When I turned 13, I decided to become an oceanographer. To prepare for my future career, I majored in geology and biology in college. I mapped ancient volcanic outcrops around Boston, explored a deep mine and dug for minerals on a geology tour of the southeastern United States, and sampled sand from a tropical beach on a tiny island in the Bahamas. I discovered that geologists have fun! A geology field trip to Kilauea in Hawaii inspired me to examine how volcanoes, on land and beneath the sea, impact our oceans. After that, a week in Iceland, the Land of Fire and Ice, further cemented my love of rocks and volcanoes.
I remember the date of May 18, 1980, when the eruption of Mount St. Helens was heard worldwide—thanks to news media, some of whom were on the scene. An earthquake triggered an eruption that tore a gaping hole in the side of the mountain, turning 230 square miles of Washington state into a moonscape. As in the news stories, the dramatic photos in this book documented the devastation.
After the news coverage ended, another saga began within months. I was struck by the side-by-side images of just-after eruption photos juxtaposed with images of sparkling lakes and green pastures. It amazed me how quickly survivors and colonizers populated the gray and lifeless landscape, thanks to fireweed fungi, mosquito larvae, red-tailed maggots, and gophers.
1
author picked
Volcano
as one of their favorite books, and they share
why you should read it.
This book is for kids age
7,
8,
9, and
10.
What is this book about?
In this extraordinary photographic essay, Patricia Lauber details the Mount St. Helens eruption and the years following in Volcano: Eruption and Healing of Mt. St. Helen's.
Through this clear accurate account, readers of all ages will share the awe of the scientists who witnessed both the power of the volcano and the resiliency of life.
When I turned 13, I decided to become an oceanographer. To prepare for my future career, I majored in geology and biology in college. I mapped ancient volcanic outcrops around Boston, explored a deep mine and dug for minerals on a geology tour of the southeastern United States, and sampled sand from a tropical beach on a tiny island in the Bahamas. I discovered that geologists have fun! A geology field trip to Kilauea in Hawaii inspired me to examine how volcanoes, on land and beneath the sea, impact our oceans. After that, a week in Iceland, the Land of Fire and Ice, further cemented my love of rocks and volcanoes.
So many volcanoes! So how would you choose among the 1400+ active volcanoes on the earth’s surface (not to mention that three-quarters of all volcanoes on Earth are on the ocean floor.)
Apparently, the volcanologists duo, Donna O’Meara and her husband Steven, have been trying to hit them all. They are always on call for the next eruption, not just to capture amazing photographs and death-defying experiences but also to try to improve volcano eruption prediction.
I was intrigued by their adventures and photos, but even more, I admired that they spent weeks camping alongside temperamental volcanoes to assess how/if the moon influences volcanic eruptions. Their theory that the moon’s phases and closeness to the Earth could affect volcanic activity could someday help save lives.
In a helicopter with no doors, she hovers over a lava lake the size of two football fields --- then lands! She runs through clouds of scalding steam, dodging lava bombs, to photograph glowing hot lava as it pours into the sea. She sets up camp on the edge of a volcano's cone, only to be hit with hurricane-force winds, poisonous gases and acidic ash.Witness a typical day in the life of Donna O'Meara --- volcano researcher, writer and photographer. Donna's photographs and accounts of treacherous journeys get readers up close and personal with some of the world's most dangerous…
Since my earliest memories, I have been fascinated with rocks, landscapes, and the movement of time. It was perhaps only fitting then, that I should have landed in the bottom of the Grand Canyon in the 1970s working as a backcountry ranger where I discovered GEOLOGY! Since then, my world view has been shaped by the record of earth history that is held in sedimentary rocks, mountain belts, and the colorful and varied landscapes of the Desert Southwest and Colorado Plateau. I am in love with these landscapes and know them well. This love affair causes me to visit other landscapes around the world and ponder their development.
Who knew there were volcanoes in northern Arizona? Wendell Duffield takes readers on a visual and literary tour de force of this amazing region. The San Francisco Volcanic Field contains over 600 vents and cones with one large stratovolcano, a half a dozen or more silicic dome volcanoes, and hundreds of basalt cinder cones. All are explained in clear, concise prose. And who knew the Grand Canyon had volcanoes too, some of which spilled cascading lava flows into the canyon, damming the river at least 17 times. It’s all here in this little book that has a big impact.
This book provides a popular look at the fiery origin of Northern Arizona’s landscape. With magnificent aerial photographs, original geologic illustrations, and detailed road logs to many of the key features, this book is an indispensable tool for the traveler, the educator, and all who are interested in the remarkable landscape of northern Arizona.
I’ve always loved how science deepens my appreciation of nature and fills me with awe and wonder. I’ve been a science teacher, a documentary producer for National Geographic and Discovery, and the author of What's Gotten Into You: The Story of Your Body's Atoms, from the Big Bang Through Last Night's Dinner. I’m astounded by how much scientists have been able to learn about how our world works and how they have revealed surprising and strange beauty. Their stories of wrestling with the unknown, marked by unexpected twists and great perseverance, captivate and inspire me.
