Summary:
- An explosive eruption produces huge clouds of volcanic ash.
- The material may form a mushroom cloud, just like a nuclear explosion.
- Some ash may stay in the atmosphere for years.
- This changes weather patterns and affects the temperature of the Earth.
- For a year or two after a large eruption, sunsets may be especially beautiful worldwide.
- The temperature inside a pyroclastic flow may be as high as 1,000°C (1,800°F) The gas pressure grows until it must be released.
- The volcano erupts in an enormous explosion.