Volcanoes are unquestionably one of the most spectacular and awe-inspiring features of the physical world. Our paradoxical fascination with them stems from their majestic beauty and powerful, sometimes deadly, destructiveness. Notwithstanding the tremendous advances in volcanology since ancient times, some of the mystery surrounding volcanic eruptions remains today. The Encyclopedia of Volcanoes summarizes our present knowledge of volcanoes; it provides a comprehensive source of information on the causes of volcanic eruptions and both the destructive and beneficial effects. The early chapters focus on the science of volcanism (melting of source rocks, ascent of magma, eruption processes, extraterrestrial volcanism, etc.).  Later chapters discuss human interface with volcanoes, including the history of volcanology, geothermal energy resources, interaction with the oceans and atmosphere, health aspects of volcanism, mitigation of volcanic disasters, post-eruption ecology, and the impact of eruptions on organismal biodiversity.

Table of Contents:
Part I. Origin and Transport of Magma 1. Melting the Earth’s Upper Mantle Timothy L. Grove and Christy B. Till 2. Migration of Melt Martha J. Daines and Matej Pec 3. Plate Tectonics and Volcanism Peter C. LaFemina 4. The Composition and Origin of Magmas Nick Rogers 5. Thermodynamic and Transport Properties of Silicate Melts and Magma Charles E. Lesher and Frank J. Spera 6. Chemical Thermodynamics and the Study of Magmas Mark S. Ghiorso and Guilherme A.R. Gualda 7. Volatiles in Magmas Paul J. Wallace, Terry Plank, Marie Edmonds and Erik H. Hauri 8. Magma Chambers Bruce D. Marsh 9. Rates of Magma Ascent and Storage Brandon Browne and Lindsay Szramek 10. Magma Transport in Dikes Helge Gonnermann and Benoit Taisne 11. Magma Ascent and Degassing at Shallow Levels Alain Burgisser and Wim Degruyter Part II. Eruptions 12. Earth’s Volcanoes and Their Eruptions: An Overview Lee Siebert, Elizabeth Cottrell, Edward Venzke and Benjamin Andrews 13. Sizes of Volcanic Eruptions David M. Pyle 14. Global Rates of Volcanism and Volcanic Episodes Natalia Irma Deligne and Haraldur Sigurdsson 15. Primary Volcanic Landforms Shan de Silva and Jan M. Lindsay 16. Calderas Michael Branney and Valerio Acocella Part III. Effusive Volcanism 17. Lava Flows and Rheology Andrew J.L. Harris and Scott K. Rowland 18. Lava Dome Eruptions Eliza S. Calder, Yan Lavallée, Jackie E. Kendrick and Marc Bernstein 19. Submarine Lavas and Hyaloclastite James D.L. White, Jocelyn McPhie, and S. Adam Soule 20. Glaciovolcanism Benjamin R. Edwards, Magnu´s T. Gudmundsson and James K. Russell 21. Mid-Ocean Ridge Volcanism S. Adam Soule 22. Seamounts and Island Building Hubert Staudigel and Anthony A.P. Koppers 23. Basaltic Volcanic Fields Greg A. Valentine and Charles B. Connor 24. Large Igneous Provinces and Flood Basalt Volcanism Stephen Self, Millard F. Coffin, Michael R. Rampino and John A. Wolff Part IV Explosive Volcanism 25. Magmatic Fragmentation Katharine V. Cashman and Bettina Scheu 26. Magma—Water Interaction and Phreatomagmatic Fragmentation Bernd Zimanowski, Ralf Büttner, Pierfrancesco Dellino, James D.L. White and Kenneth H. Wohletz 27. Hawaiian and Strombolian Eruptions Jacopo Taddeucci, Marie Edmonds, Bruce Houghton, Michael R. James and Sylvie Vergniolle 28. Vulcanian Eruptions Amanda Bachtell Clarke, Tomaso Esposti Ongaro and Alexander Belousov 29. Plinian and Subplinian Eruptions Raffaello Cioni, Marco Pistolesi and Mauro Rosi 30. Phreatomagmatic and Related Eruption Styles Bruce Houghton, James D.L. White and Alexa R. Van Eaton 31. Submarine Explosive Eruptions James D.L. White, C. Ian Schipper and Kazuhiko Kano 32. Volcanic Plumes Steven Carey and Marcus Bursik 33. Tephra Dispersal and Sedimentation Costanza Bonadonna, Antonio Costa, Arnau Folch and Takehiro Koyaguchi 34. Pyroclastic Fall Deposits Bruce F. Houghton and Rebecca J. Carey 35. Pyroclastic Density