Mount Nyiragongo "EMPOWER IAS"

In news:

• Thousands have fled a volcanic eruption in the Democratic Republic of Congo from Mount Nyiragongo on the outskirts of Goma City.

 

Mount Nyiragongo

• Mount Nyiragongo is an active stratovolcano with an elevation of 3,470 m (11,385 ft) in the Virunga Mountains associated with the Albertine Rift.
• The main crater is about 2km wide and usually contains a lava lake.
• The crater presently has two distinct cooled lava benches within the crater walls.
• It is one of the 16 Decade Volcanoes.
• Nyiragongo’s lava lake has at times been the most voluminous known lava lake in recent history. The depth of the lava lake varies considerably.
• Nyiragongo and nearby Nyamuragira are together responsible for 40 percent of Africa’s historical volcanic eruptions.

 

What are Decade Volcanoes?

 

• The Decade Volcanoes are 16 volcanoes identified by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth’s Interior (IAVCEI).
• They are considered worthy of particular study in light of their history of large, destructive eruptions and proximity to densely populated areas.
• They are named Decade Volcanoes because the project was initiated in the 1990s as part of the United Nations-sponsored International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction.