Unit 10
Photos
Well-known volcanoes One of the most famous volcanic eruptions took place in 79 CE. The Roman city of Pompeii was buried under a thick layer of cinders, mud and ash because Mount Vesuvius erupted unexpectedly. In 1883 one of the biggest eruptions ever known took place. The Indonesian volcano, Krakatoa , spread a huge cloud of dust across the Earth and produced a 40- metre-high tsunami . Scientists keep a
Soufrière Hills, Monserrat. This volcano began to erupt in July 1995 and forced the local population to leave the island.
Words in bold
close watch on the underwater volcano, Kick-’Em Jenny , off the north coast of Grenada because they fear that it could one day produce a smaller tsunami.
Recent activity Volcanoes can be active , dormant or extinct . About 60 volcanoes on land around the world are active each year, but there are many more active volcanoes under the sea. Soufrière Hills in Monserrat is an active volcano. Mount Pelée in Martinique is a dormant volcano. Although it has not erupted for some time, it might erupt again one day. The Pitons on St. Lucia are part of a volcano which last erupted thousands
The Pitons: St. Lucia’s most famous landmark.
of years ago. The volcano is considered extinct, although there are still sulphur springs in the nearby town of Soufrière. The water in these springs is heated by hot rocks underground. The sulphur dissolved in the steaming hot water smells like rotten eggs, but it is said that bathing in it is good for you.
Glossary molten molten rock or metal that is so hot it has become liquid magma hot, liquid rock inside the Earth lava tsunami huge wave in the sea caused by a volcano erupting
hot, liquid rock which pours out of a volcano and becomes solid
• Point out the features of expository writing found in this text: headings, examples, diagrams, photos, words in bold. • Ask students to complete the ‘L’ column of their KWL chart.
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