently but geologically is likely to do so again.
Extinct Volcano
is geologically is unlikely to erupt again.
Plutonic Igneous Rock
cool slowly below the surface
Volcanic Igneous Rock
cool quickly at/near the surface.
Silica Tetahedra
Sio4
Each mineral has a…
Crystallization point
Igneous vs Magma
Magma mixing, melting of surrounding, partial melting, fractional crystallization.
Why does magma have different composition?
Different minerals at different temperature.
Magma mixing and melting of surrounding rock bodies…
are two reasons magma vary in composition.
Fractional Crystallization
another reason magmas vary.
- As magma cools, high temperature minerals form first, if they settle out of the magma, the magma now has a different composition.
At what setting do we find Volcanoes?
80% of volcanic activity is at a divergent plate boundary: 10% is at a subduction zone, and remaining 10% is at mantle plumes.
Subduction Zone carries
water rich oceanic plate into the mantle where the water causes it to partially melt; it may mix with continental crust as it rises upward.
Magma at mid-ocean ridges…
forms from partial melting of the mantle due to lowered pressure from spreading.
* the same process also happens during continental rifting and may eventually cause a mid-ocean ridge to form.
Mantle plumes
can generate magma by partially melting the upper mantle or overriding plate (continental or oceanic)
What happens when a volcano erupts?
When a volcano erupts it produces combinations of lava, pyroclastic debris, and volcanic gas.
- lots of silica makes a magma viscous because silica tetrahedra like to link together.
Three types of lava
Rhyolitic, andesitic, and basaltic
Basaltic lava
has the highest temperature and lowest SiO2 content so has a low viscosity
Andesitic and Rhyolitic
magmas have lower temperatures and higher Sio2 content, so are more viscous.
Basaltic Magma
has the lowest gas content and tends to erupt peacefully
Rhyolitic Magma
has the highest gas content and tends to erupt explosively.