Volcanic Eruptions Quiz

The top third of the Indonesian mountain was blown off and more than 90,000 people were killed.

The rating of eight refers to the most powerful type and indicates a supervolcano eruption.

The bomb-like 1883 eruption of Krakatoa is example of the power of a Plinian eruption.

Hawaiian eruptions are the gentlest type of eruption, with low gas emissions and fluid lava.

For all of its incredible power, this one still only ranked at about a 6.

About 800 people were killed and tens of thousands were left homeless.

The maximum height for category 3 is 9 miles.

The silica makes magma more viscous, and thus, more likely to result in pent-up explosive power.

The area is volcanically active but most researchers don't believe the conditions are suited to another big eruption anytime soon.

Global temperatures fell in 1816, a year after Tambora ejected countless tons of debris into the atmosphere.

Agriculture all over the world failed and led to famine, which then led to rioting and other awful consequences.

The devastating pyroclastic flows were so immense that they killed all but two people in the area.

It is one of the biggest active volcanoes in the world, but fortunately its eruptions aren't typically violent.

Of course, humans have only been around for a fraction of that timespan.

This eruption is the most powerful and destructive in the history of the United States.

10,000 minor earthquakes gave scientists plenty of notice of the impending eruption.

There were thousands of square miles of ash, suffocating plants and animals alike.

It had a VEI rating of 6 and was the biggest eruption in South America's recorded history.

It happened about 640,000 years ago in the area of Yellowstone National Park.

In C.E. 79, a massive eruption famously buried Pompeii and Stabiae and more than 1,000 unlucky people.

About 800 people died, but many more would have perished without modern science.

Hot magma and cooler water make for an explosive combination.

Eruptions melted glaciers and the muck swept away two-thirds of a town of 30,000 people.

Poisonous gases killed half of the country's livestock, which then led to thousands of human deaths.

Its debris blocked out sunlight, leading to crop failures and then starvation all around the world.

Even back then, scientific instruments from all corners of the world detected the violent explosion.

Consider that the distance from New York City to Los Angeles is "only" about 2,800 miles

Smoke and ash from the volcano blocked sunlight and reduced temperatures all over the planet.

These types of eruptions cause the volcano to collapse on itself, sending the fast-moving flows zooming down the mountain.

This eruption turned out to be one of the most powerful eruptions of the entire 20th century.