"Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Volcanos
(but were too afraid to ask!)"
A collection of facts gathered by Ed Burke
Presented for Mrs. Frasco's Enviromental Science course
December 18th, 2003

1. In ancient Rome, people believe that Vulcan was the blacksmith of the gods.

2. The word "volcano" comes from Vulcan's name.

3. Movements below the earth's crust are what cause volcanic eruptions.

4. Ancient gods believed volcanos as jails used by Zeus.

5. The earth's crust is 5-25 miles thick.

6. There are around 10 large plates and 20 small plates in the earth's crust.

7. Parts of mantle reach temperatures of 2,900 degrees.

8. Liquid melted rock is known as magma.

9. Mantle's heat is what cause the plates to move.

10. Movement caused by plates cause earthquakes.

11. A region where 2 plates move apart is called a rift zone.

12. Rift zones are located deep below the oceans.

13. A subduction zone is where plates move.

14. Magma pushes through opening cracks in the crust.

15. 3 types of volcanos include those formed by piles of hardened lava, ash, and rocks.

16. Shield volcanos form when lava flows.

17. Shield volcanos formed what are now the Hawaiian islands.

18. Cinder-cone volcanos form from lava shooting out a vent.

19. Cinder volcanos are usually less than 1,000 feet high.

20. Pyroclastic flow, the strong wind storms caused by the explosions, are much more dangerous than the lava.

21. Winds from volcanic explosions can get as high as 75 miles an hour.

22. Volcanic ash is also very hazardous, due to the fact that it covers plants and trees, killing them over time.

23. Volcanos are also hazardous for causing floods, due to the snow on top of the moutains before they explode.

24. Lava is almost never the cause of death, being as that it moves very slowly.

25. Despite the destruction volcanos can cause, the aftermath has the benefit of newly replenished soil.

Volcanos, as much as they are a vital part to the cycle of nature, are a huge "inconvience" for human establishments (i.e. towns and cities). For areas like Hawaii, it's almost acustomed to and is no longer deemed as a "disaster". Volcanos are caused mainly from plates in the ground and liquid magma flowing out from the mantle. Being as that the center of the earth is extremely hot, it has the advantage of penitrating right through the crust with ease. Volcanos have many more bad effects than just lava, such as the above mentioned floods and ash build up. Although lava still has no way of being controlled, the flood waters and ash destroy whatever agriculture is surrounding the area, causing the land to suffer.

In conclusion, and after conducting extensive research on volcanos over the past 2 days, I can confidently express my undying hatred for the volcanic embarassment to mother nature. If I was in charge of the planet, I would kick volcanos out and ban them from ever coming back. Volcanos are a joke and have nothing better to do than to set things on fire. If I were to take on a volcano, I would most likely win.