ESS Volcanoes Case Study

Volcano Case Studies

Anyone who has witnessed a volcano erupting needs no further evidence to know that Earth is a dynamic planet. Volcanoes are one of the major mechanisms for creating new crust. They are powerful, breathtaking, and dangerous, and offer scientists an unparalleled glimpse at Earth's interior. Although the processes that form magma are not well understood, volcanoes — and the igneous rocks they produce — can be studied and explained in the context of plate tectonics. In this lesson, students investigate the processes that build volcanoes, the factors that influence different eruption types, and the threats volcanoes pose to their surrounding environments. After exploring these characteristics, students use what they have learned to identify physical features and eruption types in some real-life documented volcanic episodes.

Objectives

• Understand what volcanoes are, how they form, and the rocks they create

• List volcano characteristics

• Use acquired knowledge to identify several types of modern volcanic eruptions around the world

Draw

Mark the locations on this map of famous volcanoes you already know about.

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Thinking about the locations you drew, are there any patterns in where volcanoes are found around the world?

​Study this map carefully-- there are questions about it!

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Think about the distribution (where they are at on the map) of volcanoes: 

1. 1. Why do you think they are where they are?
   2. Why do you think certain areas are more active than others?

On the next slide is an interactive. Click all of the tabs and read the information. Following the interactive there are question slides-- you should be able to move back and forth from the questions to the interactive in order to answer everything.

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1. 1. How do volcanoes form?

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1. 2. What are the four primary types of volcanoes?

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1. 3. Where do volcanoes form?

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2. CONNECTIONS FROM PAST MATERIAL:  Rocks are classified by what they are made of and how they form. Igneous rocks always begin as magma. 4. What are the two main types of igneous rocks, and what is the main difference between them?

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1. 5. Will an effusive eruption have more gas and be more dense (viscous) than an explosive flow, or will it be less gaseous and less viscous?

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1. 6. Which type of eruption appears to be the more hazardous to humans? Explain your answer.

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1. 7. Of the numerous hazards caused by volcanic eruptions, list and describe ONE that cause damage on a local level, and at ONE that has global implications.

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Explore the interactive for each of these volcanic features:

lava, tephra, lava lake, vent, fissure, dike, magma, caldera, crater, geyser, spring, `a`a flow, pahoehoe flow, and lava tubes.

7. 8. Choose FOUR (4) of the fourteen volcanic features listed above and describe what they are like:

Lava Sampling on Kilauea

Watch the video at this link: https://sdpb.pbslearningmedia.org/asset/ess05_vid_sample/

Answer questions about it on the next slide.

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1. 8. Why does scientist Michael Garcia refer to the basalt he is walking on as "the youngest real estate on Earth"?

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1. 9. What does viscous mean?

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1. 10. For what scientific reason does Dr. Garcia quickly quench the hot lava with water?

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1. 11. What has careful study of the composition of the lavas from Kilauea and Mauna Loa revealed about their origins and relationship?

Case Study 1: Mount Pinatubo

Watch these TWO videos. Answer the questions about them on the next slide.

https://sdpb.pbslearningmedia.org/asset/ess05_vid_pinatubo/

https://sdpb.pbslearningmedia.org/asset/ess05_vid_lahar/

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1. 12. Was the Mount Pinatubo eruption an effusive or explosive eruption?

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1. 13. Based on your observations, what type of volcano is Mount Pinatubo? On what evidence do you base your answer?

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1. 14. Over what type of plate boundary is this volcano located?

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1. 15. Because vulcanologists were able to accurately predict the timing of this eruption, the lives of hundreds of people who evacuated the nearby area were probably saved. What evidence did the scientists observe that prompted them to call for an evacuation?

Case Study 2: Tungurahua

On the next slide is a web page. Read the information, then answer the questions on the following slides.

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1. 16. What problems did the inaccurate eruption forecast of the Tungurahua volcano cause for the people of Ecuador AND what difficulties might this cause for community officials in the future?

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1. 17. What three variables do scientists monitor when attempting to forecast volcanic eruptions?

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1. 18. What are some of the hurdles that vulcanologists face when trying to make accurate eruption forecasts?

Case Study 3: Kilauea

Go to the link below and watch the video about Kilauea. Use the video to answer the questions on the following slides.

https://sdpb.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/ess05.sci.ess.earthsys.hawaii/plate-tectonics-the-hawaiian-archipelago/

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1. 19. Based on your observations of this video and previous videos you have seen, what type of volcanoes are Kilauea and the other Hawaiian volcanoes? On what evidence do you base your answer?

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1. 20. Does Hawai'i experience effusive or explosive eruptions?

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1. 21. Explain Hawai'i's setting in terms of plate boundaries. What makes it so unusual?