Volcanoes--Erupting with Information
DAY ONE
Congratulations, you have just won a government homestead lottery. The World Federation will give you a five acre plot of land near one of these volcanoes:
Mt. Fuji
Mt. Etna
Mauna Loa
You want to build a house on the land, and you will need to decide which location is the safest, considering both the likelihood of a volcanic eruption and the type of volcanic eruption.
How dangerous is it to live within 10 miles of a volcano?
A peak so lovely that it was known as the Mt. Fuji of America, St. Helens was silent
for 123 years until March 27, 1980, when a steam burst after a series of small earthquakes
opened a new crater near the summit.
More than 10,000 tremors were recorded at the 9,677-foot mountain in the next 7 1/2 weeks
as the north flank bulged with an upwelling of magma, or molten rock. Outbursts of rock
and dust darkened once-pristine glaciers.
At 8:32 a.m. on May 18, 1980, loosened by a 5.1-magnitude quake, the upper north flank
collapsed, allowing gas-laden magma to explode outward and upward like uncorked champagne.
From a monitoring post 5 1/2 miles to the north, USGS scientist David A. Johnston radioed,
"Vancouver, Vancouver. This is it!"
.......Those were his last words.
TIM KLASS, Snowy Volcanic Peaks Could Blow Covers Like Mt. St. Helens; Cascades: Lassen, Shasta and Mammoth are among the main candidates. Eruption in 1987 helped provide , Los Angeles Times, 14 May 1995.
DEVASTATION
PHOTOS
BLAST DAY
PHOTOS
BEFORE AND
AFTER PHOTOS
ANNOTATED
"BLOWDOWN"
ANNOTATED
"JOHNSON RIDGE"
At the end of this research you will give a presentation. You will need to investigate
each location in order to rank them according to safety. Be certain to include:
Kind of Blast or Flow
Likelihood of eruption
History of seismic activity
Associated hazards
Your presentation will need to include visuals such as a map and a picture of each location. You must justify the ranking of each site. Grading will be based on daily participation, teamwork, as well as the final presentation.
Click for Supporting Materials:
Mountain Saint Helen's Worksheet
Volcano Project Evaluation Sheet
Follow this Link for more information about about the Volcano Project
