Tectonic forces,
Volcanoes &
Volcanic Landforms
1
Chapter 11
Outline 2
• Landforms, tectonic
processes
• Earthquakes
• Igneous Processes &
Landforms
• Volcano Types
• Volcano Hazards
• Plutonism &
Intrusions
Introduction: 3
• Landform
• any one of a specific
type of topological
features on the surface
of the Earth
• Exist due to specific
combinations of
materials & processes
• Geomorphology
• The study of landforms,
and how, why, when,
where they occur/change
Relief 4
• Landforms are often described by their
relative ‘relief’
• relief – difference in elevation between the highest
and lowest points within a specified area or on a
landform
High Relief
Low Relief
Relief 5
• High relief results
from:
• Lifting processes that
outpace lowering
processes
• When there has not
been enough time for
lowering processes to
have made progress in
leveling the high
relief caused by lifting
processes long ago
Image from: Etan J. Tal
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/13/KharazaArch.j
pg
Terms 6
• Two types of processes based upon where they
originate:
• endogenic processes – processes that originate within the Earth
• Usually act to increase relief
• Mountain formation
• exogenic processes – processes originating at surface of the
Earth
• Usually act to decrease relief
• Weathering, erosion, etc.
• These processes are due to gravity and/or some type of
geomorphic agent
• Water, wind, ice, waves, people, etc.
• Tend to erode rock material from areas of high relief and deposit
that material in areas of low relief
Tectonic Forces, Rock Structure, and Landforms
• Rocks respond to
faulting rather than
bend or warp.
• Fault: slippage or
displacement of rocks
along a fracture
surface.
• Sharp break in rock with
a slippage of the crustal
block on one side with
respect to the block on
the other.
Tectonic Forces, Rock
Structure, and Landforms
• Tensional tectonic force pulls parts of the
crust away from one another.
• Crust is broken into discrete blocks (fault blocks
• One fault block slides downward along the fault
relative to the adjacent fault block.
The East African Rift Valley is a graben
Narrow block dropped down between 2 faults
Tectonic Forces, Rock Structure, and Landforms
• Shearing tectonic force: slides parts of the
Earth’s crust past each other
The Nature of Exogenic Processes
• Tectonic uplift is an
endogenic process
(landforming that The northern Rockies were produced by
originates within the tectonic uplift.
Earth).
• Exogenic processes:
Weathering, mass wasting,
erosion, transportation,
and deposition leads to a
decreased relief at Earth’s
surface significantly if no
additional uplift occurs.
Folding
Folding happens when
rocks are subject to
complex compressional
forces
11
Important Terms: 12
• Two primary categories of land-forming
processes…
• igneous processes – processes having to do with
eruption or solidification of molten rock that leads
to specific landforms
• e.g. volcanic activity
• tectonic processes – processes having to do with the
movement of Earth’s lithospheric plates
• e.g. earthquake activity
Earthquakes
• Earthquakes are the shaking, rolling
or sudden shock of the earth’s
surface.
• The shaking or trembling caused by the
sudden release of energy. They are the
Earth's natural means of releasing
stress.
• When the plates squeeze or stretch,
huge rocks form at their edges and
the rocks shift with great force,
causing an earthquake.
• Usually associated with faulting or
breaking of rocks
• Continuing adjustment of position
results in aftershocks
• More than a million earthquakes rattle
the world each year.
Earthquakes
• Most earthquakes produced by sudden
slippage along faults
• Energy builds up until the fault slips,
releasing seismic waves
• Earthquake magnitudes may be described on
the Richter Scale developed by Charles F.
Richter in 1935.
• Based on energy released in an
earthquake.
• An increase of one whole number (4.0 to
5.0) represents 30 times more energy
released.
Where Do Earthquakes
Occur and How Often?
• ~80% of all earthquakes
occur in the circum-Pacific
belt
• ~15% occur in the
Mediterranean-Asiatic
belt
• Remaining 5% occur in
the interiors of plates
and on spreading ridge
centers
• More than 150,000
quakes strong enough to
be felt are recorded
each year
Earthquake
hazards
• Ground displacement
• Subsidence
• Liquefaction
• Building collapse
• Floods
• Fire
Ecuador, 2016. Natural Hazards 16
Center
Wallace Creek offset due to the movement of the North American Plate and
Pacific plate moving horizontally past one another.
Igneous
Processes
• Review… extrusive vs. intrusive?
