2 primary things to know o plate tectonics help us understand volcanoes o magma (liquid rocks) vary in chemical composition, ability to flow, gas content, and volume. govern whether eruptions are peaceful or violent Plate-Tectonic Setting of Volcanoes convection of heat in mantle drives plate tectonics o more than 90% associated with edges of tectonic plates other volcanism occurs above hot spots o more than 80% of earths magma takes place at oceanic spreading centers solid, yet hot and ductile mantle rock rises upward by convection o into regions of lower pressure 30-4-% of rock can melt and flow easily o worldwide rifting process releases enough magma to create 20 km of new oceanic crust/year all this volcanic activity takes place below sea level subduction zones cause volcanic mountains at edges of continents o volume of magma released is small compared to spreading centers spreading centers release more magma than subduction zone volcanoes o down going plate carries oceanic plate rock covered with water- saturated sediments into hotter zones pressure of water lowers melting point of rock rising magma melts some of continental crust adds new melt of different compositions to rising plumes each plume has own unique chemical composition transform faults and continent-continent collision zones have little associated volcanism o transform: simply slide past each other, keeping hot asthenosphere below o continent-continent: continental rocks stack up to extra thick masses buries hot mantle rock Oceanic volcanoes peaceful, subduction-zone volcanoes dangerous subduction zone lasts for tens of millions of years o province of volcanoes active for entire time If volcano is pretty and conical shaped, its usually active Chemical Composition of Magmas o 8 of 92 elements make up 98% of earths crust o next four most abundant add 1.2% o remaining .77% includes gold, silver, copper, carbon, sulfur, tin, etc. o oxygen and silicon most abundant o As magma cools, oxygen and silicon bonds silicon and oxygen link with four oxygen atoms, surrounding central silicon atom forms silicon-oxygen tetrahedron (SiO4) o after negatively charged oxygen, 11 most abundant elements all positively charged, attracted to , and bound by oxygen Viscosity, Temperature, and Water Content of Magmas o liquids flow free, volumes fixed, but shape changes o fluidity of liquid is measured by viscosity the internal resistance to flow (measure of fluid friction) o Low viscosity magma flows easily, High viscosity doesnt o magma viscosity can be changed by o higher temperature lowers viscosity causes atoms to spread apart and vibrate more vigorously, causing atomic bonds to break o silicon and oxygen increase the viscosity of magma form silicon oxygen tetrahdra, link up and make flow more difficult o increasing content of mineral crystals increases viscosity o magma contains dissolved gases held as volatiles o solubility increases as pressure increases and as temp decreases o highest temperatures and lowest silicon oxygen contents in basaltic magma, lowest viscosity and easiest flow o lowest temps and highest silicon oxygen contents in rhyolitic magma, so viscous, doesnt flow at all o 80% of magma reaching earths surface is basaltic o 10% andesitic, 10% rhyolitic o basaltic magma produced in abundance by melting of the mantle o low viscosity allows it to reach the surface, especially at spreading centers o rises through continents composition changes, picks up continental rock becomes more andesitic, or rhyolitic o water = most abundant dissolved gas in magma as magma rises, water dissolves in hot magma, becomes gas forms steam bubbles o basaltic lava low in steam bubbles, eruptions peaceful o rhyolitic lava high in steam bubbles, hard to pop out so they burst at high pressure o gas is the active eruption magma is the vehicle Plate-Tectonic Setting of Volcanoes Revisited o spreading centers are ideal locations for volcanism because o they sit above high temperature asthenosphere o asthenosphere rock has low % of SiO2 o oceanic plates pull apart, causing hot asthenosphere to rise and change to magma o peaceful eruption of magma o subducting oceanic plate reaches depth of about 100 km o magma generated, rises to surface o subducting plate stirs up mantle How a Volcano Erupts o volcanoes = rapid means for earth to expel heat o begins with heat at depth o super heated rock rises to levels with lower pressure solid rock turns into magma, resulting in volume expansion o magma generated by melting of existing rock o by lowering pressure o raising temperature o or increasing its water content 2 most important are decompression and increasing volatile content (ie mostly water) o melting caused by decrease in pressure = decompression melting o most of the rock that melts to form magma is because pressure on it decreases NOT BECAUSE HEAT WAS ADDED o ready to melt rock exists in nearly molten asthenosphere as superheated rock rises, pressure decreases o rock melting increases volume, and creates fractures in surrounding rock o more magma can rise o magma at depth doesnt contain gas bubbles o high pressure at depth keeps volatiles dissolved but as magma rises, gases begin to come out Eruption Styles and Role of Water Content o peaceful or explosive depends on concentration of water in magma o water makes eruptions volatile and dangerous o volatiles (water and gases) drive explosive eruptions o rhylitic magma often associated with explosive eruptions because of high water content o least explosive: o Icelandic and Hawaiian types: low water content, low viscosity o moderately explosive: o strombolian type: Moderate water content, low to moderate viscosity o most explosive: o vulcanian type: moderate to high water content, moderate to high viscosity o Plinian type: high water content, high viscosity Some Volcanic Materials o magmas vary in volatile content and viscosity o gas blasting into atmosphere takes along chunks of magma and pyroclastic (fire fragment) debris Nonexplosive eruptions o lava flows exhibit variety of textures o highly liquid lava cools with smooth ropy surface called pahoehoe o slow flowing viscuous lava has rough blocky tecture called Aa Explosive eruptions o cooled volcanic glass known as obsidian o frothy glass with holes known as pumice o scoria = rough crusts or chunks of basaltic rock full of holes
Natural Disasters Ch. 6 End notes
