McConnell 3e PPT Ch06

Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains
1. The Volcano Commandos

2. Magma Viscosity
3. Magma Sources and Magma
Composition
4. The Mount St. Helens
Eruption
5. Products of Volcanic
Eruptions
6. Volcanoes and Volcanic
Landforms
7. Mountains: Why are They
There?
8. The Rise and Fall of
Mountains and Temperatures
Copyright © McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
Volcanoes and Other Mountains
As a scientifically literate
citizen, what 3 questions
would you ask about this
volcano if you moved to the
city in the foreground
(Tacoma, Washington)?
The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

The Volcano Commandos
• 1,500 active
volcanoes
worldwide
− a third have
records of
previous
eruptions
− 2 or 3
eruptions per
− 500 million people live near active volcanoes decade are
major
− Fewer than 200 volcanoes have instruments disasters
to assess potential for eruption

• Volcanic mudflows
from the eruption of
Nevado del Ruiz
volcano, Colombia
killed more than
23,000 people
Geologists of
the Volcano
Disaster
Assistance
Program
(VDAP) help
identify risks of
potential
eruptions

• VDAP scientists
traveled to Congo to
examine eruption of
Nyiragongo volcano
(2002)
− Lava flowed through the
nearby city of Goma
(450,000 residents)
− Fortunately, toxic
volcanic gases trapped
in Like Kivu were not
Distribution of older lava flows gave scientists some released
idea of the potential eruption products of Nyiragongo.

− Lava from Nyiragongo was several meters thick
and burned and destroyed buildings in Goma

Poisonous volcanic gases from Lake Nyos, Cameroon,
killed 1,700 people in surrounding villages (1986)

Magma Viscosity
• Escaping gases drive volcanic eruptions

• How easily gases escape from magma is
controlled by magma viscosity
− Magma – molten rock below the surface
− Lava – molten rock at the surface
• Viscosity = resistance to flow

− Viscosity depends upon temperature and
magma composition
− Magma composition varies with plate
tectonic setting

Volcanoes and Other Mountains Conceptest
Place the following 4 materials – maple syrup,

milk, peanut butter, frozen yogurt – in the correct
positions (A, B, C, D) for their relative viscosity.

Magma Viscosity
Viscosity = resistance to flow
− Viscosity of materials decreases with increasing temperature

− Viscosity varies with composition

Magma Viscosity
Escaping volcanic gases drive eruptions

• Gases are dissolved in magma
− Water vapor, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide
• Pressure on magma decreases as magma

rises toward surface
• Gases are released as pressure decreases
− Carbonated drink analogy

All other factors being equal, which magma

would flow the fastest?
A. High viscosity magma

B. Low viscosity magma
C. Neither, magma does not have viscosity

How would the viscosity of motor oil in your

car’s engine change from the time you turn
the key in the ignition to when you have
driven 50 km (30 miles)?
A. Viscosity would increase

B. Viscosity would decrease
C. Viscosity would stay the same

Magma Viscosity
Viscosity depends upon magma

composition (silica content)
• Silica is combination of oxygen and silicon that

combines with other elements (e.g., sodium,
potassium) to form minerals
− Elements combine to form simple structures in
minerals with less silica = low viscosity
− Elements combine to form more complex structures in
minerals with more silica = high viscosity

Magma Viscosity


Which type magma most likely has the

lowest viscosity?
A. High silica, high temperature

B. High silica content, low temperature
C. Low silica content, high temperature
D. Low silica content, low temperature

Magma Viscosity
More viscosity = More

violent eruptions
• Gases escape easily
during mild eruptions
with low viscosity
magma, e.g., Hawaii
• Gases escape
explosively from high
viscosity magma,
e.g., Alaska
 Mild or violent eruption?

Imagine taking a straw and bubbling

air through liquids in two glasses –
milk and a milkshake. Which liquid
has the higher viscosity?
A. Milk
B. Milkshake
Hint: Gas (air) would escape more readily from which liquid?

