Composite volcanoes

Composite volcanoes have a principal conduit system through which magma from a reservoir deep in the Earth's crust rises to the surface repeatedly to cause eruptions.Composite volcanoes, sometimes called stratovolcanoes, tend to erupt explosively because of the silica-based nature of magmas associated with these volcanoes.

Composite volcanoes often form the largest and tallest volcanoes. They are the most explosive and dangerous of the types of volcanoes.
Most of the tall volcanoes, like Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier in Washington and Mount Fuji in Japan are composite volcanoes. These volcanoes usually have a big explosion when they erupt, and in-between eruptions you might not even be able to tell they are volcanoes, because they are very quiet and look just like other
mountains.
Shape is largely a function of slope angle; at the one
extreme are very shallow slopes that characterize shields, and on the other are the steeper slopes that characterize cones and domes. Among the smaller edifices are cinder cones and domes, which are typically monogenetic (formed from a single eruption episode).

Compared with caldera systems, composite volcanoes erupt smaller volumes more frequently and less explosively, which likely inhibits the long-term extreme differentiation, which typifies caldera-forming magmas.Young stratovolcanoes are typically steep sided and symmetrically cone shaped. There are several active stratovolcanoes in North America. Since 1980 Mount Saint Helens in Washington has become the most familiar.dimension built of alternating layers of lava flow, volcanic ash and cinders.

Famous composite volcanoes include Mount Fuji in Japan, Mount Shasta and Mount Lassen in California, Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier in
Washington State, Mount Hood in Oregon, and Mount Etna in Italy.
Composite volcanoes will rise as much as 8,000 feet above their base. Most composite volcanoes have a crater at the summit, which contains a central vent or a clustered group of vents.Most volcanoes on Earth are of this type. Stratovolcanoes kill more people than any other type of volcanoes - this is because of their abundance on Earth and their powerful mudflows.