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Shield volcano
A shield volcano is a wide volcano with shallowly-sloping sides. Shield volcanoes are formed by lava flows of low viscosity - lava that flows easily. Consequently, a volcanic mountain having a broad profile is built up over time by flow after flow of relatively fluid basaltic lava issuing from vents or fissures on the surface of the volcano. Many of the largest volcanoes on Earth are shield volcanoes. The largest is Mauna Loa on the Big Island of Hawaii; all the volcanoes in the Hawaiian Islands are shield volcanoes. There are also shield volcanoes, for example, in Washington, Oregon, and the Galapagos Islands. The Piton de la Fournaise, on Reunion Island, is one of the more active shield volcanoes on earth, with one eruption per year on average.
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Earth & Climate News
September 8, 2025
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Sep. 5, 2025 — UC Santa Barbara researchers project that human impacts on oceans will double by 2050, with warming seas and fisheries collapse leading the charge. The tropics and poles face the fastest changes, and coastal regions will be hardest hit, threatening ...
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Sep. 4, 2025 — A Japanese research team successfully harnessed E. coli to produce PDCA, a strong, biodegradable plastic alternative. Their method avoids toxic byproducts and achieves record production levels, overcoming key roadblocks with creative ...
Sep. 3, 2025 — Past climate assessments let big polluters delay action, placing more burden on smaller nations. A new method based on historical responsibility demands steep cuts from wealthy countries and more financial support for poorer ones. Courts are now ...
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Latest Headlines
updated 12:56 pm ET
Sep. 8, 2025 — Once thought to be sailors’ myths, rogue waves gained credibility after a towering 80-foot wall of water struck the Draupner oil platform in 1995. New research shows that these extreme waves ...
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Aug. 31, 2025 — A massive global study uncovered a striking paradox: even as total burned land has dropped by more than a quarter since 2002, human exposure to ...
Aug. 31, 2025 — Stanford researchers reveal meandering rivers existed long before plants, overturning textbook geology. Their findings suggest carbon-rich floodplains shaped climate for billions of ...
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Aug. 29, 2025 — In 1954, a powerful earthquake shook Northern California near Humboldt Bay, baffling scientists for decades. Most quakes in the region come from the Gorda Plate, but this one didn’t fit the ...
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