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A nuee ardent, or "glowing cloud," is a type of explosive volcanic eruption characterized by a dense, very hot mass of ash, gasses, and volcanic material traveling down a volcanic slope at high velocity. A nuee ardent, also called a pyroclastic flow, can reach speeds of 450 mi/hr (720 km/hr) and temperatures of 1,500°F (830°C). They can travel as much as 124 mi (200 km) from the source and cover areas as large as 12,000 mi2 (20,000 km2). The volume of transported material can be as large as 250 mi3 (1,000 km3) or more.
Nuees ardentes can be destructive and deadly. An eruption of Mount Pelee, Martinique, in 1920 produced a nuee ardent that, within minutes, killed 30,000 inhabitants of a nearby town. In 1982, eruptions and pyroclastic flows from El Chichòn Volcano, southeastern Mexico, killed 2000 people, in villages as far as 5 mi (8 km) from the source.
Nuees ardentes are typically composed of two...
This section contains 392 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) |
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