Volcanism of Western Canada
Encyclopedia
Volcanism of Western Canada produces lava
flows, lava plateaus
, lava dome
s, cinder cone
s, stratovolcano
es, shield volcano
es, submarine volcano
es, caldera
s, diatreme
s and maar
s, along with examples of more less common volcanic forms such as tuya
s and subglacial mound
s.
Lava
Lava refers both to molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption and the resulting rock after solidification and cooling. This molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. When first erupted from a volcanic vent, lava is a liquid at...
flows, lava plateaus
Volcanic plateau
A volcanic plateau is a plateau produced by volcanic activity. There are two main types: lava plateaus and pyroclastic plateaus.-Lava plateau:...
, lava dome
Lava dome
|250px|thumb|right|Image of the [[rhyolitic]] lava dome of [[Chaitén Volcano]] during its 2008–2009 eruption.In volcanology, a lava dome is a roughly circular mound-shaped protrusion resulting from the slow extrusion of viscous lava from a volcano...
s, cinder cone
Cinder cone
According to the , Cinder Cone is the proper name of 1 cinder cone in Canada and 7 cinder cones in the United States:In Canada: Cinder Cone In the United States:...
s, stratovolcano
Stratovolcano
A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a tall, conical volcano built up by many layers of hardened lava, tephra, pumice, and volcanic ash. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile and periodic, explosive eruptions...
es, shield volcano
Shield volcano
A shield volcano is a type of volcano usually built almost entirely of fluid lava flows. They are named for their large size and low profile, resembling a warrior's shield. This is caused by the highly fluid lava they erupt, which travels farther than lava erupted from more explosive volcanoes...
es, submarine volcano
Submarine volcano
Submarine volcanoes are underwater fissures in the Earth's surface from which magma can erupt. They are estimated to account for 75% of annual magma output. The vast majority are located near areas of tectonic plate movement, known as ocean ridges...
es, caldera
Caldera
A caldera is a cauldron-like volcanic feature usually formed by the collapse of land following a volcanic eruption, such as the one at Yellowstone National Park in the US. They are sometimes confused with volcanic craters...
s, diatreme
Diatreme
A diatreme is a breccia-filled volcanic pipe that was formed by a gaseous explosion. Diatremes often breach the surface and produce a tuff cone, a filled relatively shallow crater known as a maar, or other volcanic pipes.- Word origin :...
s and maar
Maar
A maar is a broad, low-relief volcanic crater that is caused by a phreatomagmatic eruption, an explosion caused by groundwater coming into contact with hot lava or magma. A maar characteristically fills with water to form a relatively shallow crater lake. The name comes from the local Moselle...
s, along with examples of more less common volcanic forms such as tuya
Tuya
A tuya is a type of distinctive, flat-topped, steep-sided volcano formed when lava erupts through a thick glacier or ice sheet. They are somewhat rare worldwide, being confined to regions which were covered by glaciers and also had active volcanism during the same time period.-Formation:Tuyas are...
s and subglacial mound
Subglacial mound
A subglacial mound is a type of subglacial volcano. This type of volcano forms when lava erupts beneath a thick glacier or ice sheet. The magma forming these volcanoes was not hot enough to melt a vertical pipe right through the overlying glacial ice, instead forming hyaloclastite and pillow lava...
s.
Volcanic belts
- Anahim Volcanic BeltAnahim Volcanic BeltThe Anahim Volcanic Belt is a long volcanic belt, stretching from just north of Vancouver Island to near Quesnel, British Columbia, Canada. The Anahim Volcanic Belt has had three main magmatic episodes: 15–13 Ma, 9–6 Ma, and 3–1 Ma. The volcanoes generally become younger eastward at a rate of to ...
- Alert Bay Volcanic BeltAlert Bay Volcanic BeltThe Alert Bay Volcanic Belt is a heavily eroded Neogene volcanic belt in northern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The belt is now north of the Nootka Fault, but may have been directly above the fault at the time it last erupted...
- Bird River greenstone beltBird River greenstone beltThe Bird River greenstone belt is an Archean greenstone belt in southeastern Manitoba, Canada.-See also:*Volcanism of Canada*Volcanism of Western Canada*List of greenstone belts...
- Chilcotin Group
- Flin Flon greenstone beltFlin Flon greenstone beltThe Flin Flon greenstone belt, also referred to as the Flin Flon-Snow Lake greenstone belt, is a Precambrian greenstone belt located in the central area of Manitoba and east-central Saskatchewan, Canada . It lies in the central portion of the Trans-Hudson orogeny and was formed by arc volcanism...
- Garibaldi Volcanic BeltGaribaldi Volcanic BeltThe Garibaldi Volcanic Belt, also called the Canadian Cascade Arc, is a northwest-southeast trending volcanic chain in the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains that extends from Watts Point in the south to the Ha-Iltzuk Icefield in the north. This chain of volcanoes is located in southwestern...
- Northern Cordilleran Volcanic ProvinceNorthern Cordilleran volcanic provinceThe Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province , formerly known as the Stikine Volcanic Belt, is a geologic province defined by the occurrence of Miocene to Holocene volcanoes in the Pacific Northwest of North America...
- Pemberton Volcanic BeltPemberton Volcanic BeltThe Pemberton Volcanic Belt is an eroded Oligocene volcanic belt at a low angle near Mount Meager, British Columbia, Canada. The Garibaldi and Pemberton volcanic belts appear to merge into a single belt, although the Pemberton is older than the Garibaldi Volcanic Belt...
Volcanic fields
- Wells Gray-Clearwater volcanic fieldWells Gray-Clearwater volcanic fieldThe Wells Gray-Clearwater volcanic field, also called the Clearwater Cone Group, is a potentially active monogenetic volcanic field in east-central British Columbia, Canada, located approximately north of Kamloops. It is situated in the Cariboo Mountains of the Columbia Mountains and on the...
- Buffalo Head Hills kimberlite fieldBuffalo Head Hills kimberlite fieldThe Buffalo Head Hills kimberlite field is a kimberlite field in north-central Alberta, Canada. It is a product of kimberlite volcanism during the Cretaceous period which was the most prolific period for worldwide kimberlite volcanism...
- Birch Mountains kimberlite fieldBirch Mountains kimberlite fieldThe Birch Mountains kimberlite field is a kimberlite field in Northern Alberta, Canada. It is a product of kimberlite volcanism during the Cretaceous period which was the most prolific period for worldwide kimberlite volcanism...
See also
- Volcanism of Canada
- Volcanism of Eastern CanadaVolcanism of Eastern CanadaVolcanism of Eastern Canada has led to the formation of hundreds of volcanic areas and extensive lava formations, indicating volcanism played a major role in shaping its surface. The region's different volcano and lava types originate from different tectonic settings and types of volcanic...
- Volcanism of Northern CanadaVolcanism of Northern CanadaVolcanism of Northern Canada has led to the formation of hundreds of volcanic areas and extensive lava formations across Northern Canada, indicating volcanism played a major role in shaping its surface...
- List of volcanoes in Canada