Volcanoes Facts for Kids
Explosive facts about volcanoes and geology
Before a volcano erupts, the ground often starts to shake because magma is pushing its way up from below. Scientists use these tremors to help predict eruptions.
Volcanic ash is not soft like the ash from a fireplace. It is made of tiny, sharp pieces of rock and glass that can scratch your eyes and damage aeroplane engines.
Jupiter's moon Io is the most volcanically active body in the solar system, with hundreds of active volcanoes and lava lakes on its surface.
The rich minerals in volcanic soil make it excellent for farming. Some of the world's best coffee, wine, and chocolate come from volcanic regions.
In 1963, an underwater eruption off the coast of Iceland created a brand-new island called Surtsey. Scientists have been studying how life colonises it ever since.
Mud volcanoes are real! They erupt mud instead of lava and can be found in places like Azerbaijan, which has more mud volcanoes than any other country.
The 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora in Indonesia ejected so much ash into the atmosphere that 1816 became known as the 'Year Without a Summer', with frost and snow in June across Europe.
Most lava flows are slow enough to walk away from, but some thin, fast-flowing lava can travel at speeds of up to 60 kilometres per hour.
In Hawaiian mythology, Pele is the goddess of fire and volcanoes. Hawaiians believe she lives in the Halema'uma'u crater of Kilauea.
Volcanoes are a crucial part of the deep carbon cycle: they release carbon dioxide stored deep in Earth's mantle back into the atmosphere, a process that has regulated the planet's climate over billions of years.