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How Hot Is Lava?

May 18, 2011

On May 18, 1980, Mount St. Helens — a volcano in the state of Washington — erupted violently. It was the most deadly volcanic eruption in United States’ history. Join us in Wonderopolis today as we take a look at what happens when rock turns to liquid.

Have you ever wondered…

  • How hot is lava?
  • What is lava made of?
  • How fast does lava move?

Did you know?

Volcanoes are like huge valves that release pressure from deep inside the Earth. When they erupt, they remind us of how powerful the forces are that continually reshape the Earth.

Deep inside the Earth (90 miles or more), temperatures get hot enough to melt rock. This molten rock is called “magma.” When it liquefies, it begins to float toward the surface of the Earth.

If it breaks through the surface of the Earth, it is then called “lava.” Although lava can be spewed into the air through a volcanic eruption, it’s more common for lava to flow from a volcano through cracks called “fissures.”

Lava is made up of mostly silicon and oxygen. As lava escapes and travels before cooling, it often mixes with other elements, such as iron, magnesium, potassium and calcium.

When lava first breaks through the surface of the Earth, it is an extremely hot liquid. On average, fresh lava can be between 1,300° F and 2,200° F! Depending on its exact temperature, fresh lava usually glows either orange/red (cooler) or white (hotter).

Eventually, lava cools and returns to solid rock again. However, some forms of lava can flow great distances before cooling enough to solidify. The word lava comes from the Italian word for “stream.”

Although popular movies may make you worry about the deadly power of lava flows, they usually move slowly enough to give people plenty of time to get out of the way. It’s rare for anyone to die as a direct result of a lava flow, but it can be extremely damaging to land and property in its path.

Active lava flows at volcanoes might move several feet per minute when hot. As the lava flows cool, they slow down to a rate of only a few feet per day.

Geologists in Hawaii keep a close watch on active lava flows. They use handheld global positioning system (GPS) receivers to map lava flows as accurately as possible.

The GPS receivers use radio waves from satellites orbiting the Earth to pinpoint locations within 15 feet. In this way, geologists can monitor lava flows that may be advancing toward areas where people live.

Try it out!

Want to learn more about volcanoes? Become a volcano explorer with this fun interactive activity from Discovery Kids™!

Have you ever seen a lava lamp? They’re really cool lamps that look like they’re filled with lava.

With just a few simple items, you can make your very own homemade lava lamp with these fun projects:

Wonder words to know and use:

  • pressure
  • volcano
  • erupt
  • magma
  • lava
  • valve
  • liquefies
  • spewed
  • fissure
  • geologist
  • Global Positioning System (GPS)

Still wondering?

Hawaii is known for more than its beaches. It’s also the home to several volcanoes! Visit National Geographic Xpeditions’ Eco-Cycle: Finding the Parts of an Ecosystem lesson to learn more about the ecosystems in Hawaii, as well as the plants and animals that make up the ecosystems.

Wonder what’s next?

We were going to give you a hint about tomorrow’s Wonder of the Day, but we forgot what it’s about. We’re just like Dumbo sometimes! Or are we…?

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40 responses to "Wonderopolis"

  1. Rosie
    18. May, 2011 at 7:57 am

    Hello, Lava is so cool. I really liked this article because it was so detailed.

    • Wonderopolis
      18. May, 2011 at 8:14 am

      Thanks, Rosie! We’re glad you liked WONDERing about lava with us today! :-)

  2. :D
    18. May, 2011 at 9:16 am

    Lava is so hot!! I can’t believe it!! O_O

    • Wonderopolis
      18. May, 2011 at 11:05 am

      It’s kind of “cool” to think that rocks can melt when they get hot enough, isn’t it, :D ? Thanks for your comment! :-)

  3. Sunshine
    18. May, 2011 at 10:34 am

    Lava is so cool!!!!

    • Wonderopolis
      18. May, 2011 at 11:06 am

      We think so, too, Sunshine! But we wouldn’t want to get close enough to it to check its temperature! :-)

  4. Sammy
    18. May, 2011 at 10:34 am

    Ohh I love lava

    • Wonderopolis
      18. May, 2011 at 11:06 am

      Hi, Sammy! Thanks for commenting today! :-)

  5. Terry
    18. May, 2011 at 11:51 am

    What great information! The video of the lava flow is spectacular.

    • Wonderopolis
      18. May, 2011 at 1:17 pm

      We thought so, too, Terry! Thanks so much for commenting! :-)

  6. Beatrice
    18. May, 2011 at 12:40 pm

    Lava sounds really dangerous, of course I always knew that lava was but you make it sound really dangerous, I mean really really dangerous.