Currents: Processes and Models Josef Dufek, Tomaso Esposti Ongaro and Olivier Roche 36. Deposits of Pyroclastic Density Currents Richard J. Brown and Graham D.M. Andrews 37. Lahars and Their Deposits James W. Vallance and Richard M. Iverson 38. Landslides, Debris Avalanches and Volcanic Gravitational Deformation Benjamin van Wyk de Vries and Tim Davies Part V Extraterrestrial Volcanism 39. Volcanism on the Moon Paul D. Spudis 40. Volcanism on Mercury James W. Head, III and Lionel Wilson 41. Volcanism on Mars James R. Zimbelman, William Brent Garry, Jacob Elvin Bleacher and David A. Crown 42. Volcanism on Venus Mikhail A. Ivanov, Larry S. Crumpler, Jayne C. Aubele and James W. Head, III 43. Volcanism on Io Rosaly M.C. Lopes and David A. Williams 44. Cryovolcanism in the Outer Solar System Paul Geissler Part VI Volcanic Interactions 45. Volcanic, Magmatic and Hydrothermal Gases Tobias P. Fischer and Giovanni Chiodini 46. Intrusion-Related Geothermal Systems James Stimac, Fraser Goff and Cathy J. Goff 47. Seafloor Hydrothermal Venting at Volcanic Arcs and Backarcs Cornel E.J. de Ronde and Valerie K. Stucker 48. Volcano-Related Lakes Pierre Delmelle, Richard W. Henley and Alain Bernard 49. Volcanic Successions Associated with Ore Deposits: Facies Characteristics and Ore—Host Relationships Jocelyn McPhie and Ray Cas 50. Volcanic Influences on the Carbon, Sulfur, and Halogen Biogeochemical Cycles Pierre Delmelle, Elena Maters and Clive Oppenheimer Part VII. Volcanic Hazards 51. Probabilistic Volcanic Hazard Assessment Chuck Connor, Mark Bebbington and Warner Marzocchi 52. Volcanic Ash Hazards to Aviation Fred Prata and Bill Rose 53. Climatic Impacts of Volcanic Eruptions Alan Robock 54. Hazards from Pyroclastic Density Currents Paul D. Cole, Augusto Neri and Peter J. Baxter 55. Lava Flow Hazards and Modeling Christopher R.J. Kilburn 56. Hazards from Lahars and Jökulhlaups Magnús T. Gudmundsson 57. Hazards of Volcanic Gases Glyn Williams-Jones and Hazel Rymer 58. Volcanic Tsunamis Simon J. Day 59. Volcanic Seismicity Stephen R. McNutt and Diana C. Roman 60. Impacts of Eruptions on Human Health Peter J. Baxter and Claire J. Horwell 61. Large Igneous Provinces and Biotic Extinctions Michael R. Rampino and Stephen Self 62. Volcanic Lightning Stephen R. McNutt and Ronald J. Thomas Part VIII. Eruption Response and Mitigation 63. Seismic and Infrasonic Monitoring Stephen R. McNutt, Glenn Thompson, Jeffrey Johnson, Silvio De Angelis and David Fee 64. Ground Deformation, Gravity, and Magnetics Jeffrey T. Freymueller, John B. Murray, Hazel Rymer and Corinne A. Locke 65. Gas, Plume, and Thermal Monitoring Simon A. Carn 66. Synthesis of Volcano Monitoring John Pallister and Stephen R. McNutt 67. Volcano Warning Systems Chris E. Gregg, Bruce Houghton and John W. Ewert 68. Volcanic Crisis Management Gill Jolly and Servando de la Cruz 69. Social Processes and Volcanic Risk Reduction Jenni Barclay, Katharine Haynes, Bruce Houghton and David Johnston 70. Volcanic Risk Assessment Willy Aspinall and Russell Blong Part IX. Economic Benefits and Cultural Aspects of Volcanism 71. Utilization of Geothermal Resources Stefán Arnórsson, Sverrir Thórhallsson and Andri Stefánsson 72. Volcanic Soils Pierre Delmelle, Sophie Opfergelt, Jean-Thomas Cornelis and Chien-Lu Ping 73. Volcano Ecology: Disturbance Characteristics and Assembly of Biological Communities Charles M. Crisafulli, Frederick J. Swanson, Jonathan J. Halvorson and Bruce D. Clarkson 74. Volcanic Materials in Commerce and Industry 1285 Jonathan Dehn and Stephen R. McNutt 75. Volcanoes and Tourism Patricia Erfurt-Cooper, Haraldur Sigurdsson and Rosaly M.C. Lopes 76. Volcanoes, Ancient People, and Their Societies Payson Sheets 77. Volcanoes in Art Haraldur Sigurdsson 78. Volcanoes in Literature and Film Haraldur Sigurdsson and Rosaly M.C. Lopes Appendix 1: Common Units and Conversion Factors Appendix 2: Catalog of Earth’s Documented Holocene Eruptions