Volcanoes and Hazard

This exercise examines the nature of volcanic systems and hazards -10 minutes per section.

Part I - Volcanic Processes

On your computer desktop, click the "Volcanoes" icon, then (after the introduction - audible through the headphones) select "Design a Volcano".   Experiment with the possibilities.  Also, consider the following questions:

1. How is magma chemistry (from class and text) related to viscosity and volatiles?
2. What types of eruptions have high volumes, and where are they found?
3. Why is there no eruption listed for low/low/low?  Describe what might form under those circumstances, and why?

Part II - Volcanic Hazards

Use the Worldwide Web (you might try Metacrawler, Google, or Ixquick, or Yahoo's Science/ Earth Science/ Geology and Geophysics/ Volcanology listings) to answer the following questions:

• Group 1: What nations sponsor volcanic Web pages (observatories, institutes?), and why?
• Group 2:  What US government agencies host volcanic Web pages (processes, responses?), and why?
• Group 3:  What US states are the subject of volcanic Web pages (agencies, parks?), and why?
• Group 4:  What US universities and institutions host volcanic Web pages, and why?
• Group 5:  What specific volcanoes are the subject of volcanic Web pages, and why?

Part III - Volcanic information

Examine the following Web sites and critique them for the class.  What information is included on site, and what major links are attached?

• Group 1:  Volcano World
• Group 2:  USGS Volcanic Hazards Program or if not responding, follow USGS Links to Hawaii and Long Valley
• Group 3:  Smithsonian Global Volcanism Project
• Group 4:  USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory
• Group 5:  Michigan Tech's Volcano Observatory

Part IV - Volcanic Landscapes

Select a map of a volcanic region in the United States: Menan Buttes (ID), Crater Lake (OR), Mt Rainier (WA), Mauna Loa (HI), or Yellowstone (WY).  Examine the topography and consider the evidence for its volcanic origin.  What would the most likely hazards be from an eruption of that volcano?  When (if ever) is that volcano likely to erupt?  What warning signs might precede an eruption?  How much warning are local residents likely to get?