Killer Event of 1790 less than .5% of Hawaiian magma blown out as pyroclastic material Kilauea Volcano killed King Keouas army explosion column burst upward o base surge swept outward as dense basal cloud base surges can travel at hurricane speeds masses of ground-hugging hot water and gases o may or may not have magma fragments Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) factors: o volume of material erupted o how high eruption column reached o how long major eruptive burst lasted measured volcanic eruptions between the years 1500-1980 VEI ranges from 0-8 o biggest eruption since 1500 CE, VEI 7 eruption of Tambora caused cooling of world climate during following year o 4 VEI 6 events Volcanic events w high VEI = vulcanian and plinian-type eruptions Flood Basalts: low viscosity, low volatiles, very large volume flood basalts = largest volcanic events known on Earth o huge amounts of mass and energy pour onto earths surface o geologically brief duration erupt tremendous volumes of magma within geologically short time o 1-3 million years hot spots also bring up huge volumes of magma, but for long period o 100 million years most impressive movements of heat to surface occur w flood basalts o surface area covered by magma, and volume of magma brought up = gigantic occur on all continents and all ocean floors o none occurred in historic times basalts devastate region, but also have global effects o climate modifying volatiles like CO2 and SO2 o probably cause for some major mass extinctions Scoria Cones: Medium viscosity, medium volatiles, small volume scoria cones conical hills, low height, formed of basaltic to andesitic pyroclastic debris piled next to volcanic vent o produced during single eruptive interval scoria, or cinder cone, has a summit crater o basin on top of cone less than 2 km in diameter after excess gas has been expelled from magma, lava may drain and emerge from near base of cone o dont usually erupt again strombolian-type eruptions o scoria cones mainly built by strombolian type eruptions o volcano Stromboli has most daily eruptions central lava lake topped by cooled crust tidal cycle disrupts lava-lake, triggering eruptions gas pressure builds beneath crust o eruptions occur as distinct separate bursts a few times per hour each tosses pyroclasts tens to hundreds of meters into air Stratovolcanoes: high viscosity, high volatiles, large volume also called composite volcanoes steep sided, pretty and asymmetrical layers of pyroclastic debris capped by high viscosity andesitic to rhyolitic lava flows marked variations in magma compositions o eruptive styles include vulcanian and plinian vulcanian-type eruptions o alternate between thick highly viscous lavas masses of pyroclastic material o material blown covers wide areas o vulcanian eruptions are early phase in eruptions clear the throat plinian-type eruptions o volcano throat now clear o gas-powered vertical eruption colums carry pyroclastic debris including pumice, up to 50 km o plinian eruption is final phase in major eruptive sequence 2-3 plinian eruptions per century Vesuvius o first, vulcanian eruption o many found near sea escaped pumice ground hugging pyroclastic flows (full of hot gas) o cloud of ash 850 decrees C erupted out of Vesuvius, covered city, then cooled o second, plinian phase blew immense volumes of pyroclasts high in air also blows volcanic gases water condenses from steam, falls as heavy rain o gravity-pulled mass movements of muddy volcanic debris = lahars Lava Domes: High viscosity, low volatiles, small volume form when high-viscosity magma w low content of volatiles cools quickly o produces hardened dome can form very quickly, or continue to grow magma that remains after vulcanian and plinian eruptions o oozes upward and cools quickly, creating plug in throat of volcano typical eruption sequence o gas-rich materials shoot out first as vulcanian blast longer lasting plinian eruption follows o when gas depletes, gas-poor, high-viscosity magma oozes slowly out o vulcanian precursor, plinian main event, lava dome conclusion Calderas: High Viscosity, High Volatiles, Very Large Volume largest of violent, explosive volcanoes calderas = large volcanic depressions o differ from volcanic craters calderas are larger, formed by inward collapse instead of outward explosion like crater form in different settings o summits of shield volcanoes o summits of stratovolcanoes o giant continental calderas huge negative landforms huge volumes of magma in short time as ultra-plinian eruption o extra high ash colums, widespread ash and pumice crater lake, Oregon o stratovolcano mount masama major eruption so much magma ejected that it left a void beneath mountain o collapsed and moved down into magma chamber Krakatau, Indonesia 1883 o big stratovolcano, comes out of ocean then collapses o major eruption blew out tons of ash and volatiles and magma created subterranean hole, 23 km of land collapsed Santorini, Greece o stratovolcano o caldera eruptions are low-frequency, high-impact events Yellowstone National Park o giant continental caldera o sits above hot spot = relatively fixed position o mega-eruption 600,000 years ago created giant caldera Eruptive Sequence of a Resurgent Caldera o characteristic sequence o begin with large volume of rhyolitic magma, rising w/in km below surface bow ground upward magma body accumulates cap rich in volatiles o mega-eruption begins w circular ring of fire plinian columns jet up surrounding magma fractures increase size of eruption vents, more magma escapes o magma gushes out of fractures in huge volume pours away from vents as pyroclastic flows o subsurface magma body shrinks, land surface sinks o removal of magma creates void (isostatic imbalance) filled by new mass of rising magma creates resurgent dome o reloading process towards next eruption Hot Spots o shallow hot rock masses/magmas or plumes of slow rising mantle rock o create volcanism on earths surface o temperature of rising rock hotter than surrounding rock o lowers viscosity enough to start rise towards surface o hot spots dont move as much as tectonic plates o used to help chart plate movement o occur under oceans and continents and as part of spreading centers o largest number lies beneath African plate o slowed African plate acting like thermal blanket concentrated mantle heat beneath o explosiveness of volcanoes above hot spots varies o peaceful above oceanic hot spots o hot spot below spreading center means greater volume of basaltic magma o continental hot spots, eruptions may be incredibly explosive o magma breaks off and absorbs continental rock creates volatile rich, high viscosity, very large volume magma Classic Disaster o Santorini and the lost continent of Atlantis o eruption, then subsequent caldera collapse