Where Does the Word ‘Volcano’ Come From?

Have you ever thought about why volcanoes are actually called 'volcanoes'? Can
you think of a reason why?

The word 'volcano' comes from the The island

island ‘Vulcano’, which is a volcanic actually gets its
island in Italy. name from the
Roman god of
fire – Vulcan.

Vulcano, Italy.
 The Roman God of Fire
Roman mythology says that Vulcan lived in a volcano. As well as being the god
of fire, he made many weapons and forged them using metal and fire. He was a
very skilled blacksmith.

Romans believed that if Vulcan

was made angry, the volcano
would erupt. So they tried their
best to please him and not anger
him.

Forged: to have made or shaped

aClick
metalonobject
the word
using
inabold
fire or
to
find outfurnace.
what it means!
 What Is Our Earth Made Of?
Click on the circles to revealThe
the information.
Outer Core
The outer core is a liquid layer made
out of molten iron and nickel. This
liquid metal creates the earth's
+ magnetic
× + field.
×
×
+
The Crust
The Mantle ×
+ This is the outer layer of the
The mantle is approximately 2897km
earth. It varies in thickness
thick and is made of a solid, rocky
from 0 – 60km thick. It is not
substance called molten rock or
even and is made up of pieces
magma. This is what escapes when a
which overlap to cover the
volcano erupts.
entire planet. These pieces are
The Inner Core
called ‘tectonic plates’.
This is a solid layer and is made of
iron and nickel. It is the hottest part of
the earth and can reach temperatures
of up to 5500ºC!
 Where Are Most Volcanoes Located?

The ‘Ring of Fire’

is an area of the
Pacific Ocean that
is shaped like a
horseshoe. It is
home to 90% of the
world's earthquakes It contains a string of
and 75% of the 452 volcanoes, which
world's volcanoes. stretches from the
southern tip of South
America, up along
the coast of North
America, down
through Japan, and
into New Zealand.
 How Are Volcanoes Formed?
Deep in the earth, it is extremely hot. It is so hot, in fact, that rocks actually melt
and form magma, which makes up the mantle of the earth.

The upper mantle mixes and moves,

which creates pressure underneath the
crust. This pressure can sometimes
cause the mantle
to leak out onto the
surface of the earth
– this is a
volcano!

Over time, as this magma leaks out, the

volcano will get bigger
and bigger.
 The Three Stages of Volcanoes
Scientists have placed volcanoes in to three different categories.
What do you think each one is?

Active
An active volcano is one that has erupted recently, and there is the possibility
that it may erupt again.

Dormant
A dormant volcano is one that has not erupted for a long time, however, it may
still erupt in the future.

Extinct
An extinct volcano is one which has erupted
thousands of years ago, but it will
probably never erupt again.
 Why Do Volcanoes Erupt?
We know that the earth's crust is made up of huge slabs called tectonic plates.
These fit together like a jigsaw puzzle and they sometimes move.

The movement causes friction

which causes earthquakes and
volcanic eruptions near the edges
of the plates. The theory that
explains this process is called
‘plate tectonics’ – this means the
plates are moving in different
directions and at different speeds.
Sometimes they collide or brush
past each other and cause these
Friction: the resistance created when
earthquakes and volcanic
onethe
Click on surface
word rubs
in bold to
eruptions.
findagainst another.
out what it means!
 What Are the Different Parts of a Volcano?
Click on each label to find out more. Click again to remove.

vent ash cloud

A cloud of ash. It is formed

An opening in the surface crater
of the Earth through whichby volcanic explosions
volcanic materials, such as The mouth of a volcano. It
magma, can escape. surrounds the vent.
throat

conduit The entrance of a volcano.

It ejects lava and volcanic
An underground passage A large underground pool
ash.
which magma travels of liquid rock found
through. beneath the surface of the
Earth.

magma reservoir
 How Many Volcanoes Are There?
There are more than 1500 active volcanoes on Earth. There are also more than
80 volcanoes under the ocean, although these are just the ones that have been
discovered.
 What Types of Volcano Are There?
Mount St. Helens in Washington, USA is a composite volcano.

Composite Volcanoes
These volcanoes are steep-sided volcanoes and are made up of lots of layers of
volcanic rocks. They usually erupt in an explosive way because the magma in
these volcanoes is quite sticky. It clogs up the passage that it has to pass
through. Pressure is built inside the volcanic chamber and this results in the
volcano erupting violently.
 What Types of Volcano Are There?
Sunset Crater in Arizona, USA is a cinder cone.

Cinder Cones
Cinder cones are circular or oval cones. They are made up of small fragments of
lava, which are blown into the air through a single vent. When they cool down,
they form rock around the vent. They grow quickly, but are not usually very big.
They are not usually
dangerous either.
 What Types of Volcano Are There?
Shield Volcanoes like this one in Hawaii are common in this part of the world.

