strata vs. volcanoes

                                        


                  
Shield volcanoes are one of the three major types of volcanoes, distinguished from the two other major volcanic types, stratovolcanoes and cinder cones, by distinct differences in structure and composition. Stratovolcanoes are built up by the accumulation of thick, viscous lavas, whereas cinder cones are constructed of tephra ejected in explosive eruptions. In comparison, shield volcanoes are built of relatively weakly viscous basaltic lavas that erupts in longer cycles than that of a stratovolcano. Shield volcanoes are distinctive products of hotspot volcanism, but can form at rift and subduction zones as well.
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