Definition of caldera
: a volcanic crater that has a diameter many times that of the vent and is formed by collapse of the central part of a volcano or by explosions of extraordinary violence
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Recent Examples of caldera from the Web
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Park spokeswoman Jessica Ferracane said Monday that the man was found on the caldera floor about 250 feet below Crater Rim Trail.
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Richards said someone falls down the Crater Lake caldera at least once a year.
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Then there’s the open question of the coexistence of tourism and the mining industry (Santorini closed the mines in its caldera in the 1970s, when visitors started arriving).
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Here is the term for the roiling, spattering 2,000-degree Fahrenheit liquid rock visible in the caldera of Kilauea volcano this afternoon: lava lake.
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Here, camel drivers, soldiers and local militia members often hang out until expeditions like ours come for the final three-hour, six-mile trek to the caldera.
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Heat from the volcano makes some spots swimmable, and many passengers on Antarctic cruises bring back pictures of themselves in the waters of the island caldera.
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Ambrym's most notable feature is its caldera, a large depression resulting from the explosion or collapse of the center of a volcano.
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A new crack funneled lava northward, eventually sending it over the northeastern edge of the curiously rectangular caldera.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'caldera.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Did You Know?
A large, bowl-shaped volcanic depression, a caldera forms when the top of a volcanic cone collapses into the space left after magma is ejected during a violent volcanic eruption. Its diameter is many times that of the original vent. The term is Spanish for "caldron." Subsequent minor eruptions may build small cones on the floor of the caldera, and the caldera may still later fill up with water; an example of this is Crater Lake in Oregon.
Origin and Etymology of caldera
Spanish, literally, cauldron, from Late Latin caldaria — more at cauldron
Other Geology Terms
anthracite, boulder, cwm, erratic, igneous, intrusive, mesa, sedimentary, silt, swale
Learn More about caldera
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See words that rhyme with caldera Spanish Central: Translation of caldera Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about caldera
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