Lava low degree of polymerization and high temperature favors chemical diffusion, so it is common to see large, well-formed phenocrysts within mafic lavas. Basalt lavas tend to produce low-profile shield volcanoes or "flood basalt fields", because the fluidal lava flows for long distances from the vent. The thickness of a basalt lava, particularly on a low slope, may be much greater than the thickness of the moving lava flow at any one time, because basalt lavas may "inflate" by supply of lava beneath a solidified crust. Most basalt lavas are of "ʻAʻā" or "pāhoehoe" types, rather than block lavas. Underwater, they
Volcanic history of the Northern Cordilleran Volcanic Province the junction of the Pelly and Yukon rivers, Volcano Mountain in central Yukon consists of a cinder cone and a series of lava flows. It is the youngest volcano in the Fort Selkirk Volcanic Field and lava flows originated from fractures in the volcano's flank. These lava flows extend northeast and southwest of the volcano. The northeastern lava flow extends from Volcano Mountain whereas the southwestern lava flow extends from the volcano. These lava flows are composed of olivine nephelinite, a type of lava not commonly found on Earth. Nephelinite lavas are usually interpreted to have originated much deeper in