My first understanding of volcanoes probably came from watching cartoons as a kid. From there, I feel that I really developed my strong understanding of lava when we would play games pretending that the floor was made of the stuff. 'Don't step in the lava!' We would joyfully cheer, as we bounced inconsiderately all over Mum's nice furniture.
Lava is formed from liquefied rock, also known as molten rock. The rock deep down in the earth is exposed to such extreme temperatures that its arse just melts. When the lava first erupts from a volcano, it can comes out at temperatures between 700 to 1200°C and perhaps higher. It can flow great distances before it cools and starts to solidify.
A volcano
is essentially a pressurised chimney which transfers the molten rock from the depth of the
earth to the surface.
Volcanoes, like other naturally disastrous forces of human nature, come in all levels of dangerous. Not only can a volcano cause earthquakes, fast floods, mud slides, tsunamis and the likes, but the dust, ash and molten rock that comes with them can kill life in mass scales and have long term effects like famine.
The most fascinating volcano (in my and many other's opinion) is the sleeping dragon which lies under Yellowstone Park, in the United States. This guy hasn't erupted in about 640,000 years, but according to some scientists, it is a few thousand years over due.
Because the volcano is essentially a 64 kilometre wide, severely pressurised bath of molten rock, lying only 10km underground, the eruption of said bath would cause disaster at a level which is pretty hard to comprehend. The lava would be flung some 50 kilometres into the earth's atmosphere with virtually all life within 1000 kilometres perishing under the falling ash, lava flows and sheer explosive force of the eruption.
"One thousand cubic kilometers of lava would pour out of the volcano, enough to coat the whole USA with a layer 5 inches thick....it would bring the bitter cold of Volcanic Winter to Planet Earth. Mankind may become extinct." - Bill McGuire, professor of geohazards at the Benfield Greif Hazard Research Centre at the University College of London.
While this probably is a real threat, it's really nothing to dwell on. It could erupt in two years or it could be one thousand. How are we to know? There are many real threats out there, for example, the earth could be hit at any moment with a flying, giant space rock that we wouldn't even spot until it reached our atmosphere, possibly giving us a couple of minutes to call our loved ones and say goodbye. Exciting and depressing! Such is life I suppose.
The most fascinating volcano (in my and many other's opinion) is the sleeping dragon which lies under Yellowstone Park, in the United States. This guy hasn't erupted in about 640,000 years, but according to some scientists, it is a few thousand years over due.
Because the volcano is essentially a 64 kilometre wide, severely pressurised bath of molten rock, lying only 10km underground, the eruption of said bath would cause disaster at a level which is pretty hard to comprehend. The lava would be flung some 50 kilometres into the earth's atmosphere with virtually all life within 1000 kilometres perishing under the falling ash, lava flows and sheer explosive force of the eruption.
"One thousand cubic kilometers of lava would pour out of the volcano, enough to coat the whole USA with a layer 5 inches thick....it would bring the bitter cold of Volcanic Winter to Planet Earth. Mankind may become extinct." - Bill McGuire, professor of geohazards at the Benfield Greif Hazard Research Centre at the University College of London.
While this probably is a real threat, it's really nothing to dwell on. It could erupt in two years or it could be one thousand. How are we to know? There are many real threats out there, for example, the earth could be hit at any moment with a flying, giant space rock that we wouldn't even spot until it reached our atmosphere, possibly giving us a couple of minutes to call our loved ones and say goodbye. Exciting and depressing! Such is life I suppose.