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  • The word volcano probably calls to mind flowing lava, tropical islands, and maybe the tragic

  • destruction at Pompeii.

  • But volcanoes can be bigger, badder, and have wider-ranging effects than you might expect.

  • The aftermath of huge volcanic eruptions can cause other natural disasters or widespread

  • cooling, and they've even altered the DNA of a disease-causing bacterium.

  • A volcano is a vent that allows molten rockcalled magma when it's underground and

  • lava above groundto be squeezed out onto Earth's surface.

  • And when they form, it's literally Earth-changing.

  • When two sections of the Earth's crust, called tectonic plates, move away from each

  • other, there's room for magma to flow up and make new crust.

  • That's how the mid-ocean ridges were formed!

  • Or, when two tectonic plates move toward each other, the denser plate might sink below the

  • other one, and melt as the temperature increases.

  • In both cases, sometimes magma seeps up to the surface through vents or cracks called

  • fissuresand, hello, volcano!

  • Volcanoes can also form over hotspotssuper hot areas below the Earth's crust, which

  • can melt tectonic plates.

  • And as the plates move, the hotspots stay put.

  • So they can form a chain of volcanoes, like the Hawaiian islands.

  • The basic signs of volcanic activity are lava flows and heatbut that's only the beginning.

  • More explosive eruptions can spew lots of particles and gases into the atmosphere

  • which, as you might imagine, can mess stuff up.

  • Now, some of those chemicals are well-known greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide.

  • Volcanic eruptions nowadays currently release less than a percent of the carbon dioxide

  • released by human activities.

  • But millions of years ago, it's possible that lots of extreme volcanic eruptions contributed

  • to global warming, and its evil twin: ocean acidification.

  • See, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere can also dissolve in the oceans, making them highly

  • acidic and dangerous to all kinds of marine creatures.

  • More recent eruptions can have big effects, too.

  • Like, take sulfur dioxide.

  • When it enters the stratosphere, it can react with water vapor to form a bunch of droplets

  • of sulfuric acid, which can reflect solar radiation and cause cooling of the lower atmosphere.

  • Depending on how big the eruption is, these sulfur aerosols can float around in the stratosphere

  • for a while, along with all the tiny particles of ash.

  • This cooling can affect huge regions of the globe, causing volcanic winters.

  • And if that doesn't sound concerning enough, big volcanic eruptions can also prevent raindrops

  • from forming, and lead to drought.

  • See, a raindrop forms when water molecules hitch onto a tiny particle of dust, until

  • the drop gets big enough and can't float in the air anymore.

  • But when there's all this extra stuff up there, like ash or other particles, the water

  • in a cloud gets spread out over too many droplets.

  • Each droplet takes longer to grow, so more water stays up in clouds instead of falling

  • as rain.

  • And that's not the only water-related problemvolcanoes can also cause tsunamis.

  • Big underwater eruptions, volcanic collapses, or the hot debris that explodes from volcanoes

  • into the ocean can form massive waves.

  • The Krakatoa eruption in 1883, for example, caused the largest volcanic tsunami on record

  • the biggest waves were around 40 meters tall, and affected sea levels all over the

  • world.

  • Basically, volcanoes can spawn all kinds of disasters.

  • And the bigger the eruption, the bigger the consequences.

  • So let's take a look at the most destructive volcanic eruption since humans have been on

  • Earth:

  • In 1815, Mount Tambora in Indonesia erupted and spewed out some 150 cubic kilometers of

  • ash, plus lots of other junk into the atmosphere.

  • It was incredibly destructive for the local population, of coursebut it also had

  • global effects.

  • The particles from that volcano hung around in the atmosphere for two years, cooling global

  • temperatures as much asCelsius, and giving 1816 the nickname: “the year without a summer.”

  • Plants need sunlight and heat to grow, and humans depend on crops for food.

  • So, less sun, extra frost, and cold summerseven as far as North America and Europe

  • meant famine that spanned most of the globe.

  • This eruption also altered the course of a disease.

  • The sulfur aerosols released by the eruption affected the climate in India: first there

  • was drought, and then some late flooding.

  • This weird weather changed the ecology in the Bay of Bengal, giving rise to a new strain

  • of cholera bacteriathe kind that infects your intestine and causes diarrhea, dehydration,

  • and sometimes death.

  • Cholera used to be contained within the Ganges delta, but this mutant strain spread and took

  • the world by storm.

  • Today, there are millions of cases of the disease each year.

  • But among all the disastrous impacts worldwide, the bizarre weather also made for a wet, yucky

  • vacation at Lake Genevawhere Mary Shelley and her author companions were staying.

  • The gloom gave her inspiration and time to write the novel Frankenstein.

  • So, volcanoes: not just the mother of disasters, but also the mother of monsters.

  • Thanks for watching this episode of SciShow, brought to you by our patrons on Patreon.

  • If you want to help support this show, just go to patreon.com/scishow.

  • And don't forget to go to youtube.com/scishow and subscribe!

The word volcano probably calls to mind flowing lava, tropical islands, and maybe the tragic

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Volcanoes: Mother of Disasters

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    joey joey に公開 2021 年 05 月 19 日
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