Last updated: April 18, 2023
Article
Block Flows
![2560px-Block_lava_in_Lassen_Volcanic_National_Park CC license photo of dark colored blocky rocks](/articles/000/images/2560px-Block_lava_in_Lassen_Volcanic_National_Park-CC-license.jpg?maxwidth=1300&autorotate=false)
Photo by Frank Schulenburg. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. Image available at https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Block_lava_in_Lassen_Volcanic_National_Park.jpg
Introduction
Block lava flows have surfaces that consist of large angular blocks of lava. Blocky lava flows usually have andesitic or basaltic-andesitic compositions and are more viscous than basaltic lava flows that form pāhoehoe or ʻa‘ā. The blocks in block lavas are smoother than the rough clinkery ones in ʻa‘ā. The blocky tops of these flows generally grade into a massive unbroken lava interior, with a brecciated layer at the base of the flow. Block lavas are also typically glassy.
Compared to basaltic lava flows, block lavas are thicker and have steep flow fronts. They also tend to not travel as far or as fast as basaltic flows.
![15115847858_01bd06a2f8_o photo of the edge of a blocky lava flow](/articles/000/images/15115847858_01bd06a2f8_o-web.jpg?maxwidth=1300&autorotate=false)
NPS photo.
National Parks with Blocky Lava Flows
At least 3 units of the National Park System contain block lava flows.
Katmai National Park
Four block lava flows were erupted from Trident Volcano between 1953 and the early 1960s. The flows traveled between 1.5 and 2.5 miles (2.5 and 4 km) and are between about 80 and 200 ft (25 and 60 m) thick.
![1107822281_74_3 photo of a mountain valley with the near slope covered with blocky lava.](/articles/000/images/1107822281_74_3.jpg?maxwidth=1300&autorotate=false)
Photograph by T. Miller, USGS, 1974.
Lassen Volcanic National Park
The Fantastic Lava Beds, a series of two lava flows erupted from Cinder Cone in Lassen Volcanic NP, are block lavas. The eruption of Cinder Cone probably lasted a few months and occurred sometime between 1630 and 1670 CE (common era) based on tree ring data from the remains of an aspen tree found between blocks in the Fantastic Lava Beds flow. The Fantastic Lava Beds were erupted late in the Cinder Cone eruptive cycle as their surfaces are free of ash. These flows are basaltic to basaltic andesite in composition.
Other andesitic block lava flows are found in Lassen Volcanic NP.
![Fantastic_Lava_Beds_from_Cinder_Cone_in_Lassen_VNP photo of a large lava field surrounded by forested hills](/articles/000/images/Fantastic_Lava_Beds_from_Cinder_Cone_in_Lassen_VNP.jpg?maxwidth=1300&maxheight=1300&autorotate=false)
Photo by Daniel Mayer. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 1.0 Generic license.
![Fig 11 sir2012-5176-a_text photo of a large lava field next to a forest and a lake](/articles/000/images/Fig-11-sir2012-5176-a_text.jpg?maxwidth=1300&autorotate=false)
USGS photo.
Lava Beds National Monument
The approximately 65,000-year-old Schonchin Flow in Lava Beds NM is an andesitic (57.2 weight percent SiO2) blocky lava flow with steep flow fronts and a rough surface morphology.
National Park Sites Containing Blocky Lava Flows
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Katmai National Park (KATM), Alaska—[KATM Geodiversity Atlas] [KATM Park Home] [KATM npshistory.com]
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Lassen Volcanic National Park (LAVO), California—[LAVO Geodiversity Atlas] [LAVO Park Home] [LAVO npshistory.com]
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Lava Beds National Monument (LABE), California—[LABE Geodiversity Atlas] [LABE Park Home] [LABE npshistory.com]