Building a Stratovolcano

Paper and cardboard volcanoes are easy and inexpensive to make. You have most of the materials in your home. You will need:

A piece cardboard roughly 9 x 12 inches

Small vial (film containers work well)

Tape

Newspaper

Aluminum foil

Spray paint

Spray glue (optional)

Sand or ash (optional)

Step 1. The Base
The piece of cardboard will be the base of the volcano. Tape the vial near the center. The vial will be the lava pond or magma conduit.

Step 2. The Interior
The interior of your volcano will be made of newspaper wrapped in tape. Make balls from the newspaper.

You will need balls of different sizes. Use the balls to shape your volcano.

Wrap the surface of the volcano in aluminum foil. Tape the foil to the bottom of the cardboard. Gently cut the foil above the vial. A pencil is useful to hold the center of the foil over the center of your volcano.

Take your model outside and paint it.

To make your model look more volcanic, add a coat of spray glue and sprinkle sand over the volcano. You can paint the sand black if you wish. You can add several layers.

This model is of a stratovolcano. Stratovolcanoes, like Mt. Jefferson in Oregon and Mt. Adams and Mt. St. Helen’s in Washington, in Volcanoes of the World, have moderate to steep slopes. They have moderate to steep slopes because they erupt sticky lava that does not travel far from the vent and ash.

Step 3. Eruption

The simplest and safest way to model an eruption is to mix vinegar, baking soda and a few drops of dish soap. We made two modifications. We added red food coloring to the vinegar to give the fluid more lava-like appearance. We also added alka seltzer (crushed and mixed in with the baking soda).

Volcano World, http://volcano.und.nodak.edu/vwdocs/volc_models/paper_card2.html