VOLCANOES

 A volcano is an opening or crack in the earth’s surface where magma erupts into lava.
 Magma is melted or liquid rock which is found below the earth’s surface in the
mantle.
 Lava is the name given to magma which has come out from the mantle on to the
earth’s surface.
 Like earthquakes, most volcanoes happen along plate boundaries and just like
earthquakes, there are more volcanoes under the sea than on land

 Volcanoes can classified depending on their activity in the following way:

 Active Volcanoes – those which are still erupting or have erupted in recent
memory.
 Dormant Volcanoes – those which have not been active for a couple of hundred
years.
  Extinct Volcanoes – those which have since died and the only evidence about
them is just the fossils and rock history.

What Makes A Volcanic Explosion Dangerous?

 Many people think that all a volcano brings out is just lava, this is not true. Volcanoes
can be dangerous for bringing out the following substances:
1. Pyroclastic Flow – This is made up of very hot ash, rocks and air. It is the most
dangerous as it can flow faster than a car at 100 to 700 km/h, so you can’t escape
from it. It is extremely hot, with temperatures reaching up to 1000ºC, it literally
scorches and smothers everything on its path.
2. Showers of ash – these suffocate animals and humans. They also pile up on
rooftops and destroy buildings. They can also ruin crops or farmland for a year or
two.
3. Mudflows – this is from the ash which mixes with water (from rain, melting snow
or rivers. They can reach speeds of 100 km/h.
4. Lava flows – This can kill people and damage farm land and property. Not all
lava can flow fast.
5. Plumes of dust – this is made up of dust particles which can go up to over 30 km
in the sky and these can cause plane crashes, jamming of satellites and cooling of
the earth due to the blocking of the sun.
6. Volcanic gases – These include Sulphur dioxide and other smelly gases. They
can cause acid rains which can destroy vegetation and animals. They can also
lead to suffocation in humans and animals.

Lava Destroying property Lava Flowing into the sea

A Volcano erupting in the sea Mt. Pinatubo’s pyroclastic flow in the
Philippines in 1991.

Town Destroyed by a volcanic eruption in Plymouth the old Capital City of Montserrat.
Montserrat, West Indies.