Italy is a fascinating country, and when it comes to volcanology, Italy has been arguably the most influential location in the planet. The first ever detailed description of a volcanic eruption came from Pliny the Younger writing about the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD. Vesuvius was also the first volcano to be watched over…
Introduction In part one I took a close look at the large scale forces that drive volcanism in Africa, at continental rifting in its different stages and the types of magma chemistry that form because of it. I also discussed the origin of the forces that created Nyiragongo and Virunga in the first place. In…
Some days ago I got into a rather enthralling conversation about weird magma types. It revolved around a particular kind of magma called nephelinite. Some of you may know about this magma variety. Or perhaps not. It is after all a word that doesn’t show up as frequently as basalt or rhyolite. If this name…