Volcano experts...

1) What type of volcano is most likely to form when magma is high in silica?

Would cinder cone or composite volcano be the most likely one when magma is high in silica, or both types of volcanoes are equally possible?

2) How quickly can a volcano form?

3) "There are 2 major volcanic belts: circum-Pacific belt and Mediterranean belt. About 20% of all active volcanoes are in the Mediterranean belt" (quote)

Is Mediterranean belt the same as the Eurasian-Melanesian mountain belt, or is it just including the volcanoes along the Mediterranean area (not including the Himalayas?

The mountains near the Mediterranean are the Alps mountains, but are they volcanoes? If not, where are the 20% of volcanoes near there? Why are there volcanoes in Italy (e.g. Vesuvius)? Does that mean that the Alps are volcanoes?

Would anyone like to share your knowledge about volcanoes? I appreciate for your time!

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From the online encyclopedia Wikipidea:

"If the erupting magma contains a high percentage (>65%) of silica the lava is called felsic or "Acidic" and tends to be very viscous (not very fluid) and is pushed up in a blob that will solidify relatively quickly."

Therefore, a vocanoe high in silica will form more quickly because it will solidify faster rather than just flow out over the surrounding surface. It will then build up from there. When silica content is high, a composite volcanoe is more likely to form because after multiple eruptions, the layers will be more likely to build up because the multiple layers solidify on top of each other more quickly.

"Cinder cones result from eruptions that throw out mostly small pieces of rock that build up around the vent. These can be relatively short-lived eruptions that produce a cone-shaped hill perhaps 30 to 300 m high."

How quickly can a volcanoe form? Almost instantaneously. Within minutes. Say for example that you are sitting on top of an old mountain in the Rockies that may or may not have been formed by a volcanoe - it may have been formed by a hot spot uplift. Yet there may be hot magma below it. Suddenly the pressure within erupts and explodes out creating a new volcanoe.

The Eurasian-Melanesian mountain belt is one of the two Earth's most active major volcanic mountain building systems and creates about 20% of the Earth's volcanoes. It is along a fault in a plate boundary and produces numerous earthquakes in that area. The other major active belt is the East-Asian, Cordille-ran, Circum-Pacific belt system. The Mediterranean Belt is part of the Eurasian-Melanesian mountain belt system. I sometimes heard it called the "Alpino-Mediterranean belt." Basically, you have to look at the wording of the geological terms and define the individual terms accordingly. For example: "Eura" means European, "Asian" means Asia, therefore Euarasian means "consisting of both Europe & Asia." "Melanesia" includes all the areas northeast of Australia till you get into the Asian continent. Get it?

So the entire Eurasian-Melanesian mountain belt includes this entire area, including the Mediterranean region where there is a plate boundary. But the word "Mediterranean Belt" is sometimes confusing because it refers to the entire Mediterranean basin area, the flat forested regions, and also the very ancient historical mountains that were created when Pangea was still seperating:

"Eastern Mediterranean are regarded as an accretional mosaic of terrains of Gondwanian, Tethyan, Eurasian and sometimes controversial origin....the Mediterranean belt during the Precambrian-early Mesozoic, the generation and development of oceanic basins took place the present structure of these basins is marked by rocks of ophiolitic association....As a result of horizontal displacements of the certain lithospheric plates within the Mediterranean belt during the Precambrian-early Mesozoic, the generation and development of oceanic basins took place the present structure of these basins is marked by rocks of ophiolitic association....Eurasiatic and Afro-Arabian plates at the junction of European and Asiatic branches of the Mediterranean (Alpine-Himalayan) fold belt. Its geological structure is built up mainly by Mesozoic and Cenozoic deposits....Horizontal displacement of the ancient East-European and African platforms, as well as of certain lithospheric block (or plates) within the Mediterranean belt during the Precambrian-Early Mesozoic, the generation and development of oceanic baseins took place. In the present structures, these basins are marked by rocks of ophiolitic association....The closure of the Mesotethys ocean, as well as of the Paleotethys relic basin, occurred as a result of movements which spread from North to South. In particular, only the northern part of the Mediterranean belt was affected by Bathonian (Adygean), Late Cimmerian (pre-Cretaceouse) and Austrian movements. These epochs of tectonic activity are associated with intense manifestions of andesitic volcanism and granitoid plutonism, due to the processes of subduction on the continental margin of the oceanic basins."
http://www.ggs.org.ge/geol-geo.htm

See how complex this gets in geological terms?

