The What:

What are volcanoes?

Volcanoes are openings/vents in the Earth's crust that allow magma (molten rock), ash (also referred to as volcanic ash), and other gases to escape from beneath the surface.  

Volcanoes can do a lot of things, both good and bad. They can destroy cities, towns, communities, and habitats. They can also hurt a lot of people. There are also some positive effects that come from volcanoes erupting, volcanoes can create new islands, and overtime make the soil in the nearby surrounding area more rich and fertile.

What do volcanoes do?

 Fun Fact: Volcanoes created more than 80% of our planet's surface!

What do volcanoes look like?

Volcanoes typically resemble mountains, but there are different types of volcanoes that determine how the volcano will look. The most common types of volcanoes are shield, cinder cone, and stratovolcano 

What are the different types of volcanoes?       

 Fun fact: Only 3-4% of volcanoes are active, and 75% of those volcanoes are located in the Ring of Fire!

There are 3-4 main types of volcanoes. The primary types are: cinder cones, stratovolcanoes (composite), shield volcanoes, and lava domes. 

What is the anatomy of a volcano?

Inside the volcano is the magma chamber, which holds the magma inside of the volcano, the conduit, which acts as a pathway for magma to escape pressure, and the vent, which is the opening where magma escapes to the surface. There's also the crater, which is a bowl shaped pit located at the top of the volcano caused by magma escaping the vent.

Where are volcanoes located? What is the Ring of Fire?

 Fun Fact: When magma reaches the surface, it is referred to as lava!

Most volcanoes are located in the Ring of Fire. The Ring of Fire is a string of volcanoes that surround the Pacific ocean on several tectonic plates. It is home to roughly 75% of the world's active volcanoes.

The How:

How are volcanoes formed?

Volcanoes usually form on tectonic plate boundaries, such as convergent and divergent, where plates collide and pull apart from each other. That is how the magma escapes from beneath the surface. When Magma reaches the Earth's surface, it erupts as lava and ash that solidifies overtime. This adds layers of solid rock that create the cone shape of the volcano and build the mountain.