10 Little-Known Facts About Volcanoes
Ready to learn about volcanoes? From lightning that sparks at a volcano to its deadly hazards, we’re going to dive into 10 little-known facts about volcanoes
Geology
Lahar: Flowing Mud at Volcanoes
“Lahar” is an Indonesian word for mudflow at volcanoes. Lahar flows down volcanoes as a mix of mostly water, mud and rock debris (similar to wet concrete).
What is a Shield Volcano?
The name “shield volcano” originated from its Roman shield-like shape. They are broad, flat and can stretch hundreds of miles wide like Mauna Loa in Hawaii.
What is a Stratovolcano (Composite Cone)?
The stratovolcano is tall, steep & cone-shaped. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes build up height by layering lava, ash and tephra on top of another.
3 Types of Faults: Normal, Reverse and Strike-Slip
The 3 types of faults are: normal, reverse and strike-slip. When two blocks slide horizontally, it’s strike-slip. If it moves vertically, it’s dip-slip.
What is Permafrost? Why It’s Like the Glue for Rock and Soil
Think of permafrost like glue. The ice is the glue in permafrost which holds the rocks, sand & soil. Like glue, permafrost doesn’t melt. Instead, it thaws.
Pangea Ultima: Meet Earth’s Next Supercontinent
If you could fast-forward 250 million years in the future, you would witness all continents will assemble into one giant supercontinent called Pangea Ultima.
7 Major Tectonic Plates: The World’s Largest Plate Tectonics
From large to small, the 7 major tectonic plates include the Pacific, North American, Eurasian, African, Antarctic, Indo-Australian and South American plate.
13 Parts of a Volcano: The Anatomy of Volcanoes
Today, we explore 13 parts of a volcano. From tephra, fumaroles, magma, lava domes, pyroclastic flow to volcanic bombs, this is the anatomy of volcanoes.
Transform Plate Boundaries: Sliding Plate Tectonics
Conservative or transform plate boundaries slide across each other. They neither converge or diverge such as parts of the North American and Pacific Plate.
Earth Tomography: How Seismic Waves Travel Inside Earth
We can’t physically go inside the Earth. But we use seismic tomography from earthquakes to see inside our planet. From Earth tomography, we create 3D models.
Cambrian Explosion: Life Diversification in the Oceans
The Cambrian explosion was the largest diversification of life in Earth’s history. Ocean life started as sparse and simple. Then, it remarkably diversified.
Paleozoic Era: Diversification of Life (540 to 252 million years ago)
The Paleozoic Era marked the first fossil records of animal life.The Cambrian explosion was the largest diversification of life in Earth’s history.
The Pedosphere: Soil on Earth
The pedosphere is like the “skin of Earth”. Just like your skin, it has a thin outer surface. It also has pore spaces and dries out without enough moisture.
3 Types of Volcanoes: Stratovolcano, Shield and Cinder Cone
The 3 types of volcanoes are stratovolcanoes, shield volcanoes and cinder cones. Based on their geography, volcanoes take different appearances.
