What volcanoes have the highest VEI?
Biggest Volcanic Bangs
- Yellowstone eruption, 640,000 years ago (VEI 8)
- Huaynaputina, 1600 (VEI 6)
- Krakatoa, 1883 (VEI 6)
- Santa Maria Volcano, 1902 (VEI 6)
- Novarupta, 1912 (VEI 6)
- Mount Pinatubo, 1991 (VEI 6)
- Ambrym Island, 50 AD (VEI 6 +)
- Ilopango Volcano, 450 AD (VEI 6 +)
Is there a VEI 9 volcano?
According to the USGS, it is the largest known eruption since the Ordovician era, between 504 and 438 million years ago. It was so large, in fact, that in a 2004 report in the Bulletin of Volcanology, scientists recommended adding a ninth level to the VEI scale, and declared the La Garita eruption a magnitude 9.2.
What does VEI mean in volcanoes?
The Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) is a scale that describes the size of explosive volcanic eruptions based on magnitude and intensity. The numerical scale (from 0 to 8) is a logarithmic scale, and is generally analogous to the Richter and other magnitude scales for the size of earthquakes.
Is VEI 7 a supervolcano?
This geologic superstar has had at least three very large eruptions in its history: Two are super-eruptions that were VEI 8 (some 2.1 million and 640,000 years ago), and one eruption 1.3 million years ago was VEI 7, producing around 67 cubic miles of material.
What VEI was Mount St. Helens?
The May 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens rated a VEI of 5, but just barely; its lateral blast was powerful, but its output of magma was rather small. The VEI has been determined for more than 5,000 eruptions in the last 10,000 years. None of these eruptions rates the maximum VEI of 8.
When did VEI 8 last erupt?
roughly 26,500 years
No VEI-8 eruption has occurred in recent human history. The most recent such eruption is the Oruanui eruption that formed Lake Taupo, roughly 26,500 years before present.
When did VEI 7 erupt last?
The last VEI 7 eruption, Tambora, occurred ∼200 yr ago. Ideally, we would like to have had data from many such past eruptions to assess natural variability of climatic impacts, and to identify the most robust signals from such large eruptions, but we have had only a few to assess within historical time.
What would a VEI 8 eruption be like?
Volcanic eruptions that rated 8 on the Volcanic Explosivity Index. Such eruptions release a tephra volume of at least 1,000 km3 (240 cu mi) with annihilating long-term effects on the surrounding area and devastating short-term effects on global climate, leaving profound effects on the climate for years to come.
What VEI was Mount St Helens?
What was the VEI of Mt St Helens?
Mount Pinatubo was later assigned a 6 on the VEI. You probably have read about the Richter scale when you studied earthquakes in science class….Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI)
VEI | 5 |
---|---|
Ejecta volume | > 1 km³ |
Eruption Classification | Plinian |
Description | Paroxysmal |
Examples | Mount Vesuvius, Mount St. Helens (1980) |
What is the volcanic eruption Index (VEI)?
With indices running from 0 to 8, the VEI associated with an eruption is dependent on how much volcanic material is thrown out, to what height, and how long the eruption lasts.
What is the VEI of a volcano?
The Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) is a relative measure of the explosiveness of volcanic eruptions. It was devised by Chris Newhall of the United States Geological Survey and Stephen Self at the University of Hawaii in 1982. Glossary Terms.
What is a 6 index volcano?
A volcano classified with an index rating of “6”: Has an ejecta volume of greater than 10 cubic kilometers. Is classified as Plinian/Ultra-Plinian. Is described as being a colossal eruption with a plume height greater than 30 kilometers.
What does a 1 on the volcanic explosivity index mean?
The scale is logarithmic, or based on 10; therefore, an increase of “1” on the scale indicates an eruption 10 times more powerful than the number before it on the scale. Look at some examples in the Volcanic Explosivity Index table that follows.