VOLCANOES AND

PLUTONS
By : Group 2

Magma

Is a mixture of molten or semi-molten rock , volatiles and

solids that is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and
is expected to exist on other terrestrial planets and some
natural satellites . Besides molten rock , magma may
also contain suspended crystals, dissolved gas and
sometimes gas bubbles. Magma often collects in magma
chambers that may feed a volcano or solidify
underground to form an intrusion. Magma is capable of
intrusion into adjacent rocks.

In geology, magma refers to molten rock

deep within Earth that consists of liquid,
gases, and particles of rocks and crystals.
Magma has been observed in the form of
hot lava and the various rocks made from
the solidification of magma.
Magma is the source of igneous rocks it can
intrude or force itself into surrounding rock.
Geologists have created magmas (artificial
melts ) in the laboratory to learn more
about the physical condition in which
magma originated and its Compositions.
Magma and the rocks it creates have
similar chemical compositions.

3 Basic Types of Magma

Basaltic formed in upper mantle low
silica and gas content, low viscosity
- the most common , originating in the
lower crust/upper mantle .
Rhyolitic formed when molten rock
mixes with silica and water which
continental crust , high viscosity, large
volume of trapped gases.
Andesitic- formed when oceanic crust is
sub ducted into mantle, medium silica
and gas content, intermediate viscosity .
-most originate in the continental crust.

Gases of Magma at depth in the earth

nearly all magmas contain gas dissolved
in the liquid, but the gas forms a seperate
vapor phase when possure is decreased
as magmas rises towards the surface of
the earth .
Temperature is difficult to measure
( due to the danger involved ) , but
laboratory measurement and limited field
observation indicates that the erruption
temperature of various magmas is as
follows:
Basaltic Magma -1000 to 1200 C
Andesitic Magma 800 to 1000 C
Rhyolitic Magma 650 to 800 C

Viscosity of Magma is the resistance

to flow ( opposite of fluidity ) . Viscosity
depends on primarily on the
composition of the magma and
temperture . Higher Silica content
magmas have higher viscosity lower
silica content magmas (viscosity
increases with increasing silica
concentration in the magma .

Description

Magma is a complex high Temperature fluid

substance. Temperature of most magmas are in
the range 700 C to 1300 C or 1300 F to 2400
F, but very rare Carbonatite magmas may be as
cool as 600 C, and Komatite magmas may have
been as hot as 1600 C . Most magmas are
silicate mixture
Magma compositions may evolve after formation
by fractional crystallization, contamination, and
magma mixing. By definition rock formed of
solidified magma is called igneous rock

What are Igneous Rocks?

Igneous rocks are formed from the

solidification of molten rock material.
There are two basic types.

Intrusive igneous rocks- crystallize

below Earth's surface, and the slow
cooling that occurs there allows large
crystals to form. Examples of intrusive
igneous rocks arediorite,gabbro,
granite,pegmatite, and peridotite.

Intrusive igneous rocks

1. Diorite

2. Gabbro
3. Granite

5. Peridotite

4. Pegmatite

Extrusive igneous rocks -erupt onto

the surface, where they cool quickly to
form small crystals. Some cool so quickly
that they form an amorphous glass.
These rocks includeandesite,basalt,
obsidian,pumice,
rhyolite ,scoria,
andwelded tuf.

Extrusive igneous rocks

1. Andesite

4. Pumice

2. Basalt

5. Rhyolite

3. Obsidian

6. Scoria

7. Welded Tuf

Sources

Partial Melting
Melting of solid rocks to form magma is
controlled by three physical paraments:
its temperature, pressure, and
composition. Mechanisms are discussed
in the entry for igneous rock.

Geochemical implications of
partial melting

The degree of partial melting is critical for

determining what type of magma is
produced . The degree of partial melting
required to form a melt can be estimated
by considering the relative enrichment of
incompatible elements versus compatible
elements. Incompatible elements
commonly include potassium, barium,
cesium, and rubidium.

Evolution of Magma

When a rock melts, the liquid is primary melt.

Primary melts have not undergone any
diferentiation and represent the starting
composition of a magma. IN nature it is rare to
find primary melts. The leucosomes of
migmatites are examples of primary melts.
Primary melts derived from the mantle are
especially important, and are known as primitive
melts or primitive magmas. By finding the
primitive magma series it is possible to model
the composition of mantle from which a melt
was formed, which is important in understanding
evolution of the Mantle.

