Volcanism Chapter 4

First Midterm is tomorrow, covers first four chapters in the Course notes. Mostly multiple choices, true false, etc. Course notes are available on the web at: http://www.colorado.edu/GeolSci/courses/GEOL1010-3/

The Nature of Volcanic Eruptions

Factors determining the violence or explosiveness of a volcanic eruption
Composition of the magma Temperature of the magma Dissolved gases in the magma

These three factors control the viscosity of magma (which controls the nature of an eruption)

The Nature of Volcanic Eruptions

Viscosity is a measure of a materials resistance to flow (higher viscosity materials flow with great difficulty; water has very low viscosity) Factors affecting viscosity
Higher temperature - magma is less viscous (or more fluid) Composition - higher silica (SiO2) content magma is more viscous (rhyolite) Lower silica content = lower viscosity or more fluid-like behavior (e.g., mafic lava such as basalt)

The Nature of Volcanic Eruptions

Factors affecting viscosity continued
Dissolved Gases Gas content affects magma mobility Gases expand in a magma as it nears the Earths surface due to decreasing pressure The violence of an eruption is related to how easily gases escape from magma

The Nature of Volcanic Eruptions

Summary
Fluid basaltic lavas generally produce quiet eruptions (Hawaiian volcanos gurgle) Highly viscous lavas (rhyolite or andesite) produce more explosive eruptions (Yellowstone or St Helens go boom)

Materials extruded from a volcano

Lava Flows
Basaltic lavas are much more fluid Types of basaltic flows Pahoehoe lava (- twisted or ropey texture) Aa lava (rough, jagged blocky texture)

Dissolved Gases
1-6% of a magma by weight Mainly water vapor and carbon dioxide

A Pahoehoe lava flow

Fluid basalt forms lava tubes

A typical aa flow

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Materials extruded from a volcano

Pyroclastic materials Fire fragments
Types of pyroclastic debris Ash and dust - fine, glassy fragments Pumice - porous rock from frothy lava Lapilli - walnut-sized material Cinders - pea-sized material Particles larger than lapilli
Blocks - hardened or cooled lava Bombs - ejected as hot lava

A volcanic bomb
Bomb is approximately 10 cm long

Volcanoes
General Features
Opening at the summit of a volcano
Crater - steep-walled depression at the summit, generally less than 1 km diameter Caldera - a summit depression typically greater than 1 km diameter, produced by collapse following a massive eruption

Vent opening connected to the magma chamber via a pipe

Volcanoes
Types of Volcanoes
Shield volcano
Broad, slightly domed-shaped Composed primarily of basaltic lava Generally cover large areas Produced by mild eruptions of large volumes of lava Mauna Loa on Hawaii is a good example

A size comparison of the three types of volcanoes

Olympus Mons Caldera

Volcanoes
Types of Volcanoes continued
Cinder cone
Built from ejected lava (mainly cinder-sized) fragments Steep slope angle Rather small size Frequently occur in groups

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Sunset Crater a cinder cone near Flagstaff, Arizona

Volcanoes
Types of volcanoes continued
Composite cone (Stratovolcano)
Most are located adjacent to the Pacific Ocean (e.g., Fujiyama, Mt. St. Helens) Large, classic-shaped volcano (1000s of ft. high & several miles wide at base) Composed of interbedded lava flows and layers of pyroclastic debris

A composite volcano

Mt. St. Helens a typical composite volcano (prior to eruption)

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Mt. St. Helens following the 1980 eruption

St Helens Eruption Sequence How would Scientists Monitor this Process? Seismometers Tilt Meters INSAR

St Helens Base Surge (on the scale of an atomic bomb)

Volcanoes
Composite cones continued Most violent type of activity (e.g., Mt. Vesuvius) Often produce a nue ardente Fiery pyroclastic flow made of hot gases infused with ash and other debris Move down the slopes of a volcano at speeds up to 200 km per hour May produce a lahar, which is a volcanic mudflow

A nue ardente on Mt. St. Helens

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Location of Montserrat - a historical Nuee Ardente

Town of St Pierre on Montserrat after Nuee Ardente

Other volcanic landforms

Calderas (form by collapse of evacuated magma chamber)
Steep-walled depressions at the summit Size generally exceeds 1 km in diameter

Pyroclastic flows (explosive mix of rock, gas and heat)

Only with felsic & intermediate magma Consists of ash, pumice, and other fragmental debris Material propelled from vent at high speed

Caldera of Mt Mazama now filled by Crater Lake

Mt Mazama Eruption and Caldera Collapse

Other volcanic landforms

Fissure eruptions and lava plateaus
Fluid basaltic lava extruded from crustal fractures called fissures e.g., Columbia River Plateau Flood basalts cover huge areas

Flood Basalt erupted from fissures - Snake River Plain, southern Idaho

Volcanic landforms
Lava Domes
Bulbous mass of congealed lava Most are associated with explosive eruptions of gas-rich magma

St Helens Lava Dome

Volcanic landforms
Volcanic pipes and necks
Pipes are short conduits that connect a magma chamber to the surface Volcanic necks (e.g., Devils Tower in Wyoming and Ship Rock in New Mexico) are resistant vents left standing after erosion has removed volcanic cone

Formation of a volcanic neck

Shiprock in Northern New Mexico

Plutonic igneous activity

Types of intrusive igneous features
Dike a sheetlike injection into a fracture (cuts across pre-existing rocks) Sill a thick, sheetlike injection into a bedding plane (lies parallel to bedding) Laccolith Similar to a sill Lens or mushroom-shaped mass Arches overlying strata upward

Spanish Peaks and Radiating Dikes (southern CO)

Spanish Peaks Dike Outcrop

Spanish Peaks Digital Elevation

Spanish Peaks Dikes

Volcanic Necks

Dikes

Spanish Peaks Dikes - Digital 3D Elevation Volcanic Necks

Dikes

Some intrusive igneous structures

Injection of a laccolith

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A sill in the Salt River Canyon, AZ

Plate tectonics and igneous activity

Global distribution of magmatism is not random
Most volcanoes are located within or near ocean basins Basalt common in both oceanic and continental settings Granite is rare in oceans, mostly found in continents

Distribution of major volcanoes

Plate tectonics and igneous activity

Igneous activity along plate margins
Spreading centers
Great volumes of volcanic rock produced along oceanic ridges Mechanism of spreading Lithosphere pulls apart and thins Less pressure results in partial melting in mantle

Plate tectonics and igneous activity

Igneous activity along plate margins
Subduction zones
Descending plate partially melts Magma slowly moves upward Rising magma can form either An island arc if in the ocean (Aleutians) A volcanic arc if on a continental margin(Sierra Nevada Mtns - California)

Volcanism in subduction zones

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Plate tectonics and magmatism

Intraplate volcanism
Associated with plumes of heat in mantle Form localized volcanic regions in the overriding plate called a hot spot
Produces basaltic magma sources in oceanic crust (Hawaii and Iceland) Produces granitic magma sources in continental crust (Yellowstone Park)

Volcanism on a tectonic plate moving over a hot spot

End of Volcanism (Chapter 4)

These notes are available on the web at:

http://www.colorado.edu/GeolSci/courses/GEOL1010-03/