I love a seamless blend of science and history that creates a gripping story, and Krakatoa is at the top of my list. The book left me in awe at the power of nature.
The Krakatoa eruption unleashed a 120-foot tsunami, killed tens of thousands, and cast ash into the atmosphere that cooled temperatures around the globe. I was fascinated by Winchester’s tale of how the cataclysm contributed to our understanding of volcanology, tsunamis, and the revolutionary theory of plate tectonics.
To top it off, he took me into another world by weaving in a moving story of Dutch colonization and Indonesian resistance. I was sorry to reach the end.
'Bracingly apocalyptic stuff: atmospheric, chock-full of information and with a constantly escalating sense of pace and tension' Sunday Telegraph
Simon Winchester's brilliant chronicle of the destruction of the Indonesian island of Krakatoa in 1883 charts the birth of our modern world. He tells the story of the unrecognized genius who beat Darwin to the discovery of evolution; of Samuel Morse, his code and how rubber allowed the world to talk; of Alfred Wegener, the crack-pot German explorer and father of geology. In breathtaking detail he describes how one island and its inhabitants were blasted out of existence and how colonial…
I’ve been hooked on adventure stories since I started reading. When I became serious about writing for young readers, I couldn’t resist creating fearless kids out to tackle. Indiana Jones-sized dangers. While I love writing these kinds of stories, I can’t resist reading them either. If there’s an added element of magic or sci-fi time-travel, I have to find out what happens and how. The most fun is to read these stories aloud to the young readers in my family in hopes they’ll also fall in love with adventure/fantasy—maybe one of them will even write a few of these books. That would be fabulous.
This book is filled the Mayan mythology. I found that the magic was fascinating, and I couldn’t get enough of the monsters, gods, and giants. They make for an exciting read—even if you’re not a middle grader.
Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents J.C. Cervantes' take on Maya mythology featuring a boy who has to stop the god of death.
"A perfect storm of inspiring heroes, surprising twists, and some seriously scary monsters. This hilarious, expertly-plotted adventure keeps you racing through the pages and leaves you desperate for the next book (and craving a steaming mug of hot chocolate)!" --Shannon Messenger, New York Times best-selling author of the Keeper of the Lost Cities series and the Sky Fall series
Zane has always enjoyed exploring the dormant volcano near his home in New Mexico, even though hiking it is…
When I was a child, my father and older brother read Walt Disney’s Uncle Scrooge comic books. I received them as hand-me-downs and was enchanted by the astonishing adventures of Uncle Scrooge McDuck and his nephews. These illustrated tales of lost civilizations touched a special chord in me that transcended mere enjoyment. Later, I learned that Scrooge’s creator was Carl Barks, a comic artist who was heavily inspired by H. Rider Haggard. It is now clear that Carl Barks inculcated in me, when I was eight years old, my Victorian/Edwardian adventure literary tastes. But it was twenty years later that my literary tastes finally became dedicated to turn-of-the-19th-century literary styles and themes.
I flat-out love Michael Crichton’s 1980 jungle-adventure novel Congo, which uses for inspiration H. Rider Haggard’s 1885 breakout adventure King Solomon’s Mines, the protagonist of which is hunter/trader Allan Quatermain. King Solomon’s Mines was about seeking diamonds in central Africa, as is Congo.
The main character in the book is Karen Ross who is asked by her high-tech company to learn why the previous diamond-seeking expedition vanished. Beyond that, the book perfectly exemplifies the technical thriller Crichton invented in the 1960s with Andromeda Strain, written on two levels at once, the action and adventure layer meshing seamlessly with the layer explaining the world’s most up-to-the-minute sophisticated technology.
Note that the last sentence of Congo reads: “The projected intersection point now marked a field of black quatermain lava with an average depth of eight hundred meters.” The name “Quatermain” is sufficiently close to the geological term “quaternary”…
The search for diamonds, a crucial scientific breakthrough and a mythical ruined city set off this adventure into the heart of the Congolese jungle.
The American expedition is led by Karen Ross, desperate to find her husband and recover the data he found before he disappeared. But there are other teams trying to get there first, and the way is strewn with life-threatening dangers -- plane crashes, civil wars and a dormant volcano awoken by dormant explosives.
In the tradition of Arthur Conan Doyle and H. Rider Haggard, Congo is a novel of high adventure from the master of the…
When I turned 13, I decided to become an oceanographer. To prepare for my future career, I majored in geology and biology in college. I mapped ancient volcanic outcrops around Boston, explored a deep mine and dug for minerals on a geology tour of the southeastern United States, and sampled sand from a tropical beach on a tiny island in the Bahamas. I discovered that geologists have fun! A geology field trip to Kilauea in Hawaii inspired me to examine how volcanoes, on land and beneath the sea, impact our oceans. After that, a week in Iceland, the Land of Fire and Ice, further cemented my love of rocks and volcanoes.