In the Eurasian-Melanesian or Alpide fault zone, New Zealand probably has the most active volcanoes. Mount Etna and Ferdinandea are still active in Italy but Mount Vesuvius has not shown any signs of being active.

 

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Because you like asking questions about volcanos. What is the mother of all volcanos (supervolcanos and alike) and when did it last erupt in Earth's history? Please be kind enough to give us your evidence and facts supporting your answer.

May_wentee

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Ha!
I knew it!
Norman. Okeydoke. Novacaine. And now May_wentee. Is everyone who signs their name at the end of their posts here you?

 

Your question is not worded with the appropriate scientific terminology to give an accurate reply. No one mentioned "supervolcanoes." You must be Chinese, right? "May Wen Tee" or in other words "Mei Wen Ti": in Chinese means "no problem" or "no question asked." Cute little psuedonym.

 

Nice excuse. I guess if you can't answer the question then someone else can.

May_wentee

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Is Judas still crying? We all sure hope not.

May_wentee

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Xylene, I learned a lot from your post, thank you!

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By rhyolitic volcano, which specific type of volcano do you mean? (Volcanoes are usually divided into 3 types based on shape and composition: shield, cinder cone, and composite.)

Given that the magma is high in silica, is it more likely to form a cinder cone volcano or a composite volcano? Or both cinder cone and composite volcano are possible to form(like a 50:50 chance)? Or is one type much more likely to form (e.x. cinder cone volcano) than the other (e.x. composite volcano)?

Is Paricutin in Mexico the most quickly formed known volcano? I have found out that it rose more than 40 meters in 1 day when it was growing the fastest. How slowly can a slow-building volcano rise 40 meters in height, can they take up to millions of years?

Eurasian-Melanesian mountain belt goes all the way from the west Pacific Islands, Asia (including Himalayas which are not volcanoes), and southern Europe. Does the Mediterranean volcanic volcanic belt only include the southern Europe part, or is it essentially interchangeable (the same as) with the Eurasian-Melanesian mountain belt?

"The intrusion of Africa under Europe also creates volcanoes" ==> are these volcanoes in the Alps area, or same other places?

 

Scientifically speaking, there is no such thing as a "super volcano." But we've already posted that Mauna Loa in Hawaii is the Earth's Largest Volcano - and also the Earth's largest mountain if you measure a mountain from the base up irrespective of sea level.

The most active volcanoe is the Stromboli Volcano off the south coast of Italy: it has been erupting nearly continuously for over 2,000 years. Although some scientist consider Kilauea as the most active.

The four most active volocanoes that emit the most lava are: Kilauea(Hawaii), Mt Etna (Italy), Piton de la Fournaise, (Reunion), Nyamuragira, (Congo)

 

Can anyone tell me what areas does the Mediterranean volcanic belt cover?

 

Kingwinner visit this site; it might help

http://www.volcano.si.edu/world/region.cfm?rnum=01

 

The Italian Alps are fold mountains, but there are volcanic intrusions due to the presence of the underlying African Plate.

 

Huh.
Wow.
I can't say anything else but wow.
You think Vesuvius was the most destructive volcano in the history of the earth?
That's just...
Wow.


And. Yes. "Supervolcano" is not a scientific term. But, does it really matter? The fact is that there have been volcanic eruptions that dwarf anything known in man's history. "Supervolcano" is as good a term as any. (Maybe ubervolcano would be better....)


Pause.
Vesuvius...
Wow.
That's just...
Wow.