Ibu Volcano

About Ibu Volcano

• It is a stratovolcano located on Halmahera Island, in the province of Maluku, East Indonesia.
• It is one of the most isolated and least accessible volcanoes in Indonesia.
• It stands as high as 1,377 meters above sea level.
• The volcano extends 16 km E-W and 13 km N-S.

What is a Stratovolcano?

• The stratovolcano is a tall, steep, and cone-shaped type of volcano. 
• Unlike flat-shield volcanoes, they have higher peaks.
• At their peak, stratovolcanoes usually have a small crater. The crater may be filled with water or ice, or it may contain a volcanic dome during a period of relative inactivity.
• Strato Volcanoes comprise the largest percentage (~60%) of the Earth's individual volcanoes, and most are characterized by eruptions of andesite and dacite, lavas that are cooler and more viscous than basalt. 
• These more viscous lavas allow gas pressures to build up to high levels. Therefore, these volcanoes often suffer explosive eruptions.
• They are usually about half-half lava and pyroclastic material, and the layering of these products gives them their other common name of composite volcanoes.

Q1) What are pyroclasts?

Pyroclasts (or "tephra') are any volcanic fragment that was hurled through the air by volcanic activity. A pyroclastic eruption is one in which the great majority of activity involves fountaining or explosions. A pyroclastic deposit is the resulting layer or pile of material that has fallen to the ground by one or many pyroclastic eruptions. A pyroclastic rock is the hardened, solidified, or compressed version of an originally loose pyroclastic deposit.

Source: Indonesia’s Ibu volcano erupts