What happens if you touch the lava

Still, there is something attractive about lava. It looks so viscous, appetizing - like processed cheese. I just want to reach out to scoop up a little of this steaming happiness ...

Joke. Don't do this. Believe me, there are many other things in the world that you can touch. But if you are still wondering what will happen upon contact with this alluring substance, keep in mind the following.

In films and video games, heroes often encounter lava, but usually do not experience much of this discomfort. After all, if you do not touch the molten rock, then nothing terrible will happen - you can walk on the bridge above it, and even ride on its waves on surfboards. Of course, if they are fireproof, as in "Star Wars».

But in reality, Obi Wan and Anakin would have died before they directly collided with the lava. The fact is that it is not only hot by itself - the average temperature

A. Philpotts, J. J. Ague. Principles of igneous and metamorphic petrology magma splashed out onto the surface is between 700 and 1200 ° C. It also heats the environment around itself - this physical process is called convection. That is, the air around the lava is also scalding hot.

Try to hold your hand over the candle and you will notice that the heat can be felt without even bringing the skin close to the flame itself. And lava heats the air much more.

In 2019 on the Isle of White Island nearbyNew Zealand volcano eruption: injured tourists suffering severe burns to skin and lungs / The Guardian from New Zealand, the Wakaari volcano erupted and 31 people were hospitalized. Many of the victims had burns over 50% of their bodies and severe lung injuries caused by hot air. But none of them even approached the lava.

So it is possible to get injuries incompatible with life without direct contact. It is enough to stand side by side.

If you nevertheless get close to the lava and stick your hand into it (this will require an effort, since it dense), you will instantly get a severe burn, which will destroy the nerve endings and boil the subcutaneous fat. As explainsFalling into lava would be a pretty hot mess / The Verge US Geological Survey chemist David Dumby, you will not be able to feel pain - you will have nothing to feel it, since there will be no nerves left. The hot rock will burn your hand to the bone.

Calcium, of which the latter are composed, has a temperatureN. N. Greenwood, A. Earnshaw. Chemistry of the Elements boiling point 1,483.85 ° C, and the lava, as mentioned above, is heatedWhat is the Temperature of Lava? / Universe Today up to 700–1,200 ° C. Therefore, the bones will also collapse, but this will take a little more time - up to several minutes.

A fragment of a video from the Alex Rivest / YouTube channel

If you do not waste your time