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Earth Science 6.3 : Causes of Volcanic Eruptions

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Chris Foltz

Magma forms deep underground due to decreasing pressure and rising temperature, and volcanoes erupt when this magma reaches the surface. Most volcanoes are located along plate boundaries, where tectonic plates are moving apart or colliding. Scientists can predict volcanic eruptions by monitoring earthquake activity, volcanic gas emissions, changes in slope and surface temperature at volcanoes, all of which indicate rising magma.

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Earth Science : 6.3Causes of Volcanic Eruptions
Objectives:Describe the formation and movement of magma.Explain the relationship between volcanoes and plate tectonics.Summarize the methods scientists use to predict volcanic eruptions.
The Formation of MagmaUnderstanding how magma forms helps explain why volcanoes erupt. Magma forms in the deeper regions of the Earth’s crust and in the uppermost layers of the mantle.Pressure and temperature aid in the formation of magma, and magma is formed in the mantle. *Temperature - fairly constant, so decrease in pressure is most common cause of magma formation.
Where Volcanoes FormThe locations of volcanoes give clues about how volcanoes form.The map below shows the location of some of the worlds most active volcanoes.
When Tectonic Plates SeparateAt a divergent boundary,tectonic plates move away from each other,forming a set of deep cracks called a rift zone between the plates.Mantle rock rises to fill the gap opened by the separating tectonic plates.When mantle rock nears the surface,Pressure decreases, which causes the mantle rock to melt and form magma.
Earth Science 6.3 : Causes of Volcanic Eruptions
Mid-Ocean Ridges Form at Divergent BoundariesLava that flows from undersea rift zones produces volcanoes and mountain chains called mid-ocean ridges.At these mid-ocean ridges,lava flows out and creates new crust.Most volcanic activity on Earth occurs at mid-ocean ridges.
When Tectonic Plates CollideConvergent boundaries Places where tectonic plates collide.SubductionProcess when an oceanic plate collides with a continental plate, the oceanic plate usually slides underneath the continental plate. Subduction Produces MagmaAs descending oceanic crust scrapes past the continental crust, the temperature and pressure increase.Magma produced by subduction can rise to form a volcano.
Hot SpotsNot all magma develops along tectonic plates boundaries.Hot spotsvolcanically active places on the Earth’s surface that are far from plate boundaries.Some scientists think that hot spots are directly above columns of rising magma, called mantle plumes.A hot spot often produces a chain of volcanoes.One theory is that the mantle plume stays in the same spot while the tectonic plates move over it.Other scientists think that hot spots are the result of cracks in the Earth’s crust.The theory argues that hot-spot volcanoes occur in chains because they form along the cracks in the Earth’s crust.
Earth Science 6.3 : Causes of Volcanic Eruptions
Predicting Volcanic EruptionsVolcanoes are classified in three categories:Active VolcanoesDormant VolcanoesExtinct Volcanoes
Measuring Small Quakes and Volcanic GasesMost active volcanoes produce small earthquakes as the magma within them moves upward and causes the surrounding rock to shift.Just before an eruption, the number and intensity of the earthquakes increase.Monitoring these quakes is one way to predict an eruption.Studying the ratio of certain gases in a volcano also may help predict eruptions.
Measuring Slope and Temperature As magma moves upward prior to an eruption, it can cause the Earth’s surface to swell, and the side of a volcano may even bulge.Scientists can use instruments and satellite technology to detect changes in a volcano’s slope.Infrared satellite images record changes in surface temperature and gas emissions of a volcano to watch if the magma below is rising.

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Earth Science 6.3 : Causes of Volcanic Eruptions

  • 1. Earth Science : 6.3Causes of Volcanic Eruptions
  • 2. Objectives:Describe the formation and movement of magma.Explain the relationship between volcanoes and plate tectonics.Summarize the methods scientists use to predict volcanic eruptions.
  • 3. The Formation of MagmaUnderstanding how magma forms helps explain why volcanoes erupt. Magma forms in the deeper regions of the Earth’s crust and in the uppermost layers of the mantle.Pressure and temperature aid in the formation of magma, and magma is formed in the mantle. *Temperature - fairly constant, so decrease in pressure is most common cause of magma formation.
  • 4. Where Volcanoes FormThe locations of volcanoes give clues about how volcanoes form.The map below shows the location of some of the worlds most active volcanoes.
  • 5. When Tectonic Plates SeparateAt a divergent boundary,tectonic plates move away from each other,forming a set of deep cracks called a rift zone between the plates.Mantle rock rises to fill the gap opened by the separating tectonic plates.When mantle rock nears the surface,Pressure decreases, which causes the mantle rock to melt and form magma.
  • 7. Mid-Ocean Ridges Form at Divergent BoundariesLava that flows from undersea rift zones produces volcanoes and mountain chains called mid-ocean ridges.At these mid-ocean ridges,lava flows out and creates new crust.Most volcanic activity on Earth occurs at mid-ocean ridges.
  • 8. When Tectonic Plates CollideConvergent boundaries Places where tectonic plates collide.SubductionProcess when an oceanic plate collides with a continental plate, the oceanic plate usually slides underneath the continental plate. Subduction Produces MagmaAs descending oceanic crust scrapes past the continental crust, the temperature and pressure increase.Magma produced by subduction can rise to form a volcano.
  • 9. Hot SpotsNot all magma develops along tectonic plates boundaries.Hot spotsvolcanically active places on the Earth’s surface that are far from plate boundaries.Some scientists think that hot spots are directly above columns of rising magma, called mantle plumes.A hot spot often produces a chain of volcanoes.One theory is that the mantle plume stays in the same spot while the tectonic plates move over it.Other scientists think that hot spots are the result of cracks in the Earth’s crust.The theory argues that hot-spot volcanoes occur in chains because they form along the cracks in the Earth’s crust.
  • 11. Predicting Volcanic EruptionsVolcanoes are classified in three categories:Active VolcanoesDormant VolcanoesExtinct Volcanoes
  • 12. Measuring Small Quakes and Volcanic GasesMost active volcanoes produce small earthquakes as the magma within them moves upward and causes the surrounding rock to shift.Just before an eruption, the number and intensity of the earthquakes increase.Monitoring these quakes is one way to predict an eruption.Studying the ratio of certain gases in a volcano also may help predict eruptions.
  • 13. Measuring Slope and Temperature As magma moves upward prior to an eruption, it can cause the Earth’s surface to swell, and the side of a volcano may even bulge.Scientists can use instruments and satellite technology to detect changes in a volcano’s slope.Infrared satellite images record changes in surface temperature and gas emissions of a volcano to watch if the magma below is rising.