Volcanic hazards are any volcanic process that can damage property or threaten life.

Learn about
volcanic hazards, such as landslides that can trigger lahars and tsunamis, and ways to prevent these
hazards from threatening people's lives.

Volcanoes

Volcanoes can erupt with so much force that they eject small particles up into the stratosphere. Their
destructive power can cause the area around the volcano to become uninhabitable, and even trigger
ocean waves so large they can travel across entire oceans and destroy coastal areas thousands of miles
away. In this lesson, you will learn about volcanic hazards that cause damage both at the site of the
volcanic eruption and miles away, and get some insights into ways to prevent these hazards from
harming people.

Volcanic Hazards: Landslides and Earthquakes

A volcanic hazard is any volcanic process that threatens life or destroys land or infrastructure. When you
think of a volcanic eruption, you may get a picture in your head of red-hot lava rushing down the slope
of a volcano, and while this is perhaps the most remarkable feature of a volcano, lava is not the only
hazardous material to fall from a volcano.

A landslide is a mass movement of rock fragments, soil and debris downslope. Landslides can happen at
any mountain where the slope of the mountain has become less stable, but they are commonly
associated with volcanic activity because the volcanic mountain is weakened by the magma and
pressure brewing inside. For example, magma can get injected into volcanic rock and the sides of the
volcano as it rises toward the surface. This can weaken the slopes of the volcano, leading to a landslide.

It can also lead to a volcanic earthquake, which is an earthquake induced by the pressure and stress of
volcanic activity. Volcanic earthquakes can then trigger landslides.

Lahars

Landslides create a number of hazards to people and property because they have a potential to travel
long distances, and they pick up momentum and speed as they travel down the slope of a volcano, with
the ability to travel at more than 50 miles per hour. The debris that's carried in a landslide destroys
anything in its path, buries valleys in rock and debris and can dam waterways, leading to flooding.

If the debris within the landslide mixes with enough water, the landslide can turn into a lahar and
continue to travel for miles. A lahar can be defined as a flowing mass of volcanic debris and water. A
lahar resembles a river of wet cement flowing down a volcano and into a valley.

They vary in speed depending on the amount of water and the size of the debris being carried in the
flow. The wettest lahars travel tens of meters per second, making them impossible to outrun. Therefore,
lahars are extremely dangerous and destructive for communities living downslope of a volcano.
Some communities have built structures around their living areas to act as barriers to the flow of lahars
and prevent destruction. However, the best preventative measures are to be prepared with evacuation
routes for citizens of the communities and the development of a warning system that can detect if
conditions are wet enough to support a lahar or to detect seismic signals of a lahar barreling down the
valley.

EARTHQUAKE

What is an earthquake?

Earthquakes are among the most deadly natural hazards. There are around 100 earthquakes each year
of a size that could cause serious damage. They strike without warning and many of the Earth’s
earthquake zones coincide with areas of high population density. When large earthquakes occur in such
areas the results can be catastrophic, with terrible loss of human lives and untold economic cost.

An earthquake is the sudden release of strain energy in the Earth’s crust resulting in waves of shaking
that radiate outwards from the earthquake source. When stresses in the crust exceed the strength of
the rock, it breaks along lines of weakness, either a pre-existing or new fault plane. The point where an
earthquake starts is termed the focus or hypocentre and may be many kilometres deep within the earth.
The point at the surface directly above the focus is called the earthquake epicentre.

An earthquake is caused by a sudden slip on a fault. The tectonic plates are always slowly moving, but
they get stuck at their edges due to friction. When the stress on the edge overcomes the friction, there
is an earthquake that releases energy in waves that travel through the earth's crust and cause the
shaking that we feel.

HOW?

Earthquakes are the result of sudden movement along faults within the Earth that releases stored up
elastic strain energy in the form of seismic waves that propagate through the Earth and cause the
ground surface to shake. Such movement on the faults is generally a response to long-term deformation
and build-up of stress.

Earthquakes develop when tectonic plates, the massive "jigsaw pieces" that make up the crust of the
earth, move suddenly, sending shockwaves through neighboring area.

WHY?

Why Do Earthquakes Happen?

Earthquakes are usually caused when rock underground suddenly breaks along a fault. This sudden
release of energy causes the seismic waves that make the ground shake. When two blocks of rock or
two plates are rubbing against each other, they stick a little. They don't just slide smoothly; the rocks
catch on each other. The rocks are still pushing against each other, but not moving. After a while, the
rocks break because of all the pressure that's built up. When the rocks break, the earthquake occurs.
During the earthquake and afterward, the plates or blocks of rock start moving, and they continue to
move until they get stuck again. The spot underground where the rock breaks is called the focus of the
earthquake. The place right above the focus (on top of the ground) is called the epicenter of the
earthquake.

WHERE?