How would you classify the viscosity of the

magma that produced the eruption of
Nyiragongo and the violence of the eruption?
A. Low-viscosity magma; violent eruption

B. High-viscosity magma; violent eruption
C. High-viscosity magma; mild eruption
D. Low-viscosity magma; mild eruption

Magma Viscosity

Q: Why does silica content vary?

A: Silica content controlled by magma
source (plate tectonics)
. . . See next section

Magma Sources and Magma Composition
• Most active
volcanoes (top)
found near
convergent plate
boundaries
(bottom)
− Others
associated
with divergent
boundaries
(Iceland, East
Africa) or form
above hot
spots (Hawaii)

Different plate settings generate magma
from melting different source rocks
1. Basaltic magma –
partial melting parts
of asthenosphere
below oceanic ridge
2
or hot spots
1
− also at
continental
divergent
boundary and hot
spot
2. Rhyolitic magma -
melting of parts of
continental crust The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains
Different plate settings yield different magmas from
different source rocks
Divergent Boundary
Oceanic Ridge
Basaltic magma
Oceanic Hot spot

Basaltic magma
Divergent Boundary
Continental Rift
Basaltic & Rhyolitic
magma

Different plate settings generate magma
from melting different source rocks
3. Andesitic magma
– partial melting of
mantle rocks (with
water) at
subduction zone

Different plate settings yield different magmas from
different source rocks
Convergent Boundary
Oceanic Trench/
Subduction Zone
Andesitic magma
Convergent Boundary
Oceanic Trench/
Subduction Zone
Andesitic magma

Silica content is controlled by partial melting

of rocks at magma source
• Partial melting occurs when some minerals in a
rock melt while others remain solid
− Minerals with lowest melting temperatures will melt first
− Silica-rich minerals have lowest melting temperatures
• Partial melting generates a more silica-rich
magma than the parent rock

Three types of magma defined by silica content
Partial Melting Of Asthenosphere/Mantle wedge/Continental crust
. . . generates Basaltic/Andesitic/Rhyolitic magma with
. . . Low/Intermediate/High silica content
Different magma types form in different plate tectonic settings

Which image best illustrates the source of

most magma from active volcanoes?
Magma has a Magma comes Magma comes

source in the from a source from isolated
molten rocks of layer in the sources below
the outer core mantle volcanoes

Volcanoes and Other Mountains Checkpoint 6.6
Use the Venn diagram to

compare and contrast the
compositions and sources
of the 3 types of magma.
1. Low silica content
2. From a mantle source
3. Example: Aleutian Island
volcanoes, Alaska
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

1. Examine the map and identify 5 volcanoes formed

above subduction zones.
2. Name a volcano
that generates
low-viscosity
magma.
3. Other than Mauna

Loa, which
volcano is most
likely to have
formed above a
hot spot?

The Mount St. Helens Eruption
• Cascade Mountains – volcanic

arc in Pacific Northwest
− Major cities within 100 km of
active volcanoes
− Mount St. Helens eruption of
May 18, 1980

• Cascade Mountains
− Volcanoes formed above
subduction zone where Juan
de Fuca plate slides beneath
North America
− Mount St. Helens is most active
volcano in conterminous US

What type of magma is associated with

Mount St. Helens?
A. Basaltic
B. Rhyolitic
C. Andesitic

Prior Activity
• Early (March) unrest featured
− Minor eruptions • Followed by change in shape
− Earthquakes of cone (bulge on North
flank)
− Release of volcanic gases
• Increasing frequency of
earthquakes
May 18 Eruption
• A moderate earthquake
triggered a massive
landslide (debris avalanche)
on the north side of the
volcano
− Debris clogged streams
− Pressure released on
near-surface magma
− Lateral blast produces an
initial sideways eruption to
North
− Later vertical eruption

Measuring the Eruption
• Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI)
measures volume of erupted
material
− 8 divisions on log scale (x10
increase between divisions)

Measuring the Eruption

• Mount St. Helens May 18
eruption had a VEI = 5
• Later eruptions were much
smaller
• Eruption of VEI 5 or higher
approximately every 22
years
− Loss of life from
eruptions often
associated with
associated mudflows,
tsunami

Products of Volcanic Eruptions
Major products of volcanic eruptions:

• Airborne – lateral blast, tephra, volcanic gases
• Flows on land – lava, pyroclastic flows, lahars

• Eruption of Mount St. Helens reduced height
of volcano by 400 meters
• Features near volcano were blown over or
carried away by products of eruption
Geologist David Johnston (right) died at this site (Johnston’s

Ridge) located 10 km from the volcano.

