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Fissure eruption
under thousands of meters of water. Fissure eruptions occasionally
occur on land, as is shown in Iceland. In the past they have been so huge that they have covered hundreds of thousands of square kilometers. The world’s largest example is the Deccan Traps in India, where lava flows have built
 Fissure eruption—Fissure eruptions are spectacular flows of lava from long fissures. The basaltic lava that flows from them can travel long distances very quickly.
up rock thousands of meters thick. This is the result of a flood
basalt eruption and is a form
of supervolcano. There are other gigantic lava plateaus. In North America basalt occupies much
of the basins of the Columbia and Snake Rivers. In the United Kingdom Fingal’s Cave and the
Giant’s Causeway are both parts of old fissure eruptions.
Fortunately, these giant eruptions are rare, and none has happened on land in recorded history. If it did, the loss of life might be immense, while the heat released might alter the climate.
 Fissure eruption—The nature of a fissure eruption.
 Fissure eruption—The result of a fissure eruption allowing basalts to flood over the landscape, Columbia Plateau, Idaho.
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