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Volcanic
Explosivity Index
|
Magnitude |
Description |
Plume |
Ejecta Volume |
Frequency |
Example |
0 |
Non-explosive |
<100
m |
>1,000
m³ |
Daily |
Mauna Loa, Hawaii |
|
1 |
Gentle |
100-1,000 m |
>10,000
m³ |
Daily |
Nyiragongo, Dem. Rep. Congo, 1994 |
|
2 |
Explosive |
1-5 km |
>1,000,000
m³ |
Weekly |
Unzen, Japan, 1792 |
|
3 |
Severe |
3-15 km |
>10,000,000
m³ |
Yearly |
Nevado de Ruíz, Colombia, 1985 |
|
4 |
Cataclysmic |
10-25 km |
>0.1
km³ |
10s
of years |
Galung Gung, Indonesia, 1982 |
|
5 |
Paroxysmal |
>25
km |
>1
km³ |
100s
of years |
St Helens, USA, 1980 |
6 |
Colossal |
>25
km |
>10
km³ |
100s
of years |
Krakatoa,
Indonesia, 1883 |
7 |
Super
colossal |
>25
km |
>100
km³ |
1,000s
of years |
Tambora,
Indonesia, 1815 |
8 |
Mega
colossal |
>25
km |
>1,000
km³ |
10,000s
of years |
Toba,
Indonesia, 72,000 BC |
 |
Sources
Breining, G. Super Volcano: The Ticking Time Bomb
Beneath Yellowstone National Park. St. Paul, Minn.: Voyageur
Press, 2007. |
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