Airborne Eruption Products
• Rare lateral blasts

can destroy objects
up to 12 km away
and knock down
trees more than 25
km distant
− Effect of lateral
blast only seen on
North flank of
Mount St. Helens

• Tephra represents particles blasted into air by eruption
− Volcanic bombs and ash are found near and far from eruption
source, respectively
Blobs of magma
solidify to form lava
bombs
Wind can transport fine

volcanic ash for hundreds
of kilometers downwind

• Tephra represents
particles blasted into
air by eruption
− Volcanic ash
(particles of <2 mm
diameter)
− Measurable ash
deposits found
hundreds of km
from volcano
− Compare Mt. St.
Helens ash fall to
the Yellowstone
super-eruption
640,000 years ago.

• Volcanic gases (water
vapor, sulfur dioxide,
carbon dioxide) may
affect climate patterns
− Sulfur dioxide may
block insolation,
temporarily (up to 1
year) reducing global
temperatures
− Widespread release of
carbon dioxide and
higher temperatures
Trees killed by excessive carbon dioxide released by due to faster rates of
magma under Mammoth Mountain, California. volcanic activity
approximately 120-80
million years ago

Eruption Products on Land
• Low viscosity lava can

flow up to 50 km from its
source
− Lava transported to
front of lava flows in
long lava tubes
− Lava flows build up in
a series of layers

• Low viscosity lava can

flow up to 50 km from its
source
− Lava transported to
front of lava flows in
long lava tubes
− Lava flows build up in
a series of layers
Walter’s Kalapana store, Hawaii,

was buried in lava within a few
weeks in 1990

• Higher viscosity lava remains

within volcano crater
− Lava dome formed in crater of
Mount St. Helens

• Pyroclastic flow – dense
cloud formed from combination
of tephra and volcanic gases
− Fast moving, up to 700 C

• Lahars – mudflows formed when

volcanic debris mixes with streams
or melting ice
− Often confined to stream channels
Lahar along Muddy

River reached
depths of 20 meters
following Mount St.
Helens eruption

Predict which product of the volcanic

eruption traveled farthest from Mount
St. Helens?
A. Pyroclastic flow
B. Lava
C. Lahar

Compare and contrast the eruptions of Nyiragongo and Mt. St. Helens.
Place the numbers in the appropriate locations on the diagram.
1. Located near a convergent plate boundary.

2. Located near an early stage divergent plate
boundary.
3. Produced significant lava flows.
4. Eruption followed a century of inactivity.
5. Several eruptions in the last century.
6. Few monitoring instruments prior to unrest.
7. Volcanic gases released prior to main eruption.
8. Frequent earthquakes associated with unrest.
9. Unrest lasted for approximately 2 months
before eruption.
10. Eruption occurred in daylight.
11. Volcano located within 20 km of large city.
12. Volcanic activity subsided after about one 15. Death toll less than 100.
week. 16. Death toll more than 100.
13. Low viscosity magma. 17. Shape of volcano changed prior to eruption.
14. USGS geologists aided in interpretation of 18. Eruption characterized by a massive lateral
volcanic activity. blast.
Volcanoes and Volcanic Landforms
Three types of volcanoes

• Shield, stratovolcanoes, cinder cone
• Composed of different materials
• Volcano type and eruption style varies with plate setting
• Different sizes (note size of trees on volcano slopes)
Shield volcano Stratovolcano Cinder cone volcano

Shield volcanoes (e.g., Hawaiian Islands)
• Broad, gentle slopes
• Built from many low viscosity lava flows (basalt)
• Relatively mild eruptions associated with hot spots,
divergent plate boundaries