Migration

Magma develops with in the mantle or

crust when the temperature-pressure
conditions favor the molten state. Magma
rises toward the Earths surface when it is
less dense than the surrounding rock and
when a structural zone allows movement.
Magma develops or collects in areas called
magma chambers. Magma can remain in a
chamber until it cools and crystallizes
forming igneous rock, it erupts as a
volcano, or moves into another magma
chamber.

Cooling of Magmas

There are two known processes by which magma

ceases to exist by volcanic eruption, or by
crystallization within the crust or mantle to form
a pluton. In both cases the bulk of the magma
eventually cools and form signeous rocks. When
magma cools it begins to form solid mineral
phases. Some of these settle at the bottom of the
magma chamber forming cumulates that might
form mafic layered intrusions.Magma that cools
slowly within a magma chamber usually ends up
forming bodies of plutonic rocks such as
gabbro,diorite and granite, depending upon the
composition of the magma. Alternatively, if the
magma is erupted it forms volcanic rocks such as
basalt, andesite and rhyolite.

Basalt and Granite

Diference Between Basalt

and Granite

Basalt is mostly found on ocean floors, while

granite is the crust of earth in all continents.
Basalt is extrusive, while granite is intrusive
igneous rock.
Basalt is darker and is composed of
magnesium and iron, whereas granite is
lighter and is made up of feldspar and quartz.
Basalt is called mafic, while granite is called
felsic.
Basalt splits along columnar planes, while
granite splits along horizontal planes.

Basalt

Basalt is a dark-colored, Igneous rock composed

mainly of plagioclase and pyroxene minerals. It
most commonly forms as an extrusive rock, such
as lava flow, but can also form in small intrusive
bodies, such as an igneous dike or a thinsill. It has
a composition similar to gabbro. The diference
between basalt and gabbro is that basalt is a finegrained rock while gabbro is a coarse grained rock.

Gabbro

Gabbro is a coarse-grained, dark-colored, intrusive

igneous rock. It is usually black or dark green in color
and composed mainly of the minerals plagioclase and
augite . It is the most abundantrockin the deep
oceanic crust. Gabbro has a variety of uses in the
construction industry. It is used for everything from
crushed stone base materials at construction sites to
polished stone counter tops and floor tiles.

Earth`s most abundant bedrock

Basalt underlies more of Earth's surface

than any other rock type. Most areas
within Earth's ocean basins are underlain
by basalt. Although basalt is much less
common on continents, lava flows and
flood basalts underlie several percent of
Earth's land surface. Basalt is a very
important rock.

Basalt on Moon and Mars

Basalt is also an abundant rock on the

Moon. Much of the Moon's surface is
underlain by basaltic lava flows and flood
basalts. These areas of the Moon are
known as "lunar maria." Large areas of
the Moon have been resurfaced by
extensive basalt flows which may have
been triggered by major impact events.
The ages of lunar maria can be estimated
by observing the density of impact
craters on their surface. Younger basalt
flows will have fewer craters

Uses of basalt

Basalt is used for a wide variety of purposes.

It is most commonly crushed for use as an
aggregate in construction projects. Crushed
basalt is used for road base, concrete
aggregate, asphalt pavement aggregate,
railroad ballast, filter stone in drain fields, and
may other purposes. Basalt is also cut into
dimension stone. Thin slabs of basalt are cut
and sometimes polished for use as floor tiles,
building veneer, monuments, and other stone
objects.

Granite

Granite is a light-coloredigneous rockwith grains

large enough to be visible with the unaided eye. It
forms from the slow crystallization of magma below
Earth's surface. Granite is composed mainly of
quartz and feldspar with minor amounts of mica,
amphiboles, and other minerals. This mineral
composition usually gives granite a red, pink, gray,
or white color with dark mineral grains visible
through out the rock.

The Best-Known Igneous Rock

Granite is the best-known igneous rock.

Many people recognize granite because it
is the most common igneous rock found
at Earth's surface and because granite is
used to make many objects that we
encounter in daily life. These include
counter tops, floor tiles, paving stone,
curbing, stair treads, building veneer, and
cemetery monuments. Granite is used all
around us - especially if you live in a city.

