VOLCANO RESEARCH PAPER:
Big scientific ideas for which you should be researching:
Where is your volcano located?
What type of plate movement/boundary has caused your volcano to be active or
active in the past?
What type of volcano is it?
What type of eruption is associated with your volcano?
What is the degree of damage done or the risk of damage to be done when/if the
volcano erupts? Is this solely because of the type of eruption or does this also have
to do with the location of populations (human/animal/ecological) nearby?
As a human being living in this area, how would a volcanic eruption affect you and
your surroundings?
How do the area’s economic and environmental features affect the short-term or
long-term risk to the community?
This is just a guide and a list of the minimum requirements for your research
“paper.” Find a way to make your “paper” interesting and relatable to anyone who
reads it. See the attached information below to help guide your scientific research.
What to do next:
Create a newsletter that summarizes the required (and maybe more) information
above into a topically-organized, attractive format.
Be sure to include the required visuals (maps, charts (come up with some data that
could be organized into a chart—i.e.. amt of eruptions over a certain period of time, pictures,
and the bibliography box).
Make sure you also include at least 20 Science terms (ITALICS) and 10 English
words (BOLD).
Information about which you should be thinking:
Volcanoes are mountains that are formed of molten rock that is pushed up to the
Earth’s surface.
Volcanic Eruptions- explosive or nonexplosive depending on the type of magma
emitted (lava or pyroclastic)
Explosive – caused by magma with high water content; produces mostly
pyroclastic materials –
Pyroclastic Material - material that forms when magma explodes
from a volcano and solidifies in the air. The four types are:
Blocks – largest; solid rock blasted from a volcano;
Bombs – large blobs that harden in the air;
Lapilli – pebble size bits of magma that become solid before
hitting the ground
Ash – tiny glassy slivers formed when volcanic gases expand
rapidly and explode.
Nonexplosive – produces mostly lava; there are four types of lava based on
viscosity (a liquid’s resistance to flow) the more silica rich the magma is the
higher its viscosity.
The four types of viscosity are:
Blocky – high viscosity, flows slowly, cannot travel far from
vent, and forms sharp-edged chunks;
Aa – slightly lower viscosity and forms brittle crust with sharp
edges;
Pahoehoe – low viscosity, flows like wax, and forms glassy,
wrinkled surface,
Pillow – low viscosity; flows underwater, and forms rounded
lumps.
Volcano Types
Composite or strato – made of alternating layers of lava and pyroclastic
material (explosive/quiet); have broad bases and steep peaks; lava is dark
and light; rock type formed is andesite; Mt. Fuji and Vesuvius are examples.
Shield – quiet, moderate explosions; gently sloping (dome); runny, dark lava;
forms basalt, obsidian; Mauna Kea in Hawaii is an example (when measured
from its base on the sea floor, it is taller than Mt. Everest).
Cinder Cone – explosive; eruptions contain some light colored lava but
mostly are pyroclastic material; forms scoria, pumice, ryolite, and granite;
steep shape; An example is Paricutin in Mexico.