• Two types of igneous processes:
• volcanism – refers to the
extrusion of rock matter from
the interior of the Earth to
the exterior
• Creates volcanic
mountains or hills
• plutonism – refers to the
intrusive igneous processes
• Can create other
distinctive surface
features
18
Volcanic Eruptions
• Many different sizes & characters of eruptions
• Generally broken down into two categories:
• explosive eruptions: violently blast molten
& solid rock into the air
• effusive eruptions: less violent, slower
eruption of flowing lava
• Type of magma associated with type of eruption
• Relatively cool, thick magmas have lots of
dissolved gas
• When pent up, eventually explode
violently
• Hotter, thinner magmas vent gasses more
consistently
• Tend to erupt with flowing lava (effusive)
19
Volcanic
Eruptions
• Explosive eruptions produce the
greater hazard to life and property
• Hurl pyroclastic materials many
miles into the air
• pyroclastic material ?
• The finest ash can be
suspended in atmosphere for
many years
• Impacts temperatures &
sunsets
• Mount Pinatubo (1991) – caused
global temperatures to
decrease 0.4°C for the year
20
Mount Pinatubo Ash Cloud
(June, 1991)
Volcanic Landforms 21
• lava flows – layers of molten rock that erupted from
a volcano and poured/oozed over the landscape
• Cools & solidifies, often retaining its flowing shape
• Shrinks as it cools
• Causes fractures in the rock (called joints)
• Sometimes break into organized vertical columns
• Speed of lava flow helps to determine the type of landform
• Lava flows can emanate from fissures too
• fissures - deep fractures in the crust that are not associated
with a volcano, or are flanking the central vent of a volcano
22
Columnar-jointed
aa pahoehoe
Volcano Basics 23
• Every volcano marks a spot where heat and
pressure build-up has allowed liquid magma to
form and rise to the surface
• Most active land-based volcanoes are located
at subduction zones between the Earth’s plates
• Most of the ‘other’ areas where volcanoes are
located are at hot spots or mid-ocean ridges
• Hawaiian volcanoes
• Mid-Atlantic Ridge
Volcano Locations 24
Volcano Terms
• Lava flows
• Erupted rock matter poured
or oozed over the landscape
• Lahar
• Volcanic ash, mud, rain and
melted snow that moves as a
mudflow downhill from some
volcanic eruptions
• Pyroclastic flow
• Very fine volcanic ash that
moves as an extremely hot
cloud very quickly downhill
from some volcanic eruptions
Montserrat, 2005
USGS 25
Volcano Types 26
• Four major types of
volcanoes:
• Shield Volcano
• Cinder Cone
• Composite Volcano
(Stratovolcano)
• Plug Dome
• Each of these is also a
distinct igneous landform
• Calderas too
Shield Volcano
• Form over many
millennia; layers of
successive lava flows
• Shaped like a giant
shield
• Fairly calm eruption,
mostly flowing lava
• Often lava flows
from flanking fissures
rather than the top
• Form often over
oceanic hot spots
• Mauna Loa
(Hawaii)
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Cinder Cone
• Small, steep-sided volcano,
with a crater at the top
• Has a pipe-like vertical
central vent
• Usually just have only
moderate eruptions
• Tend to spew hot
cinders rather than lava
or ash
• About gravel-sized
cinders
• Often form on the
flanks of shield
volcanoes
28
Composite
Volcano
(Stratovolcano)
• Tall, large, steep-sided
cone-shaped volcano
• Have distinctive
concave curve
• Form from repeated
eruptions that can be either
effusive or explosive
• Causes distinct
layering (strata) in a
cross-section view
• Lava flow layers &
pyroclastic layers
• Often form over subduction
zones
Chimborazo, Ecuador
USGS 29
Composite Volcano
(Stratovolcano)
• Can have violent and dangerous eruptions
• Tops can get plugged, leading to build
up
• Either the top or the side can blow
off
• Eruptions often have little lava, but a
lot of ash
• Main threats are lahars and
pyroclastic flows
30
Plug Dome 31
Mt. Lassen (California)
• Forms when very thick,
felsic lava erupts into
the vent, but not beyond
• Cools in the vent,
solidifies & plugs the
vent
• Also referred to as lava
dome
• Potential for lots of gas
build- up & explosive
eruptions
• Pyroclastic flows are
major hazard
Calderas 32
• Not a type of volcano, but it is a volcanic landform
• Occurs when explosive eruption blows away entire volcano or summit
• Lots of debris also collapses in on the magma chamber
• Leaving only a deep depression or crater (caldera)
• Yellowstone has three calderas
Crater Lake (Oregon) inside the Caldera
