Concept in Definition ABC

When a volcano erupts expels a very dense matter, with a high temperature and a reddish appearance, washes it.

Regarding the denomination, if the lava is inside the earth it is called magma and when the lava solidifies it is known as volcanic rock.

Depending on the intensity From an erupting volcano, the lava creates furrows and rivers that destroy vegetation and any form of life. In this sense, rivers of lava are a threat for human populations that may be affected by the action of a volcano. Thus, when some landscapes have a volcanic aspect, it must be remembered that such an effect was produced in the past by the action of lava.

How it is formed and some of its characteristics

The magma inside the earth has gases and at the time of an eruption there is an increase in atmospheric pressure inside the volcano and because of this the gases disappear, thus forming the lava.

Volcano experts, volcanologists, have calculated that the temperature of the lava is between 700 and 1200 degrees Celsius, something that explains its devastating effect. When cooling, the lava transforms into igneous rocks such as granite or basalt, which are used for some elements of the

building (in many countries they are used to pave the I usually or on the rooftops).

At the moment when the lava produces a thick and fluid mantle that is dispersed, it is called lava flow, which, in turn, can be linear (for For example, when there is a slope next to the volcano) or in the form of fissures (it happens when the lava disperses through different holes and not through the cone of the volcano). In the latter case, the so-called lava beds are created.

The effect of lava on nature sometimes creates the well-known lava tubes, which are volcanic caves. in the form of tunnels and that can form a complex branching of tunnels inside the earth.

The different effects produced by lava (the aforementioned tubes, streams or even lakes) do not exist only on earth, since there are also volcanoes on planets like the Moon or Mars. Astronomers have been able to observe that on some moons of the planet Jupiter there are Volcanic eruptions with relative frequency and the lava that is generated has characteristics similar to the terrestrial one.

Photos: iStock - Terribil-T / JulieanneBirch

Topics in Lava