Definitions of Granite

The word "granite" is used in a variety of

ways by diferent people. A simple
definition is used in introductory courses;
a more precise definition is used by
petrologists (geologists who specialize in
the study of rocks); and, the definition of
granite expands wildly when used by
people who sell decorative stone such as
countertops, tile, and building veneer.

Magma Formation and

Behavior

Plutons

Sibebe Rock, estimated at 3 billion years

old, is a granite pluton in Swaziland.

Plutons
- A pluton (pronounced "PLOO-tonn") is a deepseated intrusion of igneous rock, a body that made
its way into pre-existing rocks in a melted form (
magma) several kilometers underground in the
Earth's crust and then solidified. At that depth, the
magma cooled and crystallized very slowly,
allowing the mineral grains to grow large and
tightly interlocked
-There are a slew of partial synonyms based on a
pluton's size and shape, including batholith, diapir,
intrusion, laccolith and stock.

Volcanoes

Volcanoes

Volcanoes are awesome manifestations of the fiery power

contained deep within the Earth. These formations are
essentially vents on the Earth's surface where molten rock,
debris, and gases from the planet's interior are emitted.
When thick magma and large amounts of gas build up under
the surface, eruptions can be explosive, expelling lava, rocks
and ash into the air. Less gas and more viscous magma
usually mean a less dramatic eruption, often causing streams
of lava to ooze from the vent.

Volcanic Eruptions

Volcanic Eruptions

The most common type of volcanic eruption occurs

when magma (the term for lava when it is below the
Earth's surface) is released from a volcanic vent.
Eruptions can be efusive, where lava flows like a
thick, sticky liquid, or explosive, where fragmented
lava explodes out of a vent. In explosive eruptions,
the fragmented rock may be accompanied by ash
and gases; in efusive eruptions, degassing is
common but ash is usually not.

Volcanologists classify eruptions into

several diferent types. Some are named
for particular volcanoes where the type of
eruption is common; others concern the
resulting shape of the eruptive products
or the place where the eruptions occur.
Here are some of the most common
types of eruptions:

Hawaiian Eruption

In a Hawaiian eruption, fluid basaltic lava is thrown into

the air in jets from a vent or line of vents (a fissure) at
the summit or on the flank of a volcano. The jets can last
for hours or even days, a phenomenon known as fire
fountaining. The spatter created by bits of hot lava falling
out of the fountain can melt together and form lava
flows, or build hills called spatter cones. Lava flows may
also come from vents at the same time as fountaining
occurs, or during periods where fountaining has paused.
Because these flows are very fluid, they can travel miles
from their source before they cool and harden.

Strombolian Eruption

Strombolian eruptions are distinct

bursts of fluid lava (usually basalt or
basaltic andesite) from the mouth of
a magma-filled summit conduit. The
explosions usually occur every few
minutes at regular or irregular
intervals. The explosions of lava,
which can reach heights of
hundreds of meters, are caused by
the bursting of large bubbles of gas,
which travel upward in the magmafilled conduit until they reach the

This kind of eruption can create a variety of forms of

eruptive products: spatter, or hardened globs of glassy
lava;scoria, which are hardened chunks of bubbly lava;
lava bombs, or chunks of lava a few cm to a few m in size;
ash; and small lava flows (which form when hot spatter
melts together and flows downslope). Products of an
explosive eruption are often collectively called tephra.
Strombolian eruptions are often associated with small lava
lakes, which can build up in the conduits of volcanoes.
They are one of the least violent of the explosive
eruptions, although they can still be very dangerous if
bombs or lava flows reach inhabited areas. Strombolian
eruptions are named for the volcano that makes up the
Italian island of Stromboli, which has several erupting
summit vents. These eruptions are particularly
spectacular at night, when the lava glows brightly.

Vulcanian Eruption

A Vulcanian eruption is a short, violent,

relatively small explosion of viscous magma
(usually andesite, dacite, or rhyolite). This
type of eruption results from the
fragmentation and explosion of a plug of
lava in a volcanic conduit, or from the
rupture of a lava dome (viscous lava that
piles up over a vent). Vulcanian eruptions
create powerful explosions in which material
can travel faster than 350 meters per
second (800 mph) and rise several
kilometers into the air. They produce tephra,
ash clouds, and pyroclastic density currents
(clouds of hot ash, gas and rock that flow
almost like fluids).

