I am in the sixth grade and working on a research project on shield volcanoes and why they have such violent eruptions. Can you please recommend some good resources for me to gather information from on this topic.

rocky Billy

Hi Billy,

Shield volcanoes have explosive eruptions because, in rare cases, groundwater interacts with hot rocks or magma. Have a look at Volcano-Groundwater Interaction - Thermodynamics of gas and steam-blast eruptions (http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Projects/H2O+Volcanoes/Groundwater/Publications/t hermo.html) and Kilauea: Explosive Eruptions (http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/hvo/1995/95_05_12.html).

Sincerely,
Steve Mattox 

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