Sunset Crater National Monument

SUNSET CRATER is a national monument in Arizona, created in 1930 to preserve a notable volcanic crater. The monument covers an area of 3,040 acres in the Coconino National Forest and contains Sunset Mountain, an extinct volcano which last erupted about the end of the 9th century. The volcano is of unusual interest because of the character of the sulfuric rock at its summit. The rock, through processes of decomposition and water staining, has become reddish in color, making the mountain appear as if bathed in the rays of the setting sun. Also of interest in the area are ice caves and large cinder and lava fields.

Volcano at Sunset Crater

Mount Fuji symmetry

Mt. Fuji poster

  FUJIYAMA (Mount Fuji) is a quiescent volcano and the highest mountain (alt. 12,388 ft.) of Japan, central Honshu, about 50 miles of Tokyo. Because of its beautiful symmetry and majesty, it is a favorite subject in Japanese art and literature. The word Fuji is believed to derive from the Ainu word meaning spirit of fire. In Fuji's last destructive eruption (1707-08) the surrounding provinces were covered with ashes to a depth of 10 feet in many places.

What is a geyser?

Old Faithful

  A geyser is a special kind of hot spring. Hot water does not flow from a geyser all the time as it does from a hot spring. Instead, a geyser is quiet for a time. Then it suddenly erupts and shoots water high into the air.
For a geyser, there must be hot rock not far below the surface of the ground. There must also be a narrow, crooked passage leading up from the hot rock.
  The eruption of a geyser comes about in this way: Water fills the crooked passage. The water at the bottom gets very hot. If the passage were big and straight, the cold water at the top would gradually sink down and push up the hot water. As it is, the hot water is bottled up. It gets so hot that it begins to boil and form steam. The steam pushes some of the cold water out of the top of the tube. As soon as a little comes out, there is less cold water to press down on the hot water. The hot water then changes to steam very fast and shoots the water above it high into the air.
  Geysers are found in only a few places. There are about 200 in Yellowstone Na-tional Park in Wyoming. There are also some in Iceland and New Zealand.
  The most famous geyser is Old Faithful in Yellowstone Park. It erupts every 65 minutes or so. Visitors seldom have to wait more than an hour to see Old Faithful perform.