Volcanoes

            Hot! Fire! Destruction! These are words that most.
            
            
             special mythology associated with them.
             have some general characteristics in common. There are many.
             volcanoes around the world and some have special.
             characteristics. So come along and take a trip with me into.
             the wonderful and exciting world of volcanoes.
             Over 550 volcanoes have erupted on the surface of the.
             Earth since human kind has been able to record history. .
             Their destructiveness has claimed the lives of over 200,000.
             people during the last 500 years with 26,000 deaths between.
             1980 and 1990 alone. They have also cause an innumerable.
             amount of property damage.
             The biggest eruption of the twentieth century was the.
             eruption of Novarupta on the peninsula of Alaska. The.
             amount of lava that erupted measured to roughly 15 cubic.
             kilometers! All of the lava erupted equaled to the amount.
             of 30 times the amount of lava that came from Mount Saint.
             Helens and it is also the equivalent of 230 years of.
             eruptions at Mount Kilauea. The eruption lasted for 60.
             hours on June 6, 1920.
             The biggest eruption, despite its size, was not the.
             most destructive, for the most destructive was the eruption.
             of Mount Saint Helens in Oregon during the week of May 18th,.
             1980. This eruption mainly caused just loss of property,.
             because many people didn't expect the volcano to erupt. .
             Although some people did die, this volcano was kind of weak.
             compared to the size of the eruption and amount of lives.
             lost in other eruptions like Tambora, Indonesia in 1815.
             where 92,000 people died.
             Despite all of these bad effects, some life still.
             shines through these tragedies. For example the ash that a.
             volcano spews out covers many square miles of plants and.
             trees. This holds in water and waters plants. The ash also.
             contains many nutrients that plants use. A little more than.
             80 percent of the Earth's surface is volcanic in origin,.
             meaning that most of the Earth's surface was formed by.
             volcanoes. Also, magma deposits heat water underground.