Volcanic Activity

**Volcano** is a geologic fissure in the Earth´s crust, through which escapes lava, volcanic ash and gases from magma chamber onto the surface. A **caldera** is a large, usually circular depression at the top of a volcano, It’s formed when magma is erupted from the underground. **Craters** are also circular shaped but smaller than calderas. They are created mostly by explosive excavation of rock during the eruption. The rise of **magma** (eruptions) can vary in intensity, duration and frequency. These eruptions caused by a pressure happens mainly where the **tectonic plates** meet and subduct. **Pacific Ring of Fire** is a long chain of volcanoes and other tectonically active structures that surround the Pacific Ocean. It occurred as a result from subduction of oceanic plates beneath lighter continental plates.

A **laccolith** is a formation in which magma is trapped beneath the Earth´s surface and pushes the rock located above it into a mushroom-shaped bodies.