🌋 VOLCANOES: EARTH'S FIRE
PAGE 1 OF 5, MAGMA AND LAVA
HOT ROCK
TWO NAMES FOR MELTED ROCK
Deep under your feet, rock can get so hot that it melts into a thick glowing mush. That melted rock underground is called magma. When magma finds a way up and spills onto Earth's surface, we give it a new name: lava. Same hot rock, two places, two words. Learning the difference helps you talk about volcanoes like a young geologist. Magma stays hidden until an opening lets it rise.
⚡ DID YOU KNOW?
Say it this way: magma is melted rock underground, and lava is magma that reaches the surface.
MELT!
MAGMA
🪨 Magma is melted rock that stays underground in hot pockets and tunnels.
🌡️ It can sit for a long time before it finds a path upward.
🌡️ It can sit for a long time before it finds a path upward.
LAVA
🔥 Lava is magma that has reached the open air or ocean surface.
🧱 As lava cools, it hardens into solid volcanic rock again.
🧱 As lava cools, it hardens into solid volcanic rock again.