FOOTPRINTS TRAIL

A Rain Of Sand...

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Many people believe that when a volcano explodes it just throws out a lot of smoke and dust and fluffy ash and rocks, in addition to molten lava, of course. Depending on the volcano, however, it might throw out a lot of other stuff, too. In 1790 Kilauea Volcano threw a great deal of super-heated lava into the air which burst into very fine, sand-like particles when it hit the much colder upper atmosphere, and this sand rained down in great abundance, filling gullies and low places as shown in the above photo. A similar effect occurs when molten lava pours directly into the ocean, resulting in Hawaii's famous black sand beaches.

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