How do volcanoes and earthquakes change Earth's surface?
In their quest to continue to learn how and why the surface of the Earth changes, the students investigated the above question. Throughout this unit the students have been learning that the Earth's surface is constantly changing. Most of the changes occur through slow processes such as weathering, erosion, and deposition from water and wind - most, but not all!
The students observed a classroom demonstration of a volcanic eruption and soon recognized that Earth's surface can change rapidly because of phenomena such volcanoes and earthquakes. They learned that the slow processes of weathering, erosion, and deposition can also occur quickly due to a catastrophic earthly event They then discussed the speed at which the Earth's surface changed from the volcanic eruption and compared that information with that they had previously observed with only wind and water.
The picture above is similar to one that the student's observed in the classroom. It demonstrated the power of a volcanic eruption and how quickly the surface of the Earth can change.
