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Kilauea is the world's most active volcano. It is located on the southeastern part of the island of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. Along with Mauna Loa, it is part of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

The name Kilauea means "Much Spreading" in Hawaiian. The volcano is 4,090 feet (1,250 meters) high. It is a long dome built of lava eruptions. Kilauea contains Halemaumau Crater. It is the volcano's most active vent. Local stories say that it is the home of Pele, the Hawaiian fire goddess.

Kilauea's eruptions are usually nonexplosive and contained within Halemaumau. However, one of the island's most destructive eruptions took place in 1955. The eruption was accompanied by a series of violent earthquakes. Lava poured from fissures, or cracks, in the ground for more than 88 days. It destroyed valuable sugarcane fields and orchards. In 1975 an eruption was followed by a tsunami.

Kilauea has been continuously erupting since 1983. It has produced a river of flowing lava that has destroyed nearly 200 houses. When the lava cools it hardens and changes the landscape. Lava that flowed into the sea has added new coastline to the island.

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Kilauea is the world's most active volcano. It is located on the southeastern part of the island of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. Along with Mauna Loa, it is part of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. The name Kilauea means "Much Spreading" in Hawaiian. The volcano is 4,090 feet (1,250 meters) high.

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Krakatoa is a volcano in Indonesia. (The Indonesian name for the volcano is Krakatau.) One of the deadliest volcanic events to ever occur was the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa. This explosion was so great that it triggered a tsunami (colossal sea wave) that killed more than 36,000 people.

Krakatoa is a part of the Ring of Fire, a chain of volcanoes in the Pacific Ocean. Krakatoa lies in the Sunda Strait, a body of water between the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra.

Activity on Krakatoa was first detected on May 20, 1883. This activity lessened until June 19. The volcano then became increasingly violent. On August 26 a series of explosions occurred, and a black cloud of ash rose 17 miles (27 kilometers) above Krakatoa. The next day, an explosion destroyed most of the island. It could be heard 2,200 miles (3,500 kilometers) away in Australia. This explosion remains the loudest sound in recorded history. Ash was thrown as high as 50 miles (80 kilometers) into the air. By the morning of August 28 Krakatoa was quiet.

The discharge from Krakatoa was so great that ash fell over an area of some 300,000 square miles (800,000 square kilometers). Masses of pumice (volcanic stone) floating in the sea were so large that they affected ship traffic. The ash in the air was so thick that the region around the volcano was dark for two and a half days.

Few people died from the actual eruption. However, it did cause a series of tsunamis, recorded as far away as South America and Hawaii. The largest tsunami destroyed 300 towns and villages and killed 36,000 people.

In 1927 a new eruption began under the sea in Krakatoa's caldera (the pit formed by the collapse of the volcano). A rising cone reached sea level in 1928. By 1930 it had become a small island called Anak Krakatau ("Child of Krakatoa"). Anak Krakatau has been the site of frequent eruptions.

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Krakatoa is a volcano in Indonesia. (The Indonesian name for the volcano is Krakatau.) One of the deadliest volcanic events to ever occur was the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa. This explosion was so great that it triggered a tsunami (colossal sea wave) that killed more than 36,000 people.

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Mauna Loa is the largest volcano in the world. It makes up half of the area of the island of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. Along with Kilauea, it is part of the Hawaii…

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Mount Etna is the highest active volcano in Europe. It is on the island of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea. (Sicily is a part of Italy.) Mount Etna is about 11,000 feet (3,350 meters) high. It has a base that measures about 93 miles (150 kilometers) around.

Etna has been an active volcano for more than 2.5 million years. The ancient Greeks created legends about it. According to one story, the volcano was the workshop of Hephaestus, the god of fire, and the Cyclops, a one-eyed giant.

Seventy-one eruptions of Etna were recorded between 1500 bce and 1669 ce. The lava flow from a massive eruption in 1669 destroyed a dozen villages and buried part of the town of Catania. Etna erupted 26 more times between 1669 and 1900 and frequently thereafter. In 1983, during an eruption that lasted four months, authorities exploded dynamite to change the lava flow and prevent damage to surrounding towns. Mount Etna also erupted violently several times in the early 2000s. In 2013 Mount Etna was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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Mount Etna is the highest active volcano in Europe. It is on the island of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea. (Sicily is a part of Italy.) Mount Etna is about 11,000 feet (3,350 meters) high. It has a base that measures about 93 miles (150 kilometers) around.

