Highest Volcano – Mauna Loa
The world’s highest volcano, Mauna Loa, is located in Hawaii, USA with an elevation of 9179 metres. It is a massive shield volcano and the largest active volcano on Earth. Characterised by fluid, silica-poor and non- explosive lava eruptions, it has relatively gentle slopes about 12° at their steepest.
- The Hawaiian name “Mauna Loa” means “Long Mountain”.
- It covers a land area of 5,271 km2 and has a maximum width of 120 km.
- It makes up more than half of the surface area of the island of Hawaii, consisting of approximately 65,000 to 80,000 km3 of solid rock.
- Mauna Loa has an elevation of 9,170 m from base to summit combining the volcano’s height (5,000 m) from base to the to the seafloor and 4,170 m subaerial height, greater than the elevation of Mount Everest (8,848 metres) from sea level to its summit.
- The only volcano higher than the Mauna Loa is the Tamu Massif, located underwater, and is extinct now.
- The most recent eruption occurred on November 27, 2022, and ended on December 13, 2022. It was the first eruption since 1984.
List of Top 10 Active Volcanoes in 2024
The top ten volcanoes in order of altitude from highest to lowest are Mauna Loa, Mount Kilimanjaro, Popocatepetl, Mount Fuji, Mount Semeru, Mount Etna, Mount Saint Helens, Mayon Volcano, Mount Bromo, Arenal Volcano.
About 15% of the world’s active volcanoes are found along the constructive plate margins/divergent plate margins ( along the mid-oceanic ridges where two plates move in opposite directions) whereas 80% of the volcanoes are associated with destructive plate margins/convergent plate margins (where two plates collide). Also, some volcanoes are found in intraplate regions e.g. volcanoes of Hawaii island, fault zones of East Africa etc.
In this article, we will look into the details of the top 10 active volcanoes in terms of elevation, along with their location and other significant features.
Table of Content
- About Active Volcanoes in the World
- List of Top 10 Active Volcanoes in the World
- Highest Volcano – Mauna Loa
- Second Highest Volcano – Mount Kilimanjaro
- Third Highest Volcano – Popocatepetl
- Fourth Highest Volcano – Mount Fuji
- Fifth Highest Volcano – Mount Semeru
- Sixth Highest Volcano – Mount Etna
- Seventh Highest Volcano – Mount St. Helens
- Eighth Highest Volcano – Mayon Volcano
- Ninth Highest Volcano – Mount Bromo
- Tenth Highest Volcano – Arenal Volcano
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