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I've seen several professional geologists answer this question, and no, really, volcanos don't work that way. For one, the scale is way, way too big. It's like
by habinero 3y ago
I've seen several professional geologists answer this question, and no, really, volcanos don't work that way.
For one, the scale is way, way too big. It's like stabbing an elephant with a needle and expecting it to bleed out.
Also, the dangerous type of magma is extremely viscous and gas-rich. It doesn't flow like Hawaiian lava does.
- Someone 3y agoBut in this case, we want the elephant to (significantly) bleed out, so won’t we need a BIG needle? If you want to move lots of heat away fast, you either need a big pipe or a very high flow rate. “Gas-rich”, to me, also sounds as if it would be more dangerous.
- habinero 3y agoIn this analogy, the needle is as big as we can make it. Gas-rich is where the danger is, as I understand it. Those gasses expand as they get closer to the surface, and if they're trapped in viscous magma that doesn't flow easily and puts a lot of stress on the rocks above. The fluid basaltic lavas of Hawaii don't explode, they flow out and make shield volcanos. Check out geologist Shawn Wilsey's videos.