What Causes a Volcano to Erupt?

Volcanoes erupt because pressure builds up inside the Earth and then suddenly lets out a big 'whoosh!' Imagine you're filling a bottle with soda, if you shake it up and open it too fast, it all spills out at once. That's kind of like what happens in a volcano: hot rock and gas build up until they can't stay in anymore, and poof! everything comes rushing out.

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Examples

  1. A shaken soda bottle erupts when opened quickly, just like a volcano.
  2. When you blow up a balloon and then let it go, the air rushes out in a burst, similar to an eruption.
  3. Steam rises from a pot when the lid is lifted too fast, much like volcanic steam during eruptions.

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Categories: Science · volcanoes· earth science· eruptions · Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.