Lava energy storage explosion

What happens to lava during an explosion?

During an explosion, solid lava crust undergoes brittle fragmentation and the molten interior undergoes hydrodynamic (ductile) fragmentation, except at the quenched melt–water interface, which undergoes brittle fragmentation (Fig. 1 ).

How much mechanical energy does a lava-water explosion use?

We find that specific fragmentation energy makes up 42–80% of the mechanical energy estimated for the lava–water explosions investigated here, compared with 36–75% reported by MFCI work (Büttner and Zimanowski 1998; Büttner et al. 2002 ).

How much lava did a volcanic eruption produce?

This eruption produced around 1.4 km 3 of lava over a period of six months, which covered an area of 84 km 2. Source: NASA Earth Observatory. Volcanic eruptions can be explosive, sending ash, gas and magma into the atmosphere, or the magma can form lava flows, which we call effusive eruptions.

Do lava-water explosions have high energy?

To constrain the energetics of lava–water explosions over a broad range, we focused on three beds of the Pu‘u Kiholo littoral rootless cone resulting from relatively low- and high-energy explosions, as indicated by the ejecta grain size and the mass percentage of active particles.

Why did a lava bomb explode?

But then, on July 16, a large underwater explosion sent lava bombs (solid or semi-solid lava fragments) the size of basketballs through the roof of a tour boat, injuring 23 volcano watchers. The detailed cause of the explosion is uncertain, but we are fairly certain that it resulted from the heating of seawater by molten lava.

Is lava dome growth associated with explosive activity?

The association of lava dome growth with major explosive activity (VEI ≥ 4): DomeHaz, a global dataset. Bull. Volcanol. 77, 40 (2015). Eichelberger, J. C. & Westrich, H. R. Magmatic volatiles in explosive rhyolitic eruptions. Geophys. Res. Lett. 8, 757–760 (1981).