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The highest mountain in Japan is Mount Fuji, or Fujiyama. It rises to a height of 12,388 feet (3,776 meters). A volcano, Mount Fuji last erupted in 1707. It lies near the Pacific Ocean on the island of Honshu. Tokyo, Japan's capital, lies 60 miles (100 kilometers) to the east.

Many Japanese consider Mount Fuji to be sacred. Its name means "everlasting life." Temples and shrines surround the mountain. The Sengen (Asama) Shrine, at the western foot, has been the main shrine for worship of Mount Fuji since the 800s. The city of Fujinomiya has developed around the shrine.

Climbing Mount Fuji has long been a religious practice. Today huge crowds flock there, mostly during the climbing season from July 1 to August 26. Cities such as Fuji and Gotemba, at the foot of the mountain, serve as a base for climbers. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated Mount Fuji a World Heritage site in 2013.

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The highest mountain in Japan is Mount Fuji, or Fujiyama. It rises to a height of 12,388 feet (3,776 meters). A volcano, Mount Fuji last erupted in 1707. It lies near the Pacific Ocean on the island of Honshu. Tokyo, Japan's capital, lies 60 miles (100 kilometers) to the east.

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Located in northeastern Tanzania, Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest point in Africa. Though it lies in the tropics, its peak is covered with ice and snow year-round.

Mount Kilimanjaro is made up of three inactive volcanoes. Kibo is in the center, Mawensi is to the east, and Shira is to the west. Kibo is the highest peak, reaching a height of 19,340 feet (5,895 meters). Mawensi rises to 16,893 feet (5,149 meters). Shira is 13,000 feet (3,962 meters) high. Parts of the lower slopes are densely forested. Elephants, buffalo, monkeys, and oxlike antelope called eland live in the forests.

People live only on the lower slopes. They grow bananas, millet, and coffee and raise cattle. On the southern and eastern slopes, the Chaga people have developed an irrigation system for watering their crops.

Europeans learned of Kilimanjaro when German missionaries spotted it in 1848. Climbers first reached Kibo's peak in 1889. Today, thousands of hikers try to climb Kibo each year. The town of Moshi, at the southern foot of the mountain, is a base for climbers. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated Mount Kilimanjaro a World Heritage site in 1987.

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Located in northeastern Tanzania, Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest point in Africa. Though it lies in the tropics, its peak is covered with ice and snow year-round. Mount...

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Mount Pinatubo is a volcano located in the western Philippines. It sits about 55 miles (90 kilometers) northwest of Manila. The eruption of Pinatubo in 1991 was the second-largest volcanic eruption of the 1900s.

Before 1991, Pinatubo was thought to be an inactive volcano. It lay dormant for about 600 years. However, after 10 weeks of volcanic activity, Pinatubo erupted on June 12-16, 1991. The eruption caused the top of the volcano to collapse, and a column of ash and smoke rose more than 19 miles (30 kilometers) high. A typhoon carried ash in all directions. Ash covered the countryside and fell as far away as the Indian Ocean. Weaker eruptions continued through September 1991. The ash that was thrown into the atmosphere lowered global temperatures by about 0.6 °C (1 °F) over the next year.

The eruption of Pinatubo left 300 people dead and 100,000 homeless. Lahars (mudflows of volcanic material) caused the deaths of at least 60 people in late August 1992. The caldera that formed when top of the volcano collapsed is now a lake. Mount Pinatubo and its caldera lake are now a popular hiking destination.

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Mount Pinatubo is a volcano located in the western Philippines. It sits about 55 miles (90 kilometers) northwest of Manila. The eruption of Pinatubo in 1991 was the second-largest volcanic eruption of the 1900s. Before 1991, Pinatubo was thought to be an inactive volcano. It lay dormant for about 600 years.

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Mount Saint Helens is a volcano in southwestern Washington State. It is part of the Cascade mountain range. It erupted on May 18, 1980. It was one of the greatest volcanic explosions ever recorded in North America.

Some of the Native Americans who lived around Mount Saint Helens called it Louwala-Clough, or "smoking mountain." It had been dormant, or inactive, since 1857. However, a steam eruption began on March 27, 1980. On the morning of May 18, an earthquake caused a landslide on the north side of the mountain. This was followed by a blast of hot ash and stone that was thrown about 15 miles (24 kilometers) from the volcano. The blast was as hot as 660 °F (350 °C). It reached speeds of 300 miles (500 kilometers) per hour.

