World Volcano Map
Did you know that scientists have mapped all of the volcanoes in the world? If you ever get a chance to view a volcano map showing the location of every potential volcano on the planet, you should set aside some time for what will be one of the most fascinating maps you will ever get a chance to enjoy. The sheer scope of the task of mapping all of the worlds volcanoes is mind blowing because for most of us the idea of having that kind of knowledge of the world is almost superhuman. But this what modern science is capable of.
It is easy to spot the volcanoes you already know about. Obviously Washington State and Hawaii are going to have plenty of locations of active volcanoes. But a couple things might surprise you. One is how many volcanoes are under the oceans all around the world. But it is those volcanoes that change the shape of the earth when they erupt underwater. Scientists have identified islands that suddenly push up from under the ocean. Those islands are the result of volcanic activity from one of the hundreds of volcanoes that you see on the map.
The other surprising thing is that many of us live near a dormant volcano and we never knew it. It is surprising because we wonder if that volcano is not as dormant as they think. If you are in the middle of the country like the Kansas plains or some location that doesn’t seem at all conducive to a volcano, the world volcano map may prove you wrong. The odds are when you discover that, you will be planning an excursion to that volcano to look at it with a new appreciation for the power that a volcano virtually in your back yard could generate.
Of course a world volcano map is going to change from time to time. This is especially true of volcanoes under the seas. As the earth under us shifts and that causes the molten rock deep in the earths core to push up and poke a hole in the surface of the planet, that is where a new volcano will spring into being where one did not exist before. And we now know that we have brilliant scientists tracking those volcanoes. They track them because that volcanic activity will actually change the way the seas behave. There have been gigantic tidal ways including the latest huge Tsunami that took so many lives that may have originated with an underwater volcanic eruption.
The behavior of the seas can even affect our weather. When Mount Saint Helens erupted several decades ago, the ash that was thrown into the air was so overwhelming that it changed the weather all over the continent. That is the power of volcanoes. And that is why science maps those volcanoes. Because the more they know about the forces that shape this earth, the more we can plan for how to live in harmony with the environment in which we live as well.