The Great East African Rift With The Rio Grande Rift

As a tectonic plate slides into the mantle, the heat releases fluids trapped in the plate. Seawater and carbon dioxide, rise into the upper plate and can partially melt the overlying crust, forming magma. And magma most likely means volcanoes are around.

In conclusion the recent conception and development of plate tectonic theory has greatly aided our understanding of the distribution of seismic events. We now understand that there is a correlation between earthquakes/volcanoes locations and their proximity to a plate boundary plates are continually moving and earthquakes and volcanoes are found along these boundaries. Exceptions to this rule such as Hawaii also help prove tectonic theory due to their unique creation. Whilst this has helped our understanding we also recognise the fact those in LEDCs with poor access to education are unaware of plate tectonic theory so they cannot understand the hazards that some countries face, nor have the means to mitigate against them thus worsening the

Anpother factor that can have an impact on the level of hazard posed by a volcano is the type of plate margin on which it occurs. Volcanoes occuring at constructive plate boundaries are usually much less violent than those occuring at destructive plate boundaries. This is because the magma produced by plates moving apart is Basic, and therefoe has a low viscosity, allowing it to flow easily. The lava is produced from a central vent or fissure and erupts regularly but not usually violently. Also,constructive plate boundaries are often found under the sea and create submarine volcanoes, such as along the Mid-Atalntic ridge, so pose few threats to humans. As a result, the hazards posed by volcanoes at constructive plat eboundaries is relatively low. However, the subduction of one plate under another at destrctive plat eboundaries can form an acidic magma chamber, due to the build up of intense heat. Acidic magma is very viscous and resisitant to flow, meaning that there is often a huge build up of pressure, which can result in very violent and dangerous eruptions involving ash and pyroclastic flow. This can pose a a serious hazard. Pyroclastic flowsa are extremely dense, containing toxic gases at very high temperatures, and can move at speeds over 100km/h. The consequences of such an unpredictable hazard can be extremely seruous

The gravitational stress on the volcano flanks develops large-scale on-shore and off-shore sliding, related to the activity of the rift zones. The M=7.2 earthquake at Kilauea on 1975 was probably related to strain accumulated throughout the south flank from dikes intruded in the rift zone (Swanson et al., 1976). However, the earthquake itself resulted from abrupt southward movement of the south flank across the underlying oceanic crust, activating the Hilina-Pali fault system. Such faulting not only provides a means for the flanks to adjust continuously to intrusions, but also generates the stress patterns needed to constrain future dikes to propagate along the rift axis. Therefore, rift intrusion and lateral spreading are major contributors

The volcanoes are located where there is a divergence or convergence in the tectonic plates and bring their lava from the deepest of the terrestrial mantle. The materials and explosions of these ginates represent a constant risk in the places inhabited by the human being, nevertheless the people ususually live in these areas no matter the risk. On the other hand the volcanos can change the geology of an impressive form, or to cool the temperature of the earth, or to darken the sky. The scientific community increases its efforts to try to understand better what happens in volcanoes, however it is impossible to predict these conditions.

Plate Tectonics is a scientific theory which study how the Earth’s plates are driven and shaped by geological forces to keep them in constant movement. The theory explains the present-day tectonic behavior of the Earth, particularly the global distribution of mountain building, earthquake activity, and volcanism in a series of linear belt. (Pitman, W.C., 2007)

The west coast of North America has been tectonically and volcanically active for billions of years. The Sierra Nevada Mountains in eastern California were born of volcanoes, and magma has been erupting in the Long Valley to the east of the mountains for over three million years (Bailey, et. al., 1989). However, the climactic eruption of the region occurred relatively recently in the region's geologic history. About 760,000 years ago, a huge explosion of magma warped the Eastern Sierra into the landscape that exists today. The eruption depleted a massive magma chamber below the earth's surface so that the ceiling of the chamber imploded, forming what is now known as

The Earth’s outer crust is made up many tectonic plates that move over the surface of the planet. When the plates come collide, volcanoes will form sometime (National Ocean Service). Volcanoes can also form in the middle of a plate, where magma rises upward until it erupts on the sea floor, at what is called a “hot spot” (National Ocean Service). A hot spot is a plume of magma or molten rock that rises from within the Earth then reaches the surface forming underwater volcanoes which may grow tall enough to

The Rio Grande rift is superimposed on a region with a long and complex history of deformation and heating, which affects the location and com- position of the subsequent rift-related magmatism (Mack, Seager, Kieling, 1994).. The development of the Rio Grande rift formed part of a series of Cenozoic extensional events that affected the whole of the western USA. These events were contemporaneous with changes in motions of the Farallon and North American plates at the Pacific margin and are widely thought to be genetically related to them by processes such as back-arc spreading. Alternative hypotheses re- late extension to thermal relaxation and gravity spreading of Laramide thickened crust and magmatism to active asthenospheric upwelling.

