Shield Volcanoes Research Paper

Shield volcanoes are formed by many different lava flows that layer over time. Mount Kilauea is a well-known shield volcano in Hawaii. Before it erupts, it is known to inflate as magma pushes upward from its magma chamber. Seismic activity usually precludes Kilauea’s eruptions by about 24 hours. Their eruptions consist mostly of lava flowing out of the summit or through lava tubes in what is known as a flank eruption. The lava that flows from these volcanoes is highly basaltic in nature. Because of this, they have very large diameters, and gently rising slopes. Many shield volcanoes feature a caldera at their summit, which is a result of the underlying magma chamber empties and collapse. The rock between the summit and the now empty magma chamber it too heavy for the structure of the volcano, and collapses into the empty space. This collapse gives the caldera very steep walls. Towards the end of a shield volcanos life, the eruptions become more random and eject rock, lava and pieces of glass rock, known as pyroclastic materials. …show more content…
They erupt with large ejection plumes consisting of sulfuric gasses and lapilli, pyroclastic materials that will eventually make up the sides of the volcano. The sides themselves are very steep, due to the ejecta coming to rest at the steepest angle gravity allows them to. The crater of these volcanoes is usually large for the size of the resulting volcano. The wind direction during the eruption causes the volcano to grow longer on one side. These volcanoes have bene known to also have lava flows from flank eruptions. The eruptions of cinder cone volcanoes have been found to be mostly under a month, with the lava tubes in the volcano becoming plugged with igneous rock. It is rare for a volcano of this type to erupt