GEOSCI / VOLCANOES
Inside a volcano
Start in the sky above the crater and scroll down through every layer, all the way to where the magma is made. The world behind the page moves with you, and each stop has something to touch.
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01 / 07 · Atmosphere
Atmosphere
A big eruption throws a column of ash and gas upward. How high it gets decides whether it's a local problem or a global one.
02 / 07 · Ash and gases
Ash cloud and volcanic gases
The plume is a mix of rock fragments and gas. Pick an ingredient to see what it does.
03 / 07 · Pyroclastic flows
Pyroclastic flows
Sometimes the column collapses. An avalanche of hot gas and rock hugs the ground and races downhill, faster than you can drive.
Up to about 700 km/h and 1,000 °C. Nothing in its path survives.
04 / 07 · Magma chamber
Magma chamber
Under the volcano, molten rock collects in a pocket. Dissolved gas forms bubbles as it sits, like a shaken fizzy drink. Turn up the pressure.
05 / 07 · Conduit
Conduit
A conduit is the pipe magma climbs on its way to the surface, from the mantle, past the chamber, up to the crater. What happens on the way depends on how sticky the magma is.
06 / 07 · Mantle melting
Mantle melting
The mantle is solid rock, so where does magma come from? Rock doesn't need to get hotter to melt. It just needs less pressure. Lift this block of mantle and watch.
07 / 07 · Darkness
Darkness
Below about 100 km there is no light, no air and no sound. This is where every eruption starts, slowly, over thousands of years. Now put it all together.
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Playable · Eruption
Make it erupt
Everything you just scrolled through, in one go.
Artistic licence: basalt volcanoes usually ooze rather than explode. The blast here is dramatised so you can see every step.