Vulcanian eruptions may be repetitive

and go on for days, months, or years, or
they may precede even larger explosive
eruptions. They are named for the Italian
island of Vulcano, where a small volcano
that experienced this type of explosive
eruption was thought to be the vent
above the forge of the Roman smith god
Vulcan.

Plinian Eruption

The largest and most violent of all the types of

volcanic eruptions are Plinian eruptions. They
are caused by the fragmentation of gassy
magma, and are usually associated with very
viscous magmas (dacite and rhyolite). They
release enormous amounts of energy and
create eruption columns of gas and ash that can
rise up to 50 km (35 miles) high at speeds of
hundreds of meters per second. Ash from an
eruption column can drift or be blown hundreds
or thousands of miles away from the volcano.
The eruption columns are usually shaped like a
mushroom (similar to a nuclear explosion) or an
Italian pine tree; Pliny the Younger, a Roman
historian, made the comparison while viewing
the 79 AD eruption of Mount Vesuvius, and
Plinian eruptions are named for him.

Plinian eruptions are extremely

destructive, and can even obliterate the
entire top of a mountain, as occurred at
Mount St. Helens in 1980. They can
produce falls of ash, scoria and lava
bombs miles from the volcano, and
pyroclastic density currents that raze
forests, strip soil from bedrock and
obliterate anything in their paths. These
eruptions are often climactic, and a
volcano with a magma chamber emptied
by a large Plinian eruption may
subsequently enter a period of inactivity.

Lava Domes

Lava domes form when very viscous,

rubbly lava (usually andesite, dacite or
rhyolite) is squeezed out of a vent without
exploding. The lava piles up into a dome,
which may grow by inflating from the
inside or by squeezing out lobes of lava
(something like toothpaste coming out of a
tube). These lava lobes can be short and
blobby, long and thin, or even form spikes
that rise tens of meters into the air before
they fall over. Lava domes may be
rounded, pancake-shaped, or irregular
piles of rock, depending on the type of
lava they form from.

Lava domes are not just passive piles of

rock; they can sometimes collapse and form
pyroclastic density currents, extrude lava
flows, or experience small and large
explosive eruptions (which may even
destroy the domes!) A dome-building
eruption may go on for months or years,
but they are usually repetitive (meaning
that a volcano will build and destroy several
domes before the eruption ceases).
Redoubt volcano in Alaska and Chaiten in
Chile are currently active examples of this
type of eruption, and Mount St. Helens in
the state of Washington spent several years
building several lava domes.

Surtseyan Eruption

Surtseyan eruptions are a kind of

hydromagmatic eruption, where magma
or lava interacts explosively with water.
In most cases, Surtseyan eruptions occur
when an undersea volcano has finally
grown large enough to break the water's
surface; because water expands when it
turns to steam, water that comes into
contact with hot lava explodes and
creates plumes of ash, steam and scoria.
Lavas created by a Surtseyan eruption
tend to be basalt, since most oceanic
volcanoes are basaltic.

The classic example of a Surtseyan eruption

was the volcanic island of Surtsey, which
erupted of the south coast of Iceland between
1963 and 1965. Hydromagmatic activity built
up several square kilometers of tephra over the
first several months of the eruption; eventually,
seawater could no longer reach the vent, and
the eruption transitioned to Hawaiian and
Strombolian styles. More recently, in March
2009, several vents of the volcanic island of
Hunga Ha'apai near Tonga began to erupt. The
onshore and ofshore explosions created
plumes of ash and steam that rose to more
than 8 km (5 miles) altitude, and threw plumes
of tephra hundreds of meters from the vents.

What Determines Eruption Type

The crystal and gas content and temperature of a

magma help determine a volcano's eruption style.
-- Crystals in magma make it more viscous, so
magma with a high crystal content is more likely
to explode than flow.
-- Gases create explosions if they cannot easily
escape from viscous magma, but they can also be
released without explosions (or with only minor
ones) from fluid magma.
-- High-temperature magmas usually erupt
efusively, while low-temperature magmas cannot
flow easily and are more likely to erupt explosively.