A volcano is a rupture on the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows

hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.

Earth's volcanoes occur because its crust is broken into 17 major, rigid tectonic plates that
float on a hotter, softer layer in its mantle.[1]Therefore, on Earth, volcanoes are generally
found where tectonic plates are diverging or converging. For example, a mid-oceanic ridge,
such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, has volcanoes caused by divergent tectonic plates pulling
apart; the Pacific Ring of Fire has volcanoes caused by convergent tectonic plates coming
together. Volcanoes can also form where there is stretching and thinning of
the crust'sinterior plates, e.g., in the East African Rift and the Wells Gray-Clearwater
volcanic field and Rio Grande Rift in North America. This type of volcanism falls under the
umbrella of "plate hypothesis" volcanism.[2] Volcanism away from plate boundaries has also
been explained asmantle plumes. These so-called "hotspots", for example Hawaii, are
postulated to arise from upwelling diapirs with magma from the coremantle boundary,
3,000 km deep in the Earth. Volcanoes are usually not created where two tectonic plates
slide past one another.

Erupting volcanoes can pose many hazards, not only in the immediate vicinity of the
eruption. One such hazard is that volcanic ash can be a threat to aircraft, in particular those
with jet engines where ash particles can be melted by the high operating temperature; the
melted particles then adhere to the turbine blades and alter their shape, disrupting the
operation of the turbine. Large eruptions can affect temperature as ash and droplets
of sulfuric acid obscure the sun and cool the Earth's lower atmosphere (or troposphere);
however, they also absorb heat radiated up from the Earth, thereby warming the upper
atmosphere (or stratosphere). Historically, so-called volcanic winters have caused
catastrophic famines.

Divergent plate boundaries

Main article: Divergent boundary

At the mid-oceanic ridges, two tectonic plates diverge from one another as new oceanic
crust is formed by the cooling and solidifying of hot molten rock. Because the crust is very
thin at these ridges due to the pull of the tectonic plates, the release of pressure leads
toadiabatic expansion and the partial melting of the mantle, causing volcanism and creating
new oceanic crust. Most divergent plate boundaries are at the bottom of the oceans;
therefore, most volcanic activity is submarine, forming new seafloor.

Convergent plate boundaries

Main article: Convergent boundary

Subduction zones are places where two plates, usually an oceanic plate and a continental
plate, collide. In this case, the oceanic plate subducts, or submerges under the continental
plate forming a deep ocean trench just offshore. In a process called flux melting, water
released from the subducting plate lowers the melting temperature of the overlying mantle
wedge, creating magma
Several types of volcanic eruptionsduring which lava, tephra (ash, lapilli, volcanic
bombs and blocks), and assorted gases are expelled from a volcanic vent or fissurehave
been distinguished by volcanologists. These are often named after famous volcanoes
where that type of behavior has been observed. Some volcanoes may exhibit only one
characteristic type of eruption during a period of activity, while others may display an entire
sequence of types all in one eruptive series.

There are three different types of eruptions. The most well-observed are magmatic
eruptions, which involve the decompression of gas within magma that propels it
forward. Phreatomagmatic eruptions are another type of volcanic eruption, driven by the
compression of gas within magma, the direct opposite of the process powering magmatic
activity. The third eruptive type is the phreatic eruption, which is driven by
the superheating of steam via contact with magma; these eruptive types often exhibit no
magmatic release, instead causing the granulation of existing rock.

Within these wide-defining eruptive types are several subtypes. The weakest
are Hawaiian and submarine, then Strombolian, followed byVulcanian and Surtseyan. The
stronger eruptive types are Pelean eruptions, followed by Plinian eruptions; the strongest
eruptions are called "Ultra Plinian." Subglacial and phreatic eruptions are defined by their
eruptive mechanism, and vary in strength. An important measure of eruptive strength
is Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI), an order of magnitude scale ranging from 0 to 8 that
often correlates to eruptive types.