The only active volcano and the most hazardous volcano, in mainland Europe, is Mount Vesuvius. It’s vicinity to Naples, Italy makes the volcano unsafe. The volcano is a composite stratovolcano which means that the eruptions are regularly risks for the inhabitants. These eruptions include pyroclastic flows, lava flows, mudflows, and drastic climate changes (Bagley, 2016). Mount Vesuvius is part of the Campanian Volcanic arc which lies on top of a subduction zone. At this subduction zone, Africa’s continental plate converges with the Eurasia plate, subducting underneath and creating an arc of volcanoes (Bagley, 2016). A fault is created which pushes magma out of the mantle and causes an eruption. This uprising magma is felsic, which goes with the fact that the eruptions of Mount Vesuvius are explosive. The felsic magma has white, gray or silver color and has a high gas content. These colors are also the ones present in the flow. Furthermore, light-colored pumice is created which usually forms during explosive eruptions. This pumice is an extremely porous rock, which provides an insight into the type of volcano Mount Vesuvius is.

First, I'm going to talk about earthquakes. "Earthquakes and volcanoes are closely related." Their home is the ring of fire. In 1980 a small earthquake happened in Mt. St. Helens. That small earthquake caused the northern mountain to slide down a hill. If tectonic plates bump into each other an earthquake can happen. Nearly all the world's earthquakes happen in the ring of fire.

Since many of have already discussed rift valley characteristics, I’ll talk about the lesser known West Antarctic Rift. This rift valley lies between East and West Antarctica. It is difficult to study the West Antarctic Rift because it lies beneath the over 2 kilometers thick Antarctic Ice Sheet. This rift developed due to lithospheric thinning of the non-cratonic area of West Antarctica. The West Antarctic Rift is the source of all the recently active volcanoes within Antarctica and most of the major Antarctic mountain systems outside the Antarctic Peninsula. The rift influences ice flows in West Antarctica due to fast moving ice streams influenced by the lubrication from water-saturated till.

The Great Rift Valley– a lowland region created by the interaction of tectonic plates– bisects the Kenyan highlands vertically down the country and eventually extends through Tanzania. The Great Rift Valley consists of many different types of vegetation ranging from deserts in the arid plains to fertile, vegetation rich areas in highlands and mountainous regions (Bodley 152). Along the Great Rift Valley are both active and semi-active volcanoes including Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. There are also many hot springs that are heated by underground volcanic

Their highly energetic and athletic style of dancing, tall stature as well as their signature bright red clothing are just some of the unique things that define the Maasai. For many centuries, this indigenous tribe who lives in the vast open spaces of Africa’s Great Rift Valley found in the countries of Kenya and Tanzania, believes that God entrusted them with the cattle. Their lifestyle reflects the natural environment in which they live in as well as the rich ritual and traditions that they have managed to preserve today. The Maasai people have a reputation of being brave, responsible and fierce. Their community has its own way of hierarchal organization where the elder men and warriors are at the top and the women and children are at the bottom. “The core image Maasai people hold with respect to themselves is that of itunga’ana loo ngishu which means people of cattle or entelapu meaning those who are under cattle (Galaty 4). Most of the rituals and values of the Maasai people depend on their age and the relationship of the tribe is based on a strict set of rules. The Maasai’s patriarchal society, traditional rituals, and unique food system have made them unique among the other African Pastoralists.

Volcanoes and Earthquakes are two of the most intriguing natural disasters that can occur on earth. Unlike hurricanes and tornadoes, they can awaken at almost any point in time throughout the year. These two natural disasters are also different from others because they occur on the layers of the earth itself. Volcanoes, while large to us, are actually small, conical patches of earth that spurt and ooze hot molten lava from the core, and can destroy areas of land triple their size. Earthquakes, on the other hand, are severe jolts felt on land due to the movement of earths tectonic plates. Some may describe earthquakes as being similar to riding a bike down a flight of stairs. The impact of an earthquakes can take down even the largest buildings and strongest structures. All natural disasters can have damaging effects on land, some more than others, and all can be measured or predicted in different ways. Although earthquakes and volcanoes are similar to each other, the two are still very comparable. A few of these similarities and differences include the cause of their occurrence, and how their occurrence impacts the environment.