ScienceIQ.com

From Here To There

We all know that our galaxy, the Milky Way, is big -- very big. So big in fact that its size is impossible to grasp. To cope with the astronomical distances of galaxies, since miles or kilometers won't do, scientists have had to resort to using a really big yardstick. That yardstick is the distance light travels in one year, what scientists call a ...

Continue reading...

HereToThere
Astronomy

Astronaut Photography

Astronauts are trained in scientific observation of ecological, geological, geographic, oceanographic, environmental, and meteorological phenomena. They are also instructed in the use of photographic ... Continue reading

AstronautPhotography
Biology

Splitting Hairs

Pluck a single strand of hair from your head and you've lost what scientists call the hair shaft. The shaft is made of three layers, each inside the other. The outer casing is the cuticle. Under an ... Continue reading

SplittingHairs
Engineering

Fiber Optics

The sun is shining; it's a brilliant day. The springboard flexes powerfully under your feet as you launch into a graceful arc through the air and into the crystal clear water below. Arms extended, you ... Continue reading

FiberOptics
Medicine

Is Heartburn a Heart Burn?

Heartburn is a bad name for a complaint that has nothing to do with the heart. TV ads call it acid indigestion. It's a burning sensation that begins under the breastbone and moves up into the throat. ... Continue reading

IsHeartburnaHeartBurn

Pyroclastic Flows: Deadly Rivers of Rock

VolcanoFlowsA volcano, during a violent eruption, blasts massive amounts of heated rock fragments, hot gas and ash out vents and collapsing domes. This sudden outpouring of superheated material reaches temperatures of up to 1500 degrees F (815.5 C) during a volcanic explosion and sometimes results in the rapid movement of molten lava called a pyroclastic flow. This flow creates a maelstrom of debris, rushing away from the volcano at up to 150 miles per hour (241.3 km/hr), igniting, melting and destroying everything in its path.

Many pyroclastic flows are made up of two different types of material. Basal flow is composed of denser rock fragments and moves close to the ground, often following the contour of the land. The second type of material in a pyroclastic flow is the lighter, yet still thick, rapidly moving cloud of ash and debris that roils and churns above the basal flow, often spewing ash over a great distance downwind from the actual flow.

The word pyroclastic comes from two Greek words: pyro which means fire, and klastos which means broken, a very apt name for this violent event that has destroyed property, burned forests and killed tens of thousands of people over recorded history.