shield volcanoes

Noun

shield volcano (plural shield volcanoes or shield volcanos)

1. A large volcano, with shallow-sloping sides and a flattened dome, formed of successive eruptions of free-flowing lava from fissure vents.
   • Large shield volcanoes of the Hawaiian type (Macdonald, 1972) are more complex, longer lived, polygenetic centres whose life spans may be measurable in terms of hundreds of thousands of years to a millions years.1989, R. W. Johnson, editor, Intraplate Volcanism, Cambridge University Press, page 61

   Synonyms:

   lava dome