There are several ways in which a volcano can form, just as there are several different kinds of volcanoes. Volcanism is part of the process by which a planet cools off. Hot magma, rising from lower reaches of the Earth, eventually, but not always, erupts onto the surface in the form of lava. During the eruption of a volcano, flowing lava and ash, forming a large cone. This cone is what we know as a volcano.
Among the different kinds of volcanoes are:
- shield volcanoes
- cinder cones
- composite volcanoes
