• Meldroc@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I think it depends on the particular volcanoes. The volcanoes in Iceland and Hawaii, IIRC, have thinner and less gassy magma, so there’s not as much gas buildup, and the eruptions tend to have more liquid lava. Elsewhere, say Mt. St. Helens, the eruptions tend to have thick lava, with lots of trapped gas inside, that tend to cause giant explosions, pyroclastic flows & big ash clouds.

    • Mrk421@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      I would hazard a guess that it’s dependent on even more than region. Wasn’t it an Icelandic volcano that shut down air travel because of ash a few years back?

      • Holyhandgrenade@lemmy.worldOP
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        1 year ago

        When it erupts underneath a glacier, it causes huge clouds of ash to form. The volcano you’re talking about (Eyjafjallajökull) is a glacier volcano in the highlands whereas this one is on the Reykjanes peninsula on the west side.