Do quiet or explosive eruptions increase the height of volcanoes?
A strato volcano is the tallest type of volcano and the highest explosive. It is composed of layers, hence “strato”, ash and viscous lava (thick and explosive). Although sometimes strato (composite) can have such an explosive eruption they can lose their flank or (face). Literally blow their top. Shield volcanoes are the quiet type of eruptions. They are not very tall at all, they can get very wide though. Mauna Loa is the biggest volcano in the world but not the tallest. They get their name shield because if you ever seen a shield (like what the Spartans had) they were dome shaped. When you look at shield volcanoes they often look like a giant shield laying flat on the Earth usually with a crater on the top.
