Famous Eruptions & Pangaea
Know about famous eruptions and their global effects: Mount St Helens (1980), Eyjafjallajökull (2010), and how large eruptions can affect weather and climate worldwide; understand that continents were once joined (Pangaea) and have slowly drifted apart
What a learner can do afterwards
- Describe at least one famous volcanic eruption and its key effects
- Explain how volcanic ash and gases in the atmosphere can cool global temperatures
- State that continents were once joined in a supercontinent and have slowly moved apart over millions of years
The lesson
In 1980, a volcano named Mount St Helens erupted in Washington State. The whole north side of the mountain broke apart in one huge blast. Ash shot miles into the sky and fell on towns hundreds of miles away.
In 2010, a volcano called Eyjafjallajokull erupted in Iceland. Its ash cloud drifted over Europe, and airports had to ground flights for days because ash can damage airplane engines. Millions of travelers were stuck waiting for the sky to clear.
Here is something surprising: a truly massive eruption can push ash and gas so high that winds carry it all the way around the world. That layer can block a little sunlight, which cools temperatures everywhere, sometimes for months.
A single huge eruption can change weather far away, and Earth's continents have been slowly drifting apart from one giant landmass for millions of years.
Watch it
Where it sits
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.