    • Wonderopolis
      18. May, 2011 at 1:21 pm

      Did you know there are special scientists that study volcanoes and lava, Beatrice? They are called volcanologists! :-)

  7. jusin
    18. May, 2011 at 1:16 pm

    Wow, that video was so cool looking!

    • Wonderopolis
      18. May, 2011 at 1:23 pm

      We’re glad you liked it, Jusin! We hope you are having a good day today! :-)

  8. Meredith/MC
    18. May, 2011 at 5:15 pm

    I LOVE today’s video!!! not only because volcanoes are such a powerful force on Earth, but because my Aunt lives in Hawaii County, HI and works at Volcanoes National park. When we wen to visit her, we saw the Killuea Volcano in real life! It was amazing because you can see steam in fields just rising out of the ground, and at night, you can see the lava. I’ve never seen anything like it before!!

    I think that tomorrow’s wonder is about elephants because Dumbo is an elephant. I don’t think I’ll br right, but it’s my best guess!! :)

    • Wonderopolis
      19. May, 2011 at 7:42 am

      That is SO COOL that you got to see a volcano that closely, Meredith/MC! Thank you for sharing your adventure with everyone in Wonderopolis! :-)

  9. Meredith/MC
    18. May, 2011 at 5:18 pm

    I would just like to add that I can’t believe how strong lava’s forces can be. Like how they melt and ooze through rocks.

    • Wonderopolis
      19. May, 2011 at 7:44 am

      Nature is an awesome thing, Meredith/MC! Thanks for your comments on today’s Wonder!

  10. Trevor
    19. May, 2011 at 1:54 pm

    OMG lots of lava!

    • Wonderopolis
      19. May, 2011 at 4:09 pm

      We’re glad you visited this Wonder of the Day®, Trevor! It’s fun to learn new things, isn’t it? :-)

  11. Cameron
    24. May, 2011 at 9:45 am

    lava video is cool

    • Wonderopolis
      24. May, 2011 at 9:54 am

      We’re glad you liked it, Cameron! Thanks for hanging out in Wonderopolis today and for your great comment! :-)

  12. Cameron
    24. May, 2011 at 9:48 am

    same with pic, :D

    • Wonderopolis
      24. May, 2011 at 9:54 am

      Thanks for letting us know you like this Wonder, Cameron! :-)

  13. william
    24. May, 2011 at 9:48 am

    My favorite part is when the rock falls and the lava comes out

    • Wonderopolis
      24. May, 2011 at 9:55 am

      Hi, William! We agree that’s a pretty neat part of the video! :-)

  14. Cameron
    24. May, 2011 at 9:50 am

    I need to find more lava pics and videos ;)

  15. Muna
    26. May, 2011 at 2:26 pm

    Wow i never knew about lava i am doing a report on lava this realy helped me thanks

    • Wonderopolis
      26. May, 2011 at 3:50 pm

      That’s AWESOME that you learned lots about lava from this Wonder, Muna! We know you will do WONDERfully on your report! :-)

  16. cameron
    31. Aug, 2011 at 1:27 pm

    Hi! That is cool.

    • Wonderopolis
      31. Aug, 2011 at 2:10 pm

      Thank you for letting us know that you liked this Wonder of the Day®, Cameron! We appreciate comments from our Wonder Friends! :-)

  17. Cassidy
    7. Dec, 2011 at 2:40 pm

    OMG, THAT WAS SO COOL AND GROSS AT THE SAME TIME.

    • Wonderopolis
      7. Dec, 2011 at 5:00 pm

      Thanks for letting us know you stopped by this Wonder of the Day® about lava, Cassidy! We hope you learned some “COOL” new things about molten rock! :-)

  18. rose
    8. Dec, 2011 at 2:29 pm

    Awesome!!!

    • Wonderopolis
      8. Dec, 2011 at 2:44 pm

      Hello, Rose! Thank you very much for letting us know you thought today’s Wonder of the Day® was awesome! :-)

  19. Natasha
    6. Apr, 2012 at 8:33 am

    I love the video of the lava. It was so cool!!!!!!!!!!!!!. I would see if my brother would check out this wonder. ;)

    • Wonderopolis
      6. Apr, 2012 at 9:23 am

      Thanks so much for sharing this Wonder with your brother, Natasha! We LOVE hearing about families WONDERing and learning together in Wonderopolis! :-)

  20. Dynamite
    15. May, 2012 at 9:06 pm

    There is this game called minecraft and it is really cool.maybe you guys will put it on wonderopolis one day.

    • Wonderopolis
      16. May, 2012 at 6:42 am

      Thanks for sharing what you’d like to learn more about in a future Wonder of the Day®, Dynamite! We appreciate your comment! :-)

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