somma volcano
geology
Quick Summary
volcanic landforms
The landforms shown at left and right are vertically exaggerated, and those shown at right are out of scale to those shown at left. In reality a cinder cone would be approximately one-tenth the size of a stratovolcano.
A somma volcano is a caldera that has been partially filled by a new, central cone. This geological formation is named after Mount Somma, a ridge found on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius in Italy. Mount Somma itself is a remnant of an older, larger volcanic structure that collapsed, forming a caldera. Over time, volcanic activity within this caldera led to the formation of a new, smaller cone inside the existing ring of Mount Somma. This type of structure is distinct from a typical symmetrical volcanic cone, such as Mount Fuji.1
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