Why Pt. Thunder Is A Volcano
Overview
To all the residents in the village of Boomsdale, recently Dr. Bigbrain with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has detected small earthquakes coming from Mt. Thunder. For those of you that do not yet know, Mt. Thunder is an active stratovolcano and these earthquakes could be related to an impending volcanic eruption. There are three types of volcanos which include: shield volcanos, scoria cone volcanos, and stratovolcanoes. Unfortunately, stratovolcanoes are the most dangerous, explosive, and deadly volcanoes. The reason for stratovolcano’s explosive tendency is because of the type of magma contained in the volcano’s magma chamber located underground beneath Mt. Thunder. The type of magma contained in the magma chamber is on average andesite. Andesite is a very thick magma that is capable of being very explosive. Imagine boiling pasta sauce and how it bubbles, andesite is similar.
Events That Can Be Expected
Unfortunately, because your …show more content…
village Boomsdale is in a valley, located East of Mt. Thunder, and only fifteen kilometers away, there are three events that can be expected from an erupting Mt. Thunder. One of the events that can be expected because of the eruption is a pyroclastic fall. The three things that make up a pyroclastic fall are blocks and bombs, lapilli, and ash. Bombs, Lapilli, and ash are fragments of lava that have exploded in the air and cooled into a hard glass substance before the fall back to earth. Blocks and bombs are large fragments of the volcano that fall close to the summit of the volcano. These fragments are larger than 64 millimeters. Lapilli are two to 64 millimeters while ash are typically less than two millimeters. In the case of your village, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) is most concerned with ash. Now most of you are probably thinking how can fragments that are less than two millimeters in diameter harm me? The ash that is ejected from Mt. Thunder will rise into high atmosphere and spread out in the high winds. When the ash falls down in can collapse roofs of buildings, cause major respiratory problems, and even suffocate people to death. In 79 A.D. there was a case where ash fall killed over 3,000 people in the Village of Pompeii.
The second event that can be expected when Mt.
Thunder erupts is a lahar. A lahar is a mudflow with a temperature of about 100℃ that is produced when an erupting volcano melts the ice at the peak of the volcano. When this happens the lahar will travel down valleys at tens of kilometers per hour moving like wet concrete. If stuck in a lahar it is almost impossible to get out which is why most people die of suffocation. In 1985 a lahar swept through Armero killing 22,000 people.
The third event that can be expected when Mt. Thunder erupts is a pyroclastic flow. Pyroclastic flows are created when tephra fragments and volcanic gas flows down valleys on the flanks of volcanos. Pyroclastic flows are composed of extremely hot fluidized mixture of gas and rocky fragments that typically move faster than 100 miles per hour. These are the most deadly of all volcanic phenomena which can be seen when looking at the devastation a pyroclastic flow caused when it killed 28,000 people in the city of Saint-Pierre.
Safety
Precautions
Do not be alarmed by these facts! Although Boomsdale has the potential to be affected by lahars, pyroclastic falls, and pyroclastic flows, the USGS is taking necessary precautions to make sure every resident is safe. First the USGS has an established alert system to monitor the eruptions. The public will be informed on four different alert levels so proper evacuation can be made. Also available are hazard maps for Mt. Thunder. The yellow zones denote future lahar danger areas. The red zones are denoted for pyroclastic flow danger, while the purple zones are denoted for zones that have the potential to flood from the result of the lahar.
In the case of a pyroclastic fall please be aware of surroundings. Please stay indoors to prevent respiratory problems from occurring. Also, all pilots should be aware to not fly through ash clouds for major problems can occur. There was a case where the flight of British Airways 9 flew through a pyroclastic fall and almost caused a crash to occur. Ash fragments were trapped in engines when they were heated up and cooled down inside the engine. This caused all the engines to seize and BA9 had to make an emergency landing.
To all the residents in the village of Boomsdale, recently Dr. Bigbrain with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) has detected small earthquakes coming from Mt. Thunder. For those of you that do not yet know, Mt. Thunder is an active stratovolcano and these earthquakes could be related to an impending volcanic eruption. There are three types of volcanos which include: shield volcanos, scoria cone volcanos, and stratovolcanoes. Unfortunately, stratovolcanoes are the most dangerous, explosive, and deadly volcanoes. The reason for stratovolcano’s explosive tendency is because of the type of magma contained in the volcano’s magma chamber located underground beneath Mt. Thunder. The type of magma contained in the magma chamber is on average andesite. Andesite is a very thick magma that is capable of being very explosive. Imagine boiling pasta sauce and how it bubbles, andesite is similar.
Events That Can Be Expected
Unfortunately, because your …show more content…
village Boomsdale is in a valley, located East of Mt. Thunder, and only fifteen kilometers away, there are three events that can be expected from an erupting Mt. Thunder. One of the events that can be expected because of the eruption is a pyroclastic fall. The three things that make up a pyroclastic fall are blocks and bombs, lapilli, and ash. Bombs, Lapilli, and ash are fragments of lava that have exploded in the air and cooled into a hard glass substance before the fall back to earth. Blocks and bombs are large fragments of the volcano that fall close to the summit of the volcano. These fragments are larger than 64 millimeters. Lapilli are two to 64 millimeters while ash are typically less than two millimeters. In the case of your village, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) is most concerned with ash. Now most of you are probably thinking how can fragments that are less than two millimeters in diameter harm me? The ash that is ejected from Mt. Thunder will rise into high atmosphere and spread out in the high winds. When the ash falls down in can collapse roofs of buildings, cause major respiratory problems, and even suffocate people to death. In 79 A.D. there was a case where ash fall killed over 3,000 people in the Village of Pompeii.
The second event that can be expected when Mt.
Thunder erupts is a lahar. A lahar is a mudflow with a temperature of about 100℃ that is produced when an erupting volcano melts the ice at the peak of the volcano. When this happens the lahar will travel down valleys at tens of kilometers per hour moving like wet concrete. If stuck in a lahar it is almost impossible to get out which is why most people die of suffocation. In 1985 a lahar swept through Armero killing 22,000 people.
The third event that can be expected when Mt. Thunder erupts is a pyroclastic flow. Pyroclastic flows are created when tephra fragments and volcanic gas flows down valleys on the flanks of volcanos. Pyroclastic flows are composed of extremely hot fluidized mixture of gas and rocky fragments that typically move faster than 100 miles per hour. These are the most deadly of all volcanic phenomena which can be seen when looking at the devastation a pyroclastic flow caused when it killed 28,000 people in the city of Saint-Pierre.
Safety
Precautions
Do not be alarmed by these facts! Although Boomsdale has the potential to be affected by lahars, pyroclastic falls, and pyroclastic flows, the USGS is taking necessary precautions to make sure every resident is safe. First the USGS has an established alert system to monitor the eruptions. The public will be informed on four different alert levels so proper evacuation can be made. Also available are hazard maps for Mt. Thunder. The yellow zones denote future lahar danger areas. The red zones are denoted for pyroclastic flow danger, while the purple zones are denoted for zones that have the potential to flood from the result of the lahar.
In the case of a pyroclastic fall please be aware of surroundings. Please stay indoors to prevent respiratory problems from occurring. Also, all pilots should be aware to not fly through ash clouds for major problems can occur. There was a case where the flight of British Airways 9 flew through a pyroclastic fall and almost caused a crash to occur. Ash fragments were trapped in engines when they were heated up and cooled down inside the engine. This caused all the engines to seize and BA9 had to make an emergency landing.