Sometimes, it’s the supporting characters in a book that steal the show. In this case, it was Alvin. Alvin was a pioneer in the field of deep ocean exploration. I was introduced to him at a rare open house at the legendary Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. I gazed at concept plans for Alvin displayed on a bulletin board.
Alvin was one of the first deep-sea submersibles to carry scientists down to the otherworldly (literally) hydrothermal vents in the cracks in the earth’s crust. Alvin was named for oceanographer Allyn Vine, who helped develop a national program for manned undersea vehicles.
Scientists have mapped less than 10 percent of the ridge of underwater mountains in the middle of the Atlantic ocean. It is here that 95 percent of the volcanic activity on earth occurs. And it is also where the scientist Rich Lutz has tracked the remarkable evolution of bizarre creatures that spawn in hydrothermal vent fluids that are poisonous to most other forms of life. How can life exist in this world of utter darkness?
For Rich Lutz, a pioneer in marine biology, each dive to the frontier of the deep holds the possibility of discovering more clues that might…
I loved this book because, as a parent, I’m always looking for ways to
get kids excited about science and to think of science in a fun and accessible
way. This is where this book excels.
I also adore cats, especially Pete the
Cat! This is a tremendously fun and engaging read. The book’s illustrations are
zany, highly colorful, and simply a joy to view time and time again. Little
ones are introduced to basic scientific ideas.
They also learned a great lesson about teamwork and overcoming obstacles during their big experiment. Pete
and his friends might feel blue (hint, hint) about their problem, but they
quickly learn to embrace it. There is a sparkly surprise at the end of their
project. Can you readers guess what that is?
Pete and his friends have a blast at the school science fair! This exciting 8x8 storybook includes over 30 groovy stickers.
In Pete the Cat's Supercool Science Fair from New York Times bestselling author-illustrator team Kimberly and James Dean, Pete the Cat and his friends are excited to build the coolest volcano ever for their school's science fair.
After a few unexpected mishaps, the team is finally ready. Yet after seeing their other classmates'creations, they can't help but wonder: is their volcano good enough to win first place?
Thankfully, Pete has a sparkly surprise up his sleeve!
I am a senior geologist emeritus (retired in 2020) whose research focused on volcanic features on Mars, Venus, and the Moon, particularly very long lava flows. I enjoy studying features on Earth in order to improve our understanding of similar features on other planets (also including the study of sand dunes). I worked for more than 32 years at the National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., which allowed me to do scientific research while also presenting the wonder of planetary geology to public audiences throughout the U.S. and in several countries across the world.
Think of this book as the ultimate tourist guide for someone who wants to visit and "experience" volcanoes.
Lopes is a knowledgeable volcanologist and planetary scientist who brings first-person authority to her writing. The first chapters provide the basics needed to choose which volcanoes one would like to visit, followed by well-written descriptions of 28 volcanoes or volcanic regions from around the world.
Each account provides the reader with an understanding of why the volcano is where it is, plus practical information that could help make a visit to that volcano more enjoyable.
The Volcano Adventure Guide is the first book of its type. It contains vital information for anyone wishing to visit, explore, and photograph active volcanoes safely and enjoyably. Following an introduction that discusses eruption styles of different types of volcanoes, how to prepare for a volcano trip, and how to avoid volcanic dangers, the book presents guides to visiting 42 different volcanoes around the world. This section is packed full of practical information including tour itineraries, maps, transportation details, and warnings of possible non-volcanic dangers. Three appendices at the end of the book direct the reader to a wealth of…
When I turned 13, I decided to become an oceanographer. To prepare for my future career, I majored in geology and biology in college. I mapped ancient volcanic outcrops around Boston, explored a deep mine and dug for minerals on a geology tour of the southeastern United States, and sampled sand from a tropical beach on a tiny island in the Bahamas. I discovered that geologists have fun! A geology field trip to Kilauea in Hawaii inspired me to examine how volcanoes, on land and beneath the sea, impact our oceans. After that, a week in Iceland, the Land of Fire and Ice, further cemented my love of rocks and volcanoes.
If you could choose, would you want to view a gently erupting volcano where you could outwalk the lava flowing to the sea? Or would you go for an earth-shaking explosion that releases boiling lava, choking ash, and burning gases?
In this book, you can take your pick! I loved the variety of volcanoes she explored, as well as the mission of many scientists to better predict eruptions to protect those who live near volcanoes.
“At 11:35 p.m., as Radio Armero played cheerful music, a towering wave of mud and rocks bulldozed through the village, roaring like a squadron of fighter jets.” Twenty-three thousand people died in the 1985 eruption of Colombia’s Nevado del Ruiz. Today, more than one billion people worldwide live in volcanic danger zones. In this riveting nonfiction book—filled with spectacular photographs and sidebars—Rusch reveals the perilous, adrenaline-fueled, life-saving work of an international volcano crisis team (VDAP) and the sleeping giants they study, from Colombia to the Philippines, from Chile to Indonesia.
