A lava channel is a stream of fluid lava contained within zones of static (i.e., solid and stationary) lava or lava levees. The initial channel may not contain levees per se, until the parental flow solidifies over what develops into the channel and creates natural levees. This initial levee allows for the building of a more complex levee and channel. As the lava flows through the channel, the elevation of the surface of the lava flow pulsates and lava can possibly flood the associated channel walls spilling out of the channel and over the existing levees, creating what is known as overflow levees. Overflow levees increase the height and width of the original levee. The lava that flows in lava channels is commonly basaltic in composition.
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👉 Lava channel in the context of Stóra-Eldborg undir Geitahlíð
Stóra-Eldborg undir Geitahlíð (Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈstouːra-ˌɛltˌpɔrk ˈʏntɪr ˈceiːtaˌl̥iːθ]; also Stóra-Eldborg við Geitahlíð [...vɪð...]) is a small Holocene volcano in Iceland, on Reykjanes peninsula, 50 m high, with a 30 m deep crater. It is located at about 5 km from Krýsuvík and as the name says at the foot of a bigger mountain, the tuya of Geitahlíð.
In this Dossier
- ⭐ Core Definition: Lava channel
- 👉 Lava channel in the context of Stóra-Eldborg undir Geitahlíð
- Lava channel in the context of Fissure vent
- Lava channel in the context of Lava tube
Lava channel in the context of Fissure vent
A fissure vent, also known as a volcanic fissure, eruption fissure or simply a fissure, is a linear volcanic vent through which lava erupts, usually without any explosive activity. The vent is often a few metres wide and may be many kilometres long. Fissure vents can cause large flood basalts which run first in lava channels and later in lava tubes. After some time, the eruption tends to become focused at one or more spatter cones. Volcanic cones and their craters that are aligned along a fissure form a crater row. Small fissure vents may not be easily discernible from the air, but the crater rows (see Laki) or the canyons (see Eldgjá) built up by some of them are.
The dikes that feed fissures reach the surface from depths of a few kilometers and connect them to deeper magma reservoirs, often under volcanic centers. Fissures are usually found in or along rifts and rift zones, such as Iceland and the East African Rift. Fissure vents are often part of the structure of shield volcanoes.
View the full Wikipedia page for Fissure ventLava channel in the context of Lava tube
A lava tube, more rarely called a pyroduct, is a 'roofed conduit through which molten lava travels away from its vent'. If lava in the tube drains out, it will leave an empty cave. Lava tubes are common in low-viscosity volcanic systems. Lava tubes are important as they are able to transport molten lava much further away from the eruptive vent than lava channels. A tube-forming lava flow can emplace on longer distance due to the presence of a solid crust protecting the molten lava from atmospheric cooling. Lava tubes are often considered when preparing hazard maps or managing an eruptive crisis.
View the full Wikipedia page for Lava tube