TYPES OF ERUPTIONS

• Phreatic or hydrothermal – is a steam-blast small eruption as hot rocks heat the ground water or surface water. This eruption tears down surrounding rocks and can produce ash columns, but do not include new magma.
• Phreatomagmatic - a violent and explosive eruption resulting from the interaction of new magma or lava with water. It results to a large column of very fine ash, high-speed and sideway emission of pyroclastics.
• Strombolian- least violent type of explosive eruption characterized by a fountain of lava fragments. Eruptions are weak to a little more violent which has thicker lava flows and small explosions.
• Vulcanian - small to moderate explosive eruptions characterized by tall columns that reach up to 20 km high with pyroclastic flow and ashfall tephra. They have larger explosions of rocks and ashes which rise in dark clouds lasting for seconds to minutes. Paricutin Volcano eruption in Mexico is an example of this type.
• Plinian - excessively explosive type of eruption of gas and pyroclastics like that of Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991. The explosive eruptions, lasting for seconds to minutes have 20 to 35 km tall gas, rock particles and ash columns.