What is the VEI scale and what does it measure?
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What is the VEI scale and what does it measure?
The Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) is a scale that describes the size of explosive volcanic eruptions based on magnitude and intensity. The numerical scale (from 0 to 8) is a logarithmic scale, and is generally analogous to the Richter and other magnitude scales for the size of earthquakes.
What type of scale is the VEI scale?
The Volcanic Explosivity Index (see table below) is the volcanic equivalent to the Richter Scale. The VEI is used to identify the magnitude of a volcanic eruption. The VEI combines the magnitude and intensity into a single number of a scale of 0 (least explosive) to 8, the most explosive.
What does VEI mean in volcanoes?
Volcanic Explosivity Index
Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) is a numeric scale that measures t… | U.S. Geological Survey.
What is the strongest VEI?
Biggest Volcanic Bangs
- Yellowstone eruption, 640,000 years ago (VEI 8)
- Huaynaputina, 1600 (VEI 6)
- Krakatoa, 1883 (VEI 6)
- Santa Maria Volcano, 1902 (VEI 6)
- Novarupta, 1912 (VEI 6)
- Mount Pinatubo, 1991 (VEI 6)
- Ambrym Island, 50 AD (VEI 6 +)
- Ilopango Volcano, 450 AD (VEI 6 +)
What was the VEI of Mount Pinatubo?
VEI 6
Pinatubo is a stratovolcano in the Philippines. June 12, 1991, it erupted, resulting in the second-largest eruption of the 20th century. The ash plume height reaching more than 40 km (28 mi) high and ejecting more than 10 km3 of magma, classifying it as plinian/ultra plinian eruption style and VEI 6 in eruption size.
What does Vei 4 mean?
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Volcanoes that have produced explosive VEI-4 eruptions. Such eruptions release a tephra volume of at least 0.1 km3 (0.024 cu mi) with substantial effects on the surrounding area.
Is there a supervolcano in Utah?
The Wah Wah Springs Caldera is a supervolcanic eruption remnant discovered in 2013 in Utah. It emitted 5500 to 5900 km3 of tephra, as the Wah Wah Springs Tuff, about 30.06 million years ago.
When did VEI 7 erupt last?
While the 1963 Agung (Indonesia) and 1982 El Chichón (Mexico) eruptions, both VEI 5, had measurable climatic impacts, the 1980 Mount St.
Why is the VEI useful?
It is very valuable because it can be used for both recent eruptions that scientists have witnessed and historic eruptions that happened thousands to millions of years ago. The primary eruption characteristic used to determine the volcanic explosivity index is the volume of pyroclastic material ejected by the volcano.
What is the VEI of Mount Merapi?
Eruptions occur at intervals of 1-5 years and are of low gas pressure. Since magma is poor in gas, eruptions are usually less than VEI 3 in size. A larger VEI 4 eruption occurred in 2010. Merapi volcano produces more pyroclastic flows than any other volcano in the world.