Glossary
A
- a'a
- - lava with a rough surface
- algae
- - an aquatic plant
- ancient
- - a time in history that no longer exists
B
- beneficial
- - good
- boundaries
- - the edges of the plates where they come together
- bulbous
- - a swollen bubble - puffed out
- bulging
- - to protrude as in a bump
C
- central vent
- - the main opening of a volcano
- cinder
- - material blown out of the volcano that has cools before it falls
- cinder volcano
- - volcano made largely from cinders
- composite volcano
- - volcano made of layers of cooled lava flows
- conic
- - cone shaped
- continents
- - one of seven main land masses on the earth
- convection
- - the transfer of heat by movement
- crater
- - a cup shaped depression or opening in a volcano
- crust
- - outer layer of the earth's surface
- crystals
- - a clear mineral formation made of flat sides
E
- earthquakes
- - vibrations of the earth's surface
- erosion
- - process that wears away the earth's surface
- erupt
- - the movement of material from inside a volcano to the outside
- expand
- - to make larger
- extinct
- - no longer living
F
- frothy
- - foamy or full of air
G
- gas bubbles
- - bubbles formed when gasses get trapped
- geologic
- - related to the earth and its construction
- geysers
- - steam and hot water that spews from the earth
- gravity
- - the natural law that causes objects to be attracted to each other
H
- heat resistant
- - protects against heat
- hot spots
- - areas in the mantle where rocks melt
- hydrothermal
- - related to hot water
I
- inactive
- - not active
- inhabited
- - where people live
- inner core
- - solid layer of the earth made of iron
- intolerable
- - living things cannot survive under this condition
J
- jet stream
- - a wind on the earth that moves west to east and is the major source of weather movement
L
- laboratory
- - a place where scientific studies or experiments take place
- lava
- - melted rock that has escaped onto the outside of the crust
- lava dome
- - a bulge of lava that never flows
M
- magma
- - melted rock that is inside of the earth
- magma chamber
- - location where the magma sits before it erupts - also known as magma reservoir
- magma reservoir
- - location where the magma sits before it erupts - also known as magma chamber
- magnetic field
- - region of space around the earth affected by the magnetic force within the earth
- mantle
- - layer of the earth between the crust and the outer core where magma moves from heat
O
- observatory
- - a place where scientists study volcanoes
- outer core
- - area inside the earth between the inner core and the mantle
P
- pahoehoe
- - smooth lava with wrinkle and twists
- pangaea
- - original continent in earth's history
- pillow lava
- - lava that erupts under water and cools quickly
- poisonous chemical
- - gases that are dangerous to life
- predict
- - tell in advance
- prehistoric
- - before humans were around to record the event
- pressure
- - a pushing force
- pyroclastic flow
- - a cloud of ash, dust and other debris along with gas erupting from a volcano
R
- ring of fire
- - boundary of tectonic plates along the Pacific Ocean - majority of earthquakes and volcanoes take place here
- rotates
- - turns
- rupture
- - a broken place
S
- secondary vent
- - a vent which branches off the central vent of a volcano
- shield volcano
- - a large volcano spread out over the ground - fairly flat rather than mountain-like
- solar system
- - the sun, planets and other space bodies nearby
V
- vent
- - an opening in the earth's surface
- viscosity
- - the property that causes a liquid to flow
- volcanologist
- - scientist who studies volcanoes
W
- weathering
- - the process that breaks down rocks
