EARTH AND LIFE SCIENCE -WEEK 3b: MAGMA

FORMATION

OBJECTIVES:

At the end of the lesson, you should be able to:

A. define and classify magma into three types;
B. enumerate the different ways to form magma; and
C. recognize the important role of magma in the natural cycle.

LEARNING COMPETENCIES:

Describe how magma is formed (magmatism).

I. WHAT HAPPENED

“I see the mind of a five -year old as a

volcano with two vents: destructivenes
and creativeness”
-Sylvia Ashton-Warner

Figure 1. Kanlaon Volcano

https://www.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/index.php/volca
II. WHAT YOU NEEDno-hazard/introduction
TO KNOW -to-volcanoes

 What is magma?
 How magma is formed?
 Types of magma

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 DISCUSSION:

Magma and lava are among of

the few words that we often
interchanged but technically,
these two words mean different.
As shown in figure 2, the main
difference between magma and
lava is its environment. The
former is within the interior of
the Earth while the latter is at
the surface. Magma is
composed of liquefied
rocks, crystals and dissolved
gases. It varies in temperature
and in chemical compositions.
Figure 3 shows the average elemental properties in magma. The most abundant
element is oxygen(O2) which is about 50% of the total, followed by 25%
silicon(Si) and the remaining elements make-up about the other 25% of the total.

Figure 3. Average elemental proportions in Earth’s crust https://opentextbc.ca/geology/chapter/3-2-magma-and-magma-

formation/

In the previous lesson about layers of the Earth, you

learned that the only part of the Earth that is liquid is the outer core mostly made
up of iron. Based on the data presented in Figure 2, magma mostly made up of Si
and O2, therefore it is not the source of magma .

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Where does magma originated?

Magma do not form everywhere beneath the surface of the Earth. It is

formed from the melting of rocks in the Earth’s lithosphere, which is the lower part
of the crust and in the upper portion of the mantle known as asthenosphere. Rock
melts under tremendous pressure and high temperatures. Molten rock flows like a
hot wax.
Most magmas are formed at temperatures between 600oC and
1300oC.

Below is the image of a magma chamber (Figure 4) which collects magma

beneath Earth’s surface. It is located where the heat and pressure are great enough
to melt rock. These locations are at divergent or convergent plate boundaries or at
hotpots.

Figure 4. Magma Chamber underlying yellow stone

https://flexbooks.ck12.org/cbook/ck-12-middle-school-earth-science-flexbook-
2.0/section/7.4/primary/lesson/magma-composition-at-volcanoes-ms-es

How are magmas formed?

Ways to Generate Magma

Temperature and pressure differences as well as structural
formations in the mantle and crust cause magma to form in different

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 processes. These are decompression melting, increase in
temperature, and flux melting.

1. Decompression Melting

Considering the different sources of the Earth’s internal heat that would cause
rock at Earth’s surface to melt, Earth’s mantle is almost entirely a solid rock. It
remains solid at those temperatures because the rock is under high pressure.
Remember that pressure is the most important factor in the formation of magma.
As the depth increases towards the center of the Earth, the pressure also increases
due to the overlying rocks above. This means that if rock is already hot enough and
pressure is reduced, melting will proceed even without the addition of heat
triggered by a reduction in pressure is called decompression melting. This process
involves the upward movement of the Earth's mantle to an area where pressure is
reduced, and rocks molecules are given more space. Thus, the reduction in
overlying pressure enables the rock to melt, lead in decompression melting to
magma formation.
This process usually occurs at divergent plate boundaries, wherein the two
tectonic plates are moving away from each other. It also occurs at mantle plumes,
columns of hot rocks that rise from the Earth’s high-pressure core to the lower
pressure crust.

2. Increase in Temperature

Though it is considered as the least among the three process, magma

formation is also possible with this process. Recall the previous lesson on Earths
internal heat, as the depth increases towards the core, the temperature also
increases. With the increasing temperature, the solid rock masses begin to vibrate
then the bonding between them breaks and finally convert into magma. 3. Flux
Melting

This process occurs when impurities such as water H2O or carbon dioxide
CO2 are added to rock. These compounds cause the rock to melt at lower
temperatures. As a result, magma will form in places where it originally
maintained a solid structure.When addition of CO2 and H2O takes place in the
deep Earth where temperature is already high, lowering its melting temperature
could cause partial melting of rock to generate magma.

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 Furthermore, flux melting also occurs around subduction
zones. In this case, water overlying the subducting seafloor would
lower the melting temperature of the mantle, generating magma that
rises to the surface.
Since magma are less dense than the surrounding rocks, it will
therefore move upward. It tries to escape from the source through
openings such as volcanoes or existing cracks on the ground.
Extrusive or volcanic rock form if magma crystallizes to the surface
while intrusive or plutonic rock form if it will crystallizes before it
reaches to the surface.