Shield Volcanoes
Shield volcanoes are bowl or shield-shaped in the middle. When they erupt, the
lava is quite runny and it travels long distances down the side of the volcano
before it cools down. This lava forms long, gentle slopes that look like a
warrior's shield, which is how they got their name. These volcanoes do not
often explode.
 More Volcano Facts
What is the difference between What is a ‘pyroclastic flow’?
magma and lava? This is the most deadly of all volcano
Magma is liquid rock inside a activities.
volcano. Lava is the name for liquid It is a liquidised mixture of solid and
rock that has flowed out of a part-solid fragments and hot,
volcano. Lava takes a long time to expanding gases.
cool down as it is not a good heat They look like a snow avalanche but
conductor. As a lava flow cools are extremely hot and contain
down, it gets slower and thicker. poisonous gases. They move at the
speed of a hurricane.

Click
Heat on the word
Conductor: in
something
bold
which can to findheat from
transfer
out more!
one object to another.
 What Is the Largest Active Volcano?
Mauna Loa

The largest, active volcano in the world is Mauna Loa in Hawaii. It is 13,677
feet above sea level. From its base below sea level to its summit, Mauna Loa is
taller than Mount Everest.
 Volcanoes of the World
Mount St Helens

1× ×
2

Mount St Helens is an active On 18th May 1980, it erupted and

volcano located in Washington, killed 57 people and destroyed lots
USA in the Cascade Mountain of roads and homes.
Range.
5×
×
3 ×
4
This was the first time An earthquake triggered a
Mount
pyroclastic flows (the clouds of St Helens is still active,
landslide, which caused a
and is monitored closelysideways
hot gas, ash and rock) were by blast, sending clouds of
geologists to predict if itash,
studied using new scientific will gas and rock speeding away
techniques. erupt again. from the volcano.

Click on the numbers to reveal the facts.

 Volcanoes of the World
Mount Vesuvius, Naples, Italy

1× ×
2
Mount Vesuvius has a very famous In 79AD, Vesuvius erupted for a
history. Its base is 30 miles wide whole day. Thousands of people
and it is estimated to be around were killed, and the city of Pompeii
17,000 years old. was buried.

5×
×
3 ×
4
Over the years, archaeologists
In 1995, Vesuvius wasVesuvius
made a has erupted over 50have times
found bodies preserved by
in the
National Park. Visitors can last 200 years. The lastthetime
climb ash from the volcano along
the mountain. was in 1944 during the Second with other items, such as heating
World War. stoves and cooking utensils.

Click on the numbers to reveal the facts.

 Volcanoes of the World
Mount Fuji, Japan

1× ×
2
Mount Fuji is the highest mountain in Over 100,000 people climb Mount
Japan. It is 3776m high. It is on the Fuji every year. It is the most climbed
island of Honshu, about 100km from mountain in the world.
Tokyo.

5×
×
3 ×
4
Mount Fuji last erupted in 1708.
A forest named Aokigahara It has become a symbol of the
The volcano is actually three
lies at the foot of the
separate volcanoes piledcountry
one and is featured in lots of
mountain and is said to be paintings.
on top of the other with Fuji at
haunted by ghosts and
the top.
goblins.

Click on the numbers to reveal the facts.

 Volcanoes of the World
Popocatépetl, Mexico

1× ×
2
Until it erupted in 1994, It is nicknamed 'El Popo'. It has
Popocatépetl was dormant erupted several times since 1994.
for 50 years.

4×
×
3
It is considered one of the
Flights over Mexico have been world’s most dangerous
cancelled several times due to volcanoes. It last erupted in
ash and steam being produced January 2020.
by the volcano.

Click on the numbers to reveal the facts.

 Are There Volcanoes on Other Planets?
Earth is not the only planet to have volcanoes, although most of the volcanoes
on other planets are now extinct.

Mercury used to Mars has the Io is one of Triton is

have volcanoes largest known Jupiter's moons Neptune's largest
but when the volcano called and has moon. Instead of
planet's interior Olympus Mons. It several active lava, the
cooled down, the is no longer active volcanoes. volcanoes on
volcanoes died. and will probably Triton actually
never erupt again. release ice.
 Glossary
Forged: to have made or shaped a metal object using a fire or furnace.

Molten: something made in to a liquid by heat.

Magma: hot fluid or semi-fluid below the earth's crust.

Friction: the resistance created when one surface rubs against another.

Heat conductor: something which can transfer heat from one object to another.

Archaeologist: someone who studies history using evidence from fossils and
artefacts.