Volcano Eruptions ~ What comes out of a volcano when it erupts?

Volcano Lava ~ molten rock that will either ooze or flow quickly; the temperature usually is around 2, 000 degrees. The speed and shape of a lava flow depends on the type of volcano and strength of the eruption.

Volcano Ooze

Volcano

Flow

Volcano

Pyroclastic Flow ~ a fast moving current of hot gas, ash, and rock traveling down the side of the volcano at speeds up to 200 mph with temperatures of over 500 degrees Celsius.

Volcano Mayon, Philippines

Volcano

St. Augustine, Alaska

Pompeii August 24, 79 AD, the sleeping town of Pompeii, Italy was destroyed by a volcano…Mt. Vesuvius.

Mt. Vesuvius, Italy

Pompeii

Volcano Supervolcano ~ a volcano that produces the largest eruptions on Earth; can effect global climates for years. Typical eruptions happen several thousand years apart.

Volcano Yellowstone Park

Volcano Each year, millions of visitors come to admire the hot springs and geysers of Yellowstone, the Nation’s first national park. Few are aware that these wonders are fueled by heat from a large reservoir of partially molten rock (magma), just a few miles beneath their feet. As this magma-which drives one of the world’s largest volcanic systems-rises, it pushes up the Earth’s crust beneath the Yellowstone Plateau

Volcano Eruptions of the Yellowstone volcanic system have included the two largest volcanic eruptions in North America in the past few million years; the third largest was at Long Valley in California and produced the Bishop ash bed. The biggest of the Yellowstone eruptions occurred 2.1 million years ago, depositing the Huckleberry Ridge ash bed. These eruptions left behind huge volcanic depressions called “calderas” and spread volcanic ash over large parts of North America (see map). If another large caldera-forming eruption were to occur at Yellowstone, its effects would be worldwide. Thick ash deposits would bury vast areas of the United States, and injection of huge volumes of volcanic gases into the atmosphere could drastically affect global climate

Volcano Supervolcanoes Around The World Around the world there are several other volcanic areas that can be considered "supervolcanoes"- Long Valley in eastern California, Toba in Indonesia, and Taupo in New Zealand. Other "supervolcanoes" would likely include the large caldera volcanoes of Japan, and Indonesia.