Mt. Mayon Volcanic Eruption

Image result for mayon volcano

Within 4 miles of Mt. Mayon, Philippines, officials in January have been forced to evacuate inhabitants within 4 miles of the crater due to volcanic explosions shown in this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyC8kbTD0x8
The end of the video includes some incredibly close shots of magma turned lava flowing down the side of the mountain and slowly gathering in clumps and slowing down as the river of molten rock cools from the air and surrounding rocks. These rocks will most likely cool relatively quickly, and not develop large crystals. Depending on the speed of the cooling, the rocks could have a glassy texture, or one with small dark holes due to escaping gas bubbles.

Locally, the increase of seismic activity throughout the world, and western United States  have caused great concern for some in our area that the Yellowstone caldera's future eruptions could destroy the portion of the country in which we know and love. Hopefully that doesn't happen anytime soon, because I love Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks and plan on visiting them both this summer!





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Examples of Metamorphic Architecture & Art

Image
Marble is maybe the most well known metamorphic rock. This is especially the case concerning metamorphic rocks used in construction and artwork. Because marble is essentially limestone that has been subjected to the heat and pressure of the metamorphic process, it comes in many forms. The Joseph Smith Memorial Building in Downtown Salt Lake City, for example, is home to plenty of marble architecture and artwork. (The Church in general uses a lot of marble in places around Temple Square). I took this first picture of what I believe are the marble pillars that make up the main hall of the building (I apologize for the mediocre quality of the photo). In that same main hall, visitors will find a statue of the Prophet Joseph Smith, also made from marble. This picture is from LDS.org: Marble is a metamorphic rock that is not folilated, and its parent rocks consist of mostly of limestone and dolostone. Because of the formation of veins and patterns within the pillars, it wa
Read more

Right From the Backyard

Image
My landlord happens to be an elementary school teacher that collects random minerals in the backyard. I have to dodge and throw them back into the flower beds during the summer when I mow the lawn. According to the research and pictures I've undergone and observed I believe that this mineral I found is called "Gypsum Selenite". If I'm correct, there is much more of this glass looking mineral in my home state than I ever realized. I found interesting facts about this mineral from the Wild About Utah Organization. (Website including sources: http://wildaboututah.org/gypsum-dreams/) The following is from their site: "Many of us slumber nightly amid the mineral sediments of ancient oceans. The Sheetrock walls of your home are made from the marine mineral gypsum. Along with rock salt, gypsum forms as a precipitate from salty brines. In deep stagnant waters, these minerals are concentrated by settling. More commonly, evaporative precipitates accumulate ben
Read more

Mid-Atlantic Ocean Ridge

Image
The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is located almost directly in the middle of the African and South American Continents. Depending on the location along the plate boundary, the African and South American plates meet at a zig-zag pattern of both divergent and transform boundaries. Upon closer examination, , it's plain to see the defined ridges characteristic of slowly spreading ridge centers. There seem to be high mountains, and low valleys, differing in certain areas by over thousands of feet, literally straight down in certain areas! I conclude that this is a slowing expanding rift area ridge with the youngest materials near the center with valleys and mountains formed from a transform plate boundary and the pushing up of magma from under the Lithosphere.
Read more