Why Do Volcanoes Sleep — And Sometimes Wake Up?

Imagine a volcano like a sleepy dragon. It wakes up when its fire is ready, and it goes back to sleep when the fire runs out, for now. When a volcano goes to sleep, we call that volcano dormancy. But just because it's sleeping doesn’t mean it’s gone forever. Some volcanoes might even wake up after hundreds of years!

Take the quiz →

Examples

  1. A volcano like Kilauea in Hawaii can be active for years, but then it goes to sleep and doesn’t erupt for a long time.
  2. Mount Vesuvius was quiet for hundreds of years before it woke up and destroyed Pompeii.
  3. Volcanoes are like sleepy dragons, they might take a nap, but they come back stronger.

Ask a question

See also

Discussion

Recent activity