Stratovolcanoes (e.g., Osorno, Chile)
• Most common volcano type
• Steeper slopes built from alternating layers of tephra and
medium viscosity lava (andesite)
• Form on plates overriding subduction zones at convergent
plate boundaries

Cinder cone volcanoes
• Smallest volcanoes, up to 400 meters elevation
• Built from more viscous magma products (coarse tephra)
• May form on slopes of shield or stratovolcanoes
Sunset Crater volcano,

Arizona

What type of volcano is Mount St. Helens?
A. Shield volcano
B. Stratovolcano
C. Cinder cone volcano

Other Volcanic Landforms - Caldera
• Giant crater formed from collapse of volcano into
underlying magma chamber
• e.g., Yellowstone, Wyoming
Caldera formed from

collapse of previous
volcano
Crater of Karymsky
volcano

Other Volcanic Landforms
– Lava Plateau
• Hundreds of low viscosity
lava flows stack up to on top
of each other
• Individual layers of basalt
10-20 meters thick
• Plateau thousands of
meters thick
• Form from some of the
largest volcanic eruptions
• e.g., Columbia River
plateau

Lava Plateau
• Massive basalt eruptions formed lava plateaus and elevated
atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide 120-80 Myrs ago to
produce global “hothouse” conditions

Geysers, Hot Springs, Fumeroles, Mud Volcanoes
• Form when water circulates near magma chamber
− Geyser – water heated under pressure with volcanic gases
− Hot spring – heated groundwater rises to surface
− Mud volcano – chemical reactions convert rock to clay
− Fumerole – volcanic gases escape in absence of water
Geyser Hot Spring Mud volcano Fumerole

Mountains: Why Are They There?
• Thickest crust found
below mountains
along convergent
plate boundaries
− Himalayas, 70 km thick
− Andes, up to 60 km thick
− “normal” crust 40 km thick
Himalayas - thickest
continental crust and
tallest mountains
• Higher, younger mountains along present convergent
boundaries (e.g., Himalayas)
• Lower, older mountain belts represent ancient convergent
boundaries (e.g., Appalachians)

India
Eurasia
• Reverse faults
stack up and
thicken the crust
along convergent
plate boundaries
− Additional
thickening of
crust where the
India Eurasia
northern margin
of Indian
continental crust
wedged below
southern margin
of Eurasia

If the crust is 30 km thicker under the Himalayas, whey
are they not 30 km higher than the rest of the continents?
The elevation of mountains is tied to density and isostasy.

Density = mass per unit volume

− Density of water = 1 g/cm3
− Density of pine wood = 0.5 g/cm3
• Wood floats because it is

less dense than water
− Density of pine is half (50%)
the density of water
− Half of the pine block lies
What would happen if we used below the water surface
a block of oak with a density
that is 80% that of water?

• Density of oak is 80%

density of water
− 80% of oak blocks lies
below the surface
− Smaller blocks don’t
float as high but don’t
extend as far below
surface
− Much of the difference
in the size of the
blocks is in the
submerged “root”

Different types of wood have different densities. For

example, the density of pine (0.5 g/cm3) is less
than ebony (0.9 g/cm3) but more than balsa wood
(0.14 g/cm3). All would float in water but with
different proportions of each block lying above
and below the surface.
1. Draw a diagram to show what would happen if
equal-sized blocks of each type of wood were
added to a container full of water.
2. What would happen to the blocks if we
replaced the water with a liquid with higher
density like corn syrup?

• Density of continental
crust is 80% density
of mantle
− Thicker continental
crust rises higher but
also extends farther
below the surface
− Much of the difference
in the thickness of the
continental crust is in
the crustal “root”
− Similar to deeper
foundation for taller
buildings

• Elevation of mountains
depends on
− Thickness of crust
− Density contrast with
underlying mantle
• Isostasy – balance
between topography of
Earth’s surface and
thickness and density
of underlying rocks
− Higher mountains with
thicker or less dense
rocks

The following profile shows the topography of a

continent. Draw the relative position of the base
of the crust taking into account the principles of
isostasy. Label continental crust, oceanic crust,
and mantle. Explain your drawing.