Where Do Earthquakes Happen?

Earthquakes occur all the time all over the world, both along plate edges and along faults.

Along Plate Edges

Most earthquakes occur along the edge of the oceanic and continental plates. The earth's crust (the
outer layer of the planet) is made up of several pieces, called plates. The plates under the oceans are
called oceanic plates and the rest are continental plates. The plates are moved around by the motion of
a deeper part of the earth (the mantle) that lies underneath the crust. These plates are always bumping
into each other, pulling away from each other, or past each other. The plates usually move at about the
same speed that your fingernails grow. Earthquakes usually occur where two plates are running into
each other or sliding past each other.

Along Faults

Earthquakes can also occur far from the edges of plates, along faults. Faults are cracks in the earth
where sections of a plate (or two plates) are moving in different directions. Faults are caused by all that
bumping and sliding the plates do. They are more common near the edges of the plates.

WHEN?

Earthquakes take place miles underground, and can happen at any time in any weather. Big earthquakes
always occur early in the morning.
VOLCANIC ERUPTION

HOW?

Volcanoes erupt when molten rock called magma rises to the surface. Magma is formed
when the earth's mantle melts.

Melting may happen where tectonic plates are pulling apart or where one plate is
pushed down under another.

Magma is lighter than rock so rises towards the Earth's surface. As the magma rises,
bubbles of gas form inside it.

Runny magma erupts through openings or vents in the earth's crust before flowing onto
its surface as lava.

If magma is thick, gas bubbles cannot easily escape and pressure builds up as the
magma rises.

When the pressure is too much an explosive eruption can happen, which can be
dangerous and destructive.

Another way an eruption happens is when water underneath the surface interacts with
hot magma and creates steam,

this can build up enough pressure to cause an explosion.

How Do Volcanoes Erupt?

Deep within the Earth it is so hot that some rocks slowly melt and become a thick flowing substance
called magma. Since it is lighter than the solid rock around it, magma rises and collects in magma
chambers. Eventually, some of the magma pushes through vents and fissures to the Earth's surface.
Magma that has erupted is called lava.

WHY?

Why do volcanoes erupt?

The Earth's crust is made up of huge slabs called plates, which fit together like a jigsaw puzzle. These
plates sometimes move. The friction causes earthquakes and volcanic eruptions near the edges of the
plates. The theory that explains this process is called plate tectonics.

Where?
Plate boundary volcanism
Volcanic activity occurs at two types of plate boundaries: mid-ocean ridges and subduction zones. At
mid-ocean ridges, basaltic eruptions produce new sea-floor crust. These underwater eruptions don't
produce big mountainous volcanoes, which is why they are often overlooked as the most
volcanically active features on Earth. Commonly, basalt is erupted at mid-ocean ridges as blob-
shaped "pillows." These pillows form when basalt is suddenly quenched as it comes into contact with
sea water. If you cut a pillow in half, you'll find a glassy rind around the outside, where the lava
cooled so fast that it couldn't form any crystals. Inside the pillow will be a crystalline matrix of cooled
basaltic lava.

LANDSLIDES

Landslides are caused by disturbances in the natural stability of a slope. They can accompany heavy
rains or follow droughts, earthquakes, or volcanic eruptions. Mudslides develop when water rapidly
accumulates in the ground and results in a surge of water-saturated rock, earth, and debris. Mudslides
usually start on steep slopes and can be activated by natural disasters. Areas where wildfires or human
modification of the land have destroyed vegetation on slopes are particularly vulnerable to landslides
during and after heavy rains.

Landslides occur when masses of rock, earth, or debris move down a slope. Debris flows, also known as
mudslides, are a common type of fast-moving landslide that tends to flow in channels.

What is a landslide and what causes one?

A landslide is defined as the movement of a mass of rock, debris, or earth down a slope. Landslides are a
type of "mass wasting," which denotes any down-slope movement of soil and rock under the direct
influence of gravity. The term "landslide" encompasses five modes of slope movement: falls, topples,
slides, spreads, and flows. These are further subdivided by the type of geologic material (bedrock,
debris, or earth). Debris flows (commonly referred to as mudflows or mudslides) and rock falls are
examples of common landslide types.

Almost every landslide has multiple causes. Slope movement occurs when forces acting down-slope
(mainly due to gravity) exceed the strength of the earth materials that compose the slope. Causes
include factors that increase the effects of down-slope forces and factors that contribute to low or
reduced strength. Landslides can be initiated in slopes already on the verge of movement by rainfall,
snowmelt, changes in water level, stream erosion, changes in ground water, earthquakes, volcanic
activity, disturbance by human activities, or any combination of these factors. Earthquake shaking and
other factors can also induce landslides underwater. These landslides are called submarine landslides.
Submarine landslides sometimes cause tsunamis that damage coastal areas.