Stratovolcano

A stratovolcano, composite cone, or composite volcano is a tall conical mountain volcano composed of both hardened lava and volcanic ash. These volcanoes form because the lava that formed them was viscous, and so cooled and hardened before spreading, making the steep mountain. Such lava tends to be high in silica. At the opposite end of the spectrum are shield volcanoes, which are formed from less viscous lava, giving them a wide base, and shallow slope.

Because most volcanoes have a stratified (layered) structure, some volcanologists prefer to use the term stratovolcano.

Examples are:

• Mt. Fuji in Japan
• Vesuvius in Italy
• Mount Erebus in Antarctica,
• Mount Rainier in the northwestern United States
• Mount Taranaki (formerly Mount Egmont) in New Zealand's North Island
• Mount Ruapehu in New Zealand's North Island
• Mayon Volcano in the Philippines
• Skjaldbreiður in South-west Iceland
• Trölladyngja in North-East Iceland
• Kollóttadyngja in North-East Iceland