Subduction created
Santorini’s volcanic landform. More specifically, it was formed by oceanic and
continental crust subduction. In this instance, the ocean crust collided with
the continental crust and subducted under causing a volcano to form.
Santorini has a mafic extrusive volcanic landform. A mafic landform refers to
basalt volcanic forms which suggest that they have low viscosity with less
outrageous explosions. Therefore, this volcanic island is considered a shield
volcano. Shield volcanoes have effusive eruptions, meaning that the lava they
excrete flows easily on Earth’s surface. Effusive eruptions classify Shield Volcano’s
as the least dangerous of the three volcano types because they have the slightest
viscosity and eruptions and give you time to escape (Allen, 2012).
Santorini, today,
resulted from a huge volcanic explosion that occurred about 3,500 years ago and
created a caldera (Greeka, 2012). Calderas are formed when land collapses following a volcano eruption. They are
like deep holes in the ground where land has submerged. Thus, Santorini is the
perfect example of a caldera.
Given Santorini’s volcanic landform, it mostly contains igneous rocks. Igneous rocks form by the cooling and crystallization of magma on Earth’s surface (Allen, 2012). Created by lava flow, igneous rocks are dark in color.
Citations:
1. Santorini Caldera: The Caldera of Santorini. (2012).
Retrieved from: http://www.greeka.com/cyclades/santorini
2. Allen, C. (2012). Earth's Materials Outilne. (lecture notes).
Retrieved from: http://clasfaculty.ucdenver.edu/callen/1202
3. Allen, C.(2012). Volcanic Landforms.
Retrieved from:http://clasfaculty.ucdenver.edu/callen/1202
