Question

The town of Armero, Colombia -- buried by mudflows triggered by the 1985 eruption at Nevado del Ruiz -- was located on a debris fan that was overrun by destructive mudflows in the year 1595, shortly after the arrival of the Spanish colonists, and again in 1845, killing hundreds of people in each instance. Which resource would provide the BEST information on the 1985 eruption at Nevado del Ruiz? Select one: a. an illustration identifying Nevado del Ruiz features b. a map showing the location of Nevado del Ruiz c. a Web site detailing 20th Century volcanic activity d. a scientific article listing Columbian volcanoes

Answer 1

In my opinion, Option (a): " an illustration identifying Nevado del Ruiz features", would be the best resource to learn about the "Giant" active volcano. I think a strong research about the summit can prove promising in providing precautions and warning against the future accident(s) that may occur, to save nature and life.

A short research paper is elaborated below for a better understanding of the topic.

Nevado del Ruiz is the northernmost of a few Colombian strato-volcanoes in the Andes Volcanic Chain of western South America. The Andean volcanic belt is produced by the eastbound subduction of the Nazca maritime plate which is underneath the South American mainland.

With a summit height of 5,389 m (more than 17,500 ft), Nevado del Ruiz is the most astounding of the Colombian volcanoes. Despite the fact that it is found just - 500 km from the Earth's equator, its high summit is secured with 25 square kilometers of snow and ice. Its name, Nevado, signifies the "snow-topped" peak of the volcano. Amid the volcanic mayhem of 1595, 1845, and 1985, huge volumes of melt-water were produced due to the softening of the ice pack by hot pyroclastic streams at the summit. Its main crater, Arenas, lies close to the northeastern edge of the ice pack.  

The Colombian volcano Nevado del Ruiz is one of the functioning strato-volcanoes with a background marked by creating lethal volcanic mudflows (lahars) from general low volume emissions. In 1595, a lahar cleared down the valleys of two streams, slaughtering 630 individuals. In 1845, a monstrous lahar soaked the upper valley of the River Lagunillas, slaughtering more than a thousand individuals. It proceeded for 70 kilometers downstream before spreading over a plain in the lower valley floor. The youthful town of Armero was assembled straightforwardly over the 1595 mudflow store. Over the following years, Armero developed into a lively town with more than 28,000 occupants. On November 13, 1985, history rehashed itself for the third time in 400 years, with another emission and another fatal lahar dashing down the River Lagunillas. This time, more than 22,000 individuals were killed including the majority of the inhabitants of Armero. With legitimate precautions, this catastrophe could have been deflected.  

THE NOVEMBER 13, 1985 ERUPTION  

After almost a time of minor tremors and steam blasts from Nevado del Ruiz, the fountain of liquid magma detonated savagely on November 13, 1985. The underlying impact started at 3:00 p.m. Nonetheless, the residents of Amero tried to avoid panicking. They were assuaged by consoling messages from the chairman over the radio, and from a neighborhood church. In any case, the Red Cross arranged a clearing of the town at 7:00 p.m. However, not long after the clearing request, the fiery debris quit falling and the plan to evacuate was canceled.  

At 9:00 p.m. similarly as quiet was being reestablished, liquid lava started to emit from the summit via stream blasts. The savage discharge of these liquid produced hot pyroclastic and other hot-harmful gases that started to dissolve the summit ice top. Shockingly, melt-water immediately blended with the ejecting pyroclastic sections to produce a progression of hot lahars. One lahar streamed down the River Cauca, submerging the town Chinchina and murdering nearly 2,000 individuals. Different lahars took after the ways of the 1595 and 1845 mudflows. Going at 50 kilometers for every hour, the biggest of these burst through an upstream dam on the River Lagunillas and reached Armero two hours after the emission started. A large portion of the town was cleared away and covered in hot lava within minutes, killing seventy-five percent of the townspeople.  

At the point when rescuers touched base at Armero on November 14, they were welcomed by a horrendous scene. They discovered tangled masses of trees, autos, and damaged bodies scattered all through a sea of dark mud. Harmed survivors lay groaning in desolation while specialists attempted hysterically to spare them. Out and out, around 23,000 individuals and 15,000 creatures were slaughtered. Another 4500 individuals were harmed and around 8000 individuals were made destitute. The evaluated cost of the catastrophe is approximately one billion dollar.

Answer 2

Answer: The resource that would provide the best information on the 1985 eruption at Nevado del Ruiz is C. a web site detailing 20th Century volcanic activity.

Explanation: A web site detailing 20th century volcanic activity would be the best resource since, besides the fact that the focus of attention is an eruption that affected Nevado del Ruiz in the 20th century, this web site would provide specific and relevant information about how and why the 1985 eruption ocurred. In contrast, an illustration or a map identifying Nevado del Ruiz would not offer information about the volcanic event in itself. Moreover, a scientific article listing Colombian volcanoes would not be enough either as enumerating volcanoes is not the same thing as providing details about how a volcanic event was produced.