formed by the collapse of Mount Mazama
Volcanic Hazards
• Lava flows
• Pyroclastic Flows
• Ash & Pumice Falls
• Lahars
• Poisonous Gases
33
Lava Flows 34
• Lava flows are dangerous, but rarely threaten human
lives
• Lava becomes more viscous as it moves away from the vent
• Moves very slowly and covers a pretty small area
• Moves only at about a 1 meter per second near the vent, to
about 1 meter per 10 seconds further away
• Most lava only travels about 25 to 50 km from the vent
• There are some exceptions to this however – cost many lives
• Will burn any permanent structures in its path
• Hawaiian eruptions often have slow moving lava as
the main threat
Pyroclastic Flows
• Pyroclastic flows are one of the biggest volcanic threats to
human life – accompany many volcanic eruption types
• They are very hot (850°C) & incinerate anything in
their paths
• Move along the ground because their contents
are more dense than the surrounding air
• Thick, but lighter ash billows above as
the flow moves
• Some will even move over large bodies
of water with ease
• They move very fast (50 to 200km per hour or faster)
• They can cover a very wide area (hundreds of square
kilometers)
• Can cause a surge of hot, ash-laden wind ahead of
them that will flatten trees as well
35
Ash & Pumice Falls 36
• Volcanic ash is made up of tiny, jagged pumice rocks
less than 2mm thick
• Light enough to drift a long way in the wind
• Ash can erupt 6km to 20km into the atmosphere
• Most ash clouds are suspended in a cloud of steam
which will eventually condense into water
• This causes ash to fall like snow downwind of the vent
• Heaviest particles fall near the vent, lightest particles can stay
in the atmosphere for years – blocking the sun
Ash & Pumice Falls 37
• Ash on rooftops – many yards thick – causes collapse
• It causes respiratory problems
• People with asthma, bronchitis or emphysema are very vulnerable
• Causes many transportation problems
• Slippery on roadways, especially when wet
• Causes extreme visibility problems when stirred up by moving
vehicles in front of you – turns day to night
• Ash scratches windshields as well – decreasing visibility even further
• Causes serious problems for airplanes
• Gets in the intake, coats & scratches everything
• Cannot be detected by radar
Lahars (Volcanic
Mudflows)
• Lahars are typical for many
stratovolcanoes
• Elevation = snow/glaciers
• As the flow moves, it gathers
debris
• When it settles, it encases
everything in ash and debris
• Often moves along river valleys
• Up to 100km in some instances –
threatening cities
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Volcanic Landforms
Stratovolcano: volcano
constructed of multiple layers of
lava and tephra (volcanic ash)
Mount St. Helens – southwestern
Washington erupted violently on
May 18, 1980 emitting condensed
steam, heated gases, and ash.
Within a few minutes, the plume
rose to 12 miles.
View the videos listed below on Mt. St. Helens’ eruption in May 1980
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgRnVhbfIKQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xP2dreOI8gI
Iceland:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PC9ZWgG_u0 (March 30)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2byghZy4Ik (April 5)
Flat slab subduction in Latin
America
Where the subduction is nearly horizontal,
volcanic activity is suppressed
Ramos and Fulguera 2009
Plutonism & Intrusions
• plutons – rocks formed from ancient bodies of
magma that cooled & solidified very slowly
underground
• Intrusive igneous rock
• As this rock under the surface gets larger,
it affects the topography of the land above
• As overlying rock gets weathered down,
plutons can also emerge from the ground
• Often these types of rock are more
resistant to weathering
• Stick out higher than the landscape around
them
42
Plutonism & Landforms 43
• batholith – large (>90 sq km) area of intrusive rock that
represents a large cooled magma chamber
• Very resistant to weathering
• Entire mountain ranges
• stock – smaller area of exposed intrusive rock
• laccolith – dome-shaped intrusive rock that has formed
horizontally between layers of rock
• Connected via a pipe-like structure to a (former) larger magma
chamber
• Forces overlying land upwards
• Sills (horizontal) and dikes (vertical) form from tunnels of
magma that cooled long ago beneath the surface
Plutonism & Landforms 44
Pluton
• Torres del Paine, Chile
• Wildernesstravel.com
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