Skip to main content

Catalyst: Volcanic eruptions at Mount Ruapehu

Posted , updated 
Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume.
Lava spews from volcano at night
Catalyst: Volcanic eruptions at Mount Ruapehu

SUBJECTS:  Science

YEARS:  5–6, 9–10


Imagine a volcano erupting kilometres away.

You are afraid, worried for the safety of yourself and others.

Paul Willis presents the work of New Zealand volcanologists conducting research at Mount Ruapehu, a volcano with a history of devastating lahar (water, sediment and rocks) flows.

Learn more about lahar flows and the volcanologists' attempts to predict when the next one will occur.


Things to think about

  1. 1.When a volcano erupts, what are some of the things that might happen? How might each of these be dangerous to humans and the environment?
  2. 2.What specific feature of Mount Ruapehu gives rise to lahar flows? Apart from an eruption, what other environmental events can trigger a lahar flow? What scientific evidence does Dr Shane Cronin give that suggests the deadly 1953 lahar event was small?
  3. 3.What evidence was Dr Gill Jolly using to help her predict when the next lahar flow might occur? How might her research help to save lives?
  4. 4.Build a model of Mount Ruapehu, complete with its crater lake and surrounding towns and villages. Build the crater so that you can release the water and see the effects on the surrounding environment. Compare the model to a volcano that would not produce a lahar flow. Research existing active volcanoes.


Acknowledgements

Image credit: 'Volcán Tungurahua', courtesy of Diariocritico de Venezuela (Flickr).


Date of broadcast: 27 May 2010


Copyright

Metadata © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia Ltd 2012 (except where otherwise indicated). Digital content © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). Video © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). All images copyright their respective owners. Text © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Posted , updated 
Science