Asleep or awake and angry, these giants are simply breathtaking. Every single time one of these spews out smoke, molten rock, gases and ash they will always be on the news. Beautiful, but deadly.
Geologists have classified volcanoes into four main types: cinder cones, composite, shield and lava domes. Cinder cones are the simplest type while shield volcanoes are built almost entirely of lava flows. Lava domes are built by slow eruptions of highly viscous lava. Some of the world’s majestic mountains are composite, also known as stratovolcanoes. Explosive eruptions by stratovolcanoes is said to have posed the greatest hazard to civilizations.
Osorno Volcano
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Volcan Osorno is one of the most active volcanoes in the Chilean Andes. This stratovolcano is located in the Los Lagos Region of Chile with an elevation of 8,701 feet.
Mount Taranaki
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Also known as Mount Egmont, Mount Taranaki of New Zealand is an active but quiescent stratovolcano that has an elevation of 8,261 feett. Having experienced at least five major eruptions by cone collapse, Taranaki is said to be considered unusual since few volcanoes have undergone more than one cone collapse. Taranaki came from the word tara which means mountain peak, while naki is believed to come from the word ngaki meaning “shining”.
Mount Cotopaxi
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One of the world's highest active volcano, Mount Cotopaxi, rises 19,388 in the Andes Mountains south of Quito, Ecuador. Mount Cotopaxi is a stratovolcano that is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. The name cotopaxi means “smooth neck of the moon.”
Arenal Volcano
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Located northwest of Costa Rica, Volcan Arenal is an active andeistic stratovolcano rising at 5,436 feet. It was presumed extinct until July 1968 when an earthquake caused it to erupt after more than 400 years of being dormant. Arenal’s eruptions are considered strombolian or frequent but moderately active making it a popular tourist destination especially at night. The word arenal means “sandy.”
Shishaldin Volcano
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Rising at 9,373 feet in the Aleutian Islands chain of Alaska, Shishaldin Volcano is the third largest island-based volcano in North America. Mt. Shishaldin's most recent eruptions were in 1995-96 and 1999. Shishaldin is a moderately active nearly perfectly conical stratovolcano.
Mount Fuji
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Mount Fuji or Fuji-san as the Japanese calls it is a stratovolcano that last erupted in 1707-08. Rising at 12,388 feet, it is located west of Tokyo. Japan’s two major religions, Shinto and Buddhism, regards Fuji as sacred. The name Fuji means “deity of fire”; a more recent interpretation means “never die.”
Mayon Volcano
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Rising at 8,081 feet, Mayon Volcano is an active stratovolcano located in Bicol, Albay, Philippines. It is the most active volcano in the country, having erupted more than 50 times in the past 40 years. It is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire and is renowned as the world’s most perfect cone because of its almost perfectly conical shape. The name Mayon came from the Bicol word magayon meaning “beautiful.”
