![]() Volcanic ash deposits tend to be thicker and have larger particles closer to the eruption site. The 2008 eruption of Chaitén in Chile produced an ash cloud that blew 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) across Patagonia to Argentina, reaching both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. The smaller the particle, the further the wind will carry it. Ash has been found thousands of kilometers away from an eruption site. Wind can carry small volcanic ash particles great distances. These rock fragments can mix with the solidified lava fragments in the air and create an ash cloud. Eruptions can also shatter the solid rock of the magma chamber and volcanic mountain itself. In the air, magma cools and solidifies into volcanic rock and glass fragments. The force of these explosions shatters and propels the liquid rock into the air. When gases inside a volcano's magma chamber expand, they violently push molten rock ( magma) up and out of the volcano. Ash is a product of explosive volcanic eruptions. Particles are sometimes called tephra-which actually refers to all solid material ejected by volcanoes. Coarse particles of volcanic ash look and feel like grains of sand, while very fine particles are powdery. ![]() Generally, particles of volcanic ash are 2 millimeters (.08 inches) across or smaller. Unlike the soft ash created by burning wood, volcanic ash is hard, abrasive, and does not dissolve in water. Volcanic ash is made of tiny fragments of jagged rock, minerals, and volcanic glass.
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