By the end of the eruption, the cone, or top, of Mount Saint Helens had been completely destroyed. During the events of May 18, 57 people and thousands of animals were killed. Trees over an area of some 200 square miles (500 square km) were blown down by the blast. Smaller eruptions continued until 1986. Further activity was recorded again between 1989 and 1991 and in 1995 and 1998.

In 1982 land around the volcano was designated Mount Saint Helens National Volcanic Monument. The monument offers many recreational and educational opportunities. Visitors can view the crater, lava dome, pumice plain, and the effects of the landslide. They can also observe animals and plants that have returned to the blast zone. On the south side of the volcano is Ape Cave, a 2-mile- (3.2-kilometer-) long underground volcano tube that formed during an eruption about 2,000 years ago.

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Mount Saint Helens is a volcano in southwestern Washington State. It is part of the Cascade mountain range. It erupted on May 18, 1980. It was one of the greatest volcanic...

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Soufrière is an active volcano on the island of Saint Vincent. Saint Vincent is part of the country Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the Caribbean Sea. La Soufrière means…

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Popocatépetl is a volcano located in central Mexico. It lies on the border of the states of México and Puebla, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) southeast of Mexico City.

Popocatépetl means "smoking mountain" in Nahuatl, the language of the Aztec civilization. It rises to 17,930 feet (5,465 meters) and is the second tallest volcano in Mexico. Popocatépetl is a stratovolcano, which means it is shaped like a cone and has a crater at the top.

After 70 years of inactivity, Popocatépetl erupted in December 1994. Since that time, the volcano has had occasional periods of activity, including another eruption in 2000.

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Popocatépetl is a volcano located in central Mexico. It lies on the border of the states of México and Puebla, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) southeast of Mexico City....

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The Virunga Mountains are a mountain range, or group of mountains, in east-central Africa. They span parts of Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. There are eight major peaks. All are volcanoes.

Six of the major peaks in the Virunga Mountains are extinct volcanoes, meaning that they no longer erupt. The extinct volcanoes are named Mikeno, Sabinio, Visoke, Mgahinga, Muhavura, and Karisimbi. Karisimbi is the highest peak in the Virunga Mountains. It is 14,787 feet (4,507 meters) high. It is on the border between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The other two major peaks are active volcanoes. This means that eruptions still take place there. The active volcanoes are named Nyiragongo and Nyamulagira. In 2002 a flow of lava, or melted rock, from Nyiragongo destroyed much of the city of Goma in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Nyiragongo erupted again in 2021.

Forests on the slopes of the Virunga Mountains are home to the mountain gorilla. The mountain gorilla is very rare and in danger of dying out. All three countries in the region have set aside areas as national parks. In a national park, wild animals and their habitat are protected by law.

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The Virunga Mountains are a mountain range, or group of mountains, in east-central Africa. They span parts of Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. There are eight major peaks. All are volcanoes. Six of the major peaks in the Virunga Mountains are extinct volcanoes, meaning that they no longer erupt.

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Mount Tambora is a volcano located on Sumbawa, an island of Indonesia. The April 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora was one of the most powerful eruptions of the past 10,000 years.

Before the eruption, Tambora was about 14,000 feet (4,300 meters) high. However, it lost much of its top during the 1815 eruption. It now stands 9,348 feet (2,850 meters) high. A caldera, or bowl-shaped pit, sits where the top used to be. This massive pit is 4 miles (6 kilometers) across and 4,101 feet (1,250 meters) deep.

The eruption of Mount Tambora created a fast-moving cloud of hot rocks and gases. It also caused tsunamis (giant sea waves). These events caused the deaths of 10,000 islanders and destroyed 35,000 homes. Tambora's eruption greatly affected the weather. The materials that were blown out of the volcano mixed with gases in the air. This prevented sunlight from reaching Earth's surface. The average global temperature was reduced by 5.4° F (3° C). Many crops failed because they did not get enough sunlight to grow properly. As a result, about 80,000 people died from disease and famine.

In other parts of the world, 1816 became known as the year without a summer because there was heavy snow and frost through June, July, and August. This led to crop failures and starvation in places as far away as western Europe and eastern North America.

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Mount Tambora is a volcano located on Sumbawa, an island of Indonesia. The April 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora was one of the most powerful eruptions of the past 10,000 years. Before the eruption, Tambora was about 14,000 feet (4,300 meters) high. However, it lost much of its top during the 1815 eruption.