The Rise and Fall of Mountains and Temperatures
• Changes in elevation depends on the relative

density of crust and mantle
The height of The height of

wood blocks wood blocks
and continents and
will decrease continents will
(float lower) as increase (float
mass is higher) as
removed mass is added
Elevation only changes by 20% of added/removed material

Most changes occur in “crustal root” below the surface

Elevation only changes by 20% of added/removed material

Most changes occur in “crustal root” below the surface
• Isostasy compensates for added material by

building a bigger root or for lost material by
raising the pile

How would the elevations of mountains

differ if Earth’s crust was composed of
denser rocks? Mountains would be
A. Higher
B. Lower
C. Unchanged in elevation

• For every 1,000

meters of rock eroded
from mountains,
isostasy results in just
200 meters decrease
in elevation
− 800 meters of change
accommodated by
raising the crustal root
− Evenly distributed
erosion causes uniform
lowering of mountains
− Erosion concentrated in
valleys, can cause
peaks to become higher
• Mountains are long-lived features on Earth

− Still forming Himalayas began to form ~50 Myrs ago
− Lower Appalachian Mountains formed ~300 Myrs ago

• Mountains are long-lived features on Earth

− Approximate erosion rates  0.1-0.2 mm/year
− Rate depends of rock types, climate, other factors
− 5-10 Myrs to erode 1 km of rock
− But isostasy will replace 80% of this erosion
− 200 meter change in elevation every 5-10 Myrs
− 25-50 Myrs to lower mountains by 1 km
• Mountains ranges will persist on the

landscape for hundreds of millions of years

Use the information from this section to

explain:
1. Why are the ten tallest U.S. peaks all in Alaska?
2. Why are the Rocky Mountains taller than the
Appalachian Mountains?
3. Why we can drive across former mountains in
Canada without rising in elevation?

• Erosion of the
Himalayan Mountains
− Warm, moist air from
Indian Ocean rises
over Himalayas to form
monsoon rains
− Rain feed rivers that
erode mountains
− Sediment deposited in
Bay of Bengal and
Arabian Sea

• Mountains influence
climate patterns
− Monsoon rains strip
carbon dioxide from
atmosphere
− Removal of CO2 has
been going on for 20
Myrs
− Reduction of this
greenhouse gas has
lowered global
temperatures by ~5oC

Use information from this chapter to identify
interactions between volcanoes and the earth
system.

McConnell 3e PPT Ch06

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Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

1. The Volcano Commandos

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

• Escaping gases drive volcanic eruptions

• Viscosity = resistance to flow

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Place the following 4 materials – maple syrup,

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Viscosity = resistance to flow

− Viscosity of materials decreases with increasing temperature

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Escaping volcanic gases drive eruptions

• Pressure on magma decreases as magma

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

All other factors being equal, which magma

A. High viscosity magma

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

How would the viscosity of motor oil in your

A. Viscosity would increase

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Viscosity depends upon magma

• Silica is combination of oxygen and silicon that

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Viscosity depends upon magma

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Which type magma most likely has the

A. High silica, high temperature

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

More viscosity = More

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Imagine taking a straw and bubbling

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

How would you classify the viscosity of the

A. Low-viscosity magma; violent eruption

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Viscosity depends upon magma

Q: Why does silica content vary?

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Oceanic Hot spot

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Silica content is controlled by partial melting

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Three types of magma defined by silica content

Partial Melting Of Asthenosphere/Mantle wedge/Continental crust

. . . generates Basaltic/Andesitic/Rhyolitic magma with

. . . Low/Intermediate/High silica content

Different magma types form in different plate tectonic settings

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Which image best illustrates the source of

Magma has a Magma comes Magma comes

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

Use the Venn diagram to

The Good Earth/Chapter 6: Volcanoes and Other Mountains

1. Examine the map and identify 5 volcanoes formed

3. Other than Mauna