Plinian

/ ˈplɪnɪən /

adjective

1. geology (of a volcanic eruption) characterized by repeated explosions

Word History and Origins

Origin of Plinian¹

C20: named after Pliny the Younger, who described such eruptions

Example Sentences

Absolutely magnificent shot of the Plinian column at 1:30pm PDT on May 18, 1980.

From Scientific American

A 550-year-old Plinian eruption at El Chichón Volcano, Chiapas, Mexico: explosive volcanism linked to reheating of the magma reservoir.

From Nature

His robot encyclopedist spoke in magnetic poetry phrases, which occasionally yielded uncanny reproductions of Plinian syntax but often fell flat.

From The New Yorker

So-called Plinian eruptions—named for Roman statesman Pliny the Younger, whose written observations of this very eruption have helped scientists piece together the story of Pompeii and Vesuvius—would instead send large and small chunks of solid, nonflaming pumice flying through the air.

From Scientific American

Lopes says that magma wouldn’t have been visible before the explosion; in Plinian eruptions pressure builds up beneath a hardened surface before finally exploding.

From Scientific American