Volcanic Eruptions from Earth's History

mount etna
38˚N 15˚E
Catania, Sicily, Italy
active- dating back to 1500 BC (has been active for over half a million years)
basaltic lava
strato volcano
constant threat to people of Sicily but Sicilians have built their homes on the lower slopes of Etna
due to the beneficial traits of the volcano: (fertile soil, tourism, skiing)
located on the african eurasian plate boundary: convergent

bouvet
54˚S 3˚E
bouvet island, norwegian dependency
south atlantic subantarctic volcanic island
shield volcano
basalt and rhyolite lava
lsat known eruption in about 50 BC
southern end of the mid atlantic ridge
just off the southwest indian ridge
BUT
on the bouvet hot spot
bouvet triple junction is 275 km west- (where the south american, antarctic and african plates meet)

mount vesuvius
41˚N 14˚E
near Naples, Italy
strato/composite volcano
basaltic and andesetic lava
only active volcano in mainland europe
sits in the crater of the ancient Somma volcano
most famous for it’s 79 AD eruption- destroyed the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum
last eruption in 1944- still is a great threat to many big cities around vesuvius like Naples
over a subduction zone created by the converging African-eurasian plate boundary

mount fuji
35˚N 138˚E
between the cities Yamanashi and Shizuoka (Japan)
an extinct volcano in south central Honshu that is the highest peak in Japan;
last erupted in 1707; famous for its symmetrical peak; a sacred place also for pilgrimages
composite volcano
basaltic lava
stratovolcano- cone shaped w/alternating layers of lava
ash and lava layers overlying each other
pacific-eurasian-philippine plate boundary: convergent

south island/hohnel island
3°N 37°E
Lake Turkana, Kenya, Eastern Africa
largest of three uninhabited islands
stratovolcano
last known eruption in 1888
basaltic/mafic lava
16 craters on south island
contains numerous tuff cones
fresh lava flows from a North-South fissure extending the 11 or 12-km length of the island, forms much of the eastern shoreline
south island/hohnel island rises 320 m above the lake (to a 800 m height) and is part of a volcanic horst that goes 10 km to the north beneath the lake surface
considered a national park and the island contains a large numbers of crocodiles
East African Rift

Buckle Island
67°S 163°E
Balleny Islands, East Antarctica
uninhabited, ross dependency
stratovolcano
mafic lava field
last known eruption- 1899
in the center of a chain of volcanic islands (the submarine ridge chain reaches north 21 km towards New Zealand) off the coast of Victoria Land (Antarctica)
capped by an ice cap
studies show eruptions in 1839 and 1899
VERY END (south) OF Indian Australian-Pacific plate boundary: convergent

Bárdarbunga
65˚N 18˚W
located in Northeastern Iceland
stratovolcano
basaltic lava
second highest mountain in Iceland after Hvannadalshnjúkur
last known eruption was in 1910
eurasian-north american plate boundary (Mid-Atlantic Ridge) : divergent, BUT
on the Iceland Hotspot

mount maipo
34˚S 70˚W
last known eruption in 1912
conical stratovolcano
on the Chile-Argentina border
southeast of Santiago, Chile
nazca-south american plate boundary: convergent
formed half a million years ago after a massive eruption
basaltic andesite lava

cotopaxi
1°S 78°W
Ecuador
in the andes mountains
stratovolcano
one of ecuador’s most active volcano
last eruption in 1940
symmetrical and contains glaciers
steep sided cone w/nested summit craters
andesitic lava
this modern cone volcano has been constructed since a major edifice collapse sometime before about 5000 years ago
pyroclastic flows accompanied many eruptions
south american-nazca plate boundary: convergent

mount vesuvius
41˚N 14˚E
near Naples, Italy
strato/composite volcano
basaltic and andesetic lava
only active volcano in mainland europe
sits in the crater of the ancient Somma volcano
most famous for it’s 79 AD eruption- destroyed the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum
last eruption in 1944- still is a great threat to many big cities around vesuvius like Naples
over a subduction zone created by the converging African-eurasian plate boundary