[forces of nature] english - español - flash version - página principal
[heading] [images]



[ v o l c a n o e s   :   g l o s s a r y ]


Below are definitions of important volcano terms.

  • active volcano: a volcano erupting or liable to erupt
  • caldera: a large, more or less circular, more-than-a-mile-in-diameter depression formed either by collapse or by explosion, usually at the summit of a volcano
  • continental drift: the breakup of the earth’s original single landmass into continents that then separated; they are still drifting apart today
  • cinders: nut-sized pieces of red or black lava containing bubble-like cavities known as vesicles
  • crust: the outside solid part of the earth’s surface
  • dormant: when a volcano remains inactive for a long time
  • eruption: the sudden emergence of hot material from the earth’s interior
  • extinct volcano: volcanoes no longer liable to erupt
  • fire fountain: a jet of magma spouting from a narrow volcanic vent
  • fissure volcano: a long crack in the Earth’s crust through which magma erupts
  • lahars: volcanic mudflows and debris flows
  • lava: liquid, molten rock
  • magma: hot molten rock created by the partial melting of the crust and mantle at high temperatures far below the ground
  • magma chamber: a cavity beneath a volcano where magma collects
  • plug: a tower of hard rock left by a volcano
  • pyroclastics: volcanic solids like rock, cooled lava, etc.
  • scoria: bubble-filled stones ejected from a volcano
  • subduction zones: areas where the crustal layer descends into the mantle
  • tectonic plates: 70-mile-thick blocks of the earth’s crust on which the continents ride
  • tephra: fragments thrown into the air by a volcanic eruption
  • vent: the single hole from which magma erupts
  • volcanic cone: a conical mountain built up by volcanic eruptions
  • volcanic crater: a steep-walled depression at the top or on the flank of a volcanic cone, out of which the volcanic materials are ejected
  • volcanic sunset: a colorful sunset following a volcanic eruption
  • volcano: a gap in the earth’s crust where molten rock and other materials escape onto the Earth’s surface

[ format this page for printing ]


[ info ]: introducción - la leyenda - el anillo de fuego - el hotspots volcánico - los tipos de volcanoes - cómo las erupciones trabajan - los tipos de erupciones - qué a menudo ellos hacen erupción - los efectos volcánicos - las ventajas - la predicción - la preparación - la prevención - las referencias - el glosario

[ reality ]: eventos actuales - estudios del caso - diez peor - vida real - entrevistas - citas

[ interact ]: multimedios - simulaciones - aula - actividades - examina - tabla del mensaje - recursos

[ general ]: sobre - gane nuestro premio - nuestros premios - guestbook - ayuda - avísenos - sitemap

[ forces ]: aludes - sequedades - terremotos - inundando - niebla y llovizna - fuegos del bosque - huracanes - derrumbamientos - monzones - fenómenos - tormentas severas - tormentas de nieve - tornadoes - tsunamis - volcanes - tormentas del viento - página principal