Ring of Fire

[16] Three decades later, a book about the Perry Expedition to Japan commented on the Ring of Fire volcanoes as follows: "They [the Japanese Islands] are in the line of that immense circle of volcanic development which surrounds the shores of the Pacific from Tierra del Fuego around to the Moluccas."

[19] In 1912, geologist Patrick Marshall introduced the term "Andesite Line" to mark a boundary between islands in the southwest Pacific, which differ in volcano structure and lava types.

[21] The development of the theory of plate tectonics since the early 1960s has provided the current understanding and explanation of the global distribution of volcanoes and earthquakes, including those in the Ring of Fire.

This variation affects, for example, the location of volcanoes relative to the ocean trench, lava composition, type and severity of earthquakes, sediment accretion, and the amount of compression or tension.

[13] More broadly, twenty[note 3] of the twenty-five largest volcanic eruptions on Earth in this time interval occurred at Ring of Fire volcanoes.

These volcanoes, e.g. Deception Island, are due to rifting in the Bransfield back-arc basin close to the South Shetland subduction zone.

The world's highest active volcano is Ojos del Salado (6,893 m or 22,615 ft), which is in the Andes Mountains section of the Ring of Fire.

Llaima's activity has been documented since the 17th century, and consists of several separate episodes of moderate explosive eruptions with occasional lava flows.

A January 6, 2002, nighttime thermal infrared image from ASTER revealed a hot spot in the summit crater, as well as several others along the upper flanks of the volcano's edifice, indicating new volcanic activity.

It is a very explosive andesite volcano that underwent edifice collapse in the late Pleistocene, producing a volcanic debris avalanche that reached the lake.

The last major eruption of Calbuco, in 1961, sent ash columns 12–15 km (7.5–9.3 mi) high and produced plumes that dispersed mainly to the southeast and two lava flows were also emitted.

Geologically, Sangay marks the southern bound of the Northern Volcanic Zone, and its position straddling two major pieces of crust accounts for its high level of activity.

Sangay's roughly 500,000-year history is one of instability; two previous versions of the mountain were destroyed in massive flank collapses, evidence of which still litters its surroundings today.

In 1902, the Santa Maria Volcano erupted violently in Guatemala, with the largest explosions occurring over two days, ejecting an estimated 5.5 km3 (1+3⁄8 cu mi) of magma.

Popocatépetl, lying in the eastern half of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, is the second-highest peak in Mexico after the Pico de Orizaba.

The eruption was preceded by a two-month series of earthquakes and steam-venting episodes caused by an injection of magma at shallow depth below the mountain that created a huge bulge and a fracture system on Mount St. Helens' north slope.

An earthquake at 8:32 am on May 18, 1980, caused the entire weakened north face to slide away, suddenly exposing the partly molten, gas-rich rock in the volcano to lower pressure.

Due to repeated continental and alpine glaciations, many of the volcanic deposits in the belt reflect complex interactions between magma composition, topography, and changing ice configurations.

[82] Volcanoes in this belt include Mount Noel, the Clisbako Caldera Complex, Lightning Peak, Black Dome Mountain, and many lava flows.

[83] The Public Safety Geo-science Program at the Natural Resources Canada undertakes research to support risk reduction from the effects of space weather, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes, and landslides.

Several types of volcanic activity are present, including stratovolcanoes, shield volcanoes, Hawaiian-style fissure eruptions and geysers.

Mount Fuji is Japan's highest and most noted volcano, featuring heavily in Japanese culture and serving as one of the country's most popular landmarks.

The extensive basaltic lava flows from the summit and some of the more than 100 flank cones and vents blocked drainage against the Tertiary Misaka Mountains on the north side of the volcano, forming the Fuji Five Lakes.

Successful predictions of the onset of the climactic eruption led to the evacuation of tens of thousands of people from the surrounding areas, saving many lives, but as the surrounding areas were severely damaged by pyroclastic flows, ash deposits, and later, lahars caused by rainwater remobilising earlier volcanic deposits, thousands of houses were destroyed.

The most recent period of activity lasted from 1965 to 1977, and was characterized by the interaction of magma with the lake water, which produced violent phreatic and phreatomagmatic eruptions.

The volcano was dormant from 1977 then showed signs of unrest since 1991 with strong seismic activity and ground-fracturing events, as well as the formation of small mud geysers on parts of the island.

Indonesia is located where the Ring of Fire around the Pacific Ocean meets the Alpide belt (which runs from Southeast Asia to Southwest Europe).

The western islands of Indonesia (the Sunda Arc of Sumatra, Krakatoa, Java, Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa and Sangeang) are located north of a subduction zone in the Indian Ocean.

[88] New Zealand contains the world's strongest concentration of youthful rhyolitic volcanoes, and voluminous sheets of tuff blanket much of the North Island.

The Auckland volcanic field on the North Island of New Zealand has produced a diverse array of explosive craters, scoria cones, and lava flows.