Types of Magma

Properties of magma depends on the rock that initially melts,

as well as, the process that occur during partial melting and
transport.

Table 1. Types of Magma and its Properties

Magma Type Solidified Chemical Composition Temperature Viscosity Gas Content
Rock

Basaltic or Basalt 45-55 SiO2 %, 1000 - 1200 °C Low Low

Mafic High in Fe, Mg, Ca low
in K, Na
Andesitic or Andesit e 55-65 SiO2 %, 800 - 1000 °C Intermediat e Intermediat e
Intermediate Intermediate in Fe,
Mg, Ca, Na, K
Felsic or Rhyolite 65-75 SiO2 %, low in 650 - 800 °C High High
Rhyolitic Fe, Mg, Ca, high in
K, Na.

geologyin.com/2015/08/magma-characteristics-types-sources-and.html (with slight

modification in viscosity)

Table 1 shows the different types of magma and its properties.

Magma is classified into three, these are Mafic or Basaltic, Intermediate or
Andesitic, and Felsic or Rhyolitic.
Take note, chemical analyses are usually given in terms of oxides of silica
(most commonly, SiO2), since O2 is the most abundant element. In terms of oxides
of silicon, rhyolitic has the highest and basaltic has the lowest content. On the other

5
hand, basaltic has the highest content of iron (Fe), magnesium (Mg) and Calcium
(Ca) and lowest in potassium (K) and sodium (Na) while rhyolite has low Fe, Mg,
and Ca content
FIGURE: Volcanic Eruptionhttps://flexbooks.ck12.org/cbook/ck Figure 5. Volcanic Eruption -12 -middle-school-earth-

science-flexbook- and high in K and Na.

2.0/section/7.4/primary/lesson/magma-composition-at-volcanoes-ms-es

Furthermore,
nearly all magmas at the depth of the Earth contain gases such as CO 2, H2O, small
amount of S, Cl, and F. As shown in Table 1, felsic
magma has the highest gas contents.
In terms of viscosity, the resistance of a liquid to flow, felsic is the most
viscous while basaltic is the least. It is also shown in Table 1 that magma with
higher SiO2 and with low temperature, most likely to contain a higher amount of
gases to be more viscous. In addition, viscosity is a significant property in
determining the eruptive behavior of magmas. Viscous magmas tend to stay below
the surface or erupt explosively. These are felsic magmas, which are high in silica.
When magma is fluid and runny, it is not viscous. This magma often reaches
the surface by flowing out in rivers of lava. These are low-silica mafic
magmas.

“The type of eruption a volcano has depends on the type of magma in its
chamber. Some eruptions are explosive. Some eruptions are quiet.
All eruptions are amazing!”

III. WHAT I HAVE LEARNED

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 EVALUATION/POST TEST:

I. True or False. Write T if the

statement is expressing correct idea and F if the statement is wrong. Write your
answer in your notebook.

1. Aluminum is the most abundant element present in magma._____

2. Magma rises toward Earth’s surface because it is less dense than the
surrounding rocks._____
3. Andesitic is more viscous than felsic magma._____
4. Decompression melting involved temperature reduction._____
5. Temperature is considered the most important factor in the formation of
magma. _____

II. Filling the blanks. Supply the missing word or words that will complete the
sentence.

1. Process of melting that is triggered by a reduction in pressure is called

_________________________
2. Magma with high viscosity tend to erupt _______________________.
3. Impurities introduced to magma cause the rock to melt at__________.
Temperature.
4. ___________is a molten mixture of rock-forming substances, gases, and water
from the mantle.
5. Viscosity is define as the resistance of fluid to flow and depends primarily
on the composition and
___________________ of the magma.

REFERENCES
Carlson, Diane H.,Plummer, Charles. C., & Hammersley, Lisa. (2011).

Physical Geology.Earth Revealed. 9th ed.McGraw-Hill Companies,

Inc.,1221Avenue of American,

New York, NY10020, pp. 288-289

www. Canva.com

Characteristics of Magma geologyin.com/2015/08/magma-characteristics-types-sources-

and.html (with slight modification in viscosity

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How Magma Formed? Retrieved June 30,2020 from https://openpress.usask.ca/physicalgeology/chapter/7-1-

magma-and-how-it- forms/

Introduction to Volcanoes Retrieved July 1, 2020 from https://www.phivolcs.dost.gov.ph/index.php/volcano-

hazard/introduction-to- volcanoes Magma and Magma Formation Retrieved June 29, 2020 from https://opentextbc.ca/geology/chapter/3-2-magma-and-magma-

formation/

Magma Composition at Volcanoes Retrieved July 1, 2020 from https://flexbooks.ck12.org/cbook/ck-12-middle-school-earth-

science-flexbook- 2.0/section/7.4/primary/lesson/magma-composition-atvolcanoes-ms-es