Types of volcanoes

Types of Volcanoes

Overview of Volcano Types

• Shield Volcanoes

• Cinder Cones (Scoria)

• Composite Cones (Stratovolcano)

• Domes

• Caldera

• Maars

Shield Volcanoes

• Characteristics:

  • Formed by numerous basaltic lava flows piling up.

  • Gently sloping, dome-shaped cone.

  • Generally not very explosive but can still pose dangers.

• Example:

  • The shield volcano located in Hawaii.

Cinder Cones

• Characteristics:

  • The smallest type of volcano.

  • Composed mainly of rhyolite material.

  • Features steep, straight sides with a large crater at the center.

• Examples:

  • Craters of the Moon, Idaho.

  • Sunset Crater, Arizona.

• Example of a notable cinder cone:

  • Paricutin located in Mexico.

Composite Cones (Stratovolcano)

• Characteristics:

  • Can be either effusive or explosive in nature. If a magma has low viscosity, gas can escape easily, so when the magma erupts at the surface it forms lava flows.

  • Composed of both lava flows and pyroclastic materials.

  • Features pyroclastic flows.

  • Slopes are concave, gentle near the base but steep near the apex.

• Notable example:

  • Mt. St. Helens before and after the 1980 eruption (with a plug dome visible in imagery).

Plug Domes

• Characteristics:

  • Formed from viscous silica-rich magma that pushes into a vent.

  • Cone-shaped summit with jagged blocks, often presenting steep slopes.

Caldera

• Definition:

  • A large crater formed when the surface collapses due to the extrusion of significant amounts of volcanic materials.

• Example:

  • Crater Lake located in Oregon.

Maars

• Characteristics:

  • Small volcanoes with wider craters.

  • Crater floors often lie below the surrounding landscape levels.

  • Typically formed from steam explosions.