A volcano that .
erupted many years ago but now has no sign of life is called dormant. If scientist feel that .
a particular volcano will not ever erupt again they term it extinct.
Volcanic Structure.
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There are four main parts of a volcano. The vent is the channel that gas, ash and .
Rock is ejected. Secondly, the magma chamber that hold the magma. Thirdly, the cone is .
simply the mountain that is formed around the vent. Finally, the crater is a bowl shaped .
depression surrounding the vent.
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There are many unseen forces beneath a volcano that alter rock below the crust to .
cause a volcano, and completely change the landscape of the earth. A volcano effects the .
earth in many different ways. Of course, the most obvious is the mountain formed on the .
surface.
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One of the most dramatic changes to the geological features of the earth is a .
caldera. A caldera is a huge bowl-shaped crater in the ground at least 2 miles in diameter. .
Scientists assume that these massive craters are formed at the end of a volcanoes life once .
the magma chamber is emptied. This causes the volcano to collapse under its own .
weight. The second deepest lake in the United States, Crater Lake, was formed in a .
caldera. It is approximately six miles across and two thousand feet at the deepest point. .
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An interesting formation underneath a volcano is a lava tunnel. Lava tunnels start .
out as horizontal lava channels which form when the surface of a large lava flow hardens .
but the lava beneath remains molten and continues to flow. At the end of the eruption the .
lava channel is empty and then referred to as a lava tunnel. The tunnels can be anywhere .
from a few inches to several yards in diameter. The Kasamura tunnel is the largest .
known lava tunnel. It is near the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii, and it twists for more than .
six miles beneath the surface.
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An igneous intrusion is formed when the intense pressure of the rocks above a .