Volcano - Magma, Eruptions, Geothermal | Britannica

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Mount St. Helens volcano

How volcanoes work, explained by a volcanologist

Mount Fuji, Japan.

volcanism and plate tectonics

volcanoes and thermal fields

What it's like to visit an active volcano

Mount St. Helens eruption.

Classify volcanic eruptions according to the physical and chemical properties of their magma

For Students

volcano summary

Read Next

animated gif/infographic of the Mount Tambora eruption, April 1815. volcano. Indonesia.

Mount Tambora 200 Years Later

Mount Saint Helens (Cascade Range, southwestern Washington) spewing ash during the 1980 eruption.; Mount St. Helens

35th Anniversary of Mount Saint Helens Eruption

Ash cloud rising from the Kilauea Volcano Pu`u `O `o as crater floor collapses due to magma withdrawal. Incandescent rubble can be seen crumbling and rolling down the scarp. East rim of Pu`u `O `o is in the foreground, Kilauea, Hawaii on March 6, 2011.

Watch Your Step: 6 Things You Can Fall Into

Arenal Volcano in northwestern Costa Rica in the province of Alajuela.

Are Volcanoes Dangerous When They’re Not Erupting?

animated gif/infographic of the Mount Tambora eruption, April 1815. volcano. Indonesia.

How the 1815 Eruption of Mount Tambora Produced the “Year Without a Summer”

Discover

earthquake. Heavily damaged school in the town of Yingxiu after a major earthquake struck China's Sichuan Province on May 12, 2008.

The 6 Deadliest Earthquakes Since 1950

Periodical Cicada, Adult, Magicicada spp. Requires 17 years to complete development. Nymph splits its skin, and transforms into an adult. Feeds on sap of tree roots. Northern Illinois Brood. This brood is the largest emergence of cicadas anywhere

Why Do Some Cicadas Appear Only Every 17 Years?

Young men throw balloons and glitter from above the mosque at the celebration Eid Al-Fitr after prayers playing with balloons outside of Al-seddeeq mosque, Al-Mansourah, Egypt. 17 July 2015.

Solar Eclipse, Eclipse, Solar Flare, Outer Space, Astronomy

What Causes Lunar and Solar Eclipses?

solar eclipse, sun, moon, astronomy, space

How Do You Tell the Difference Between Total, Annular, Solar, and Lunar Eclipses?

Albert Einstein in Washington, D.C. c. 1921-1923. Physicist

The Solar Eclipse That Made Albert Einstein a Science Celebrity

In this aerial photo, structures are damaged and destroyed October 15, 2005 in Balakot, Pakistan. It is estimated that 90% of the city of Balakot was leveled by the earthquake. The death toll in the 7.6 magnitude earthquake that struck northern Pakistan on October 8, 2005 is believed to be 38,000 with at least 1,300 more dead in Indian Kashmir. SEE CONTENT NOTES.

6 of the World’s Deadliest Natural Disasters

Geothermal energy is plentiful, but geothermal power is not. Temperatures increase below Earth’s surface at a rate of about 30 °C per km in the first 10 km (roughly 90 °F per mile in the first 6 miles) below the surface. This internal heat of Earth is an immense store of energy. In the upper 10 km of rock beneath the conterminous United States, it amounts to 3.3 × 10²⁵ joules, or about 6,000 times the energy contained in the world’s oil reserves. The problem in utilizing geothermal energy is extracting it. The natural escape of Earth’s heat through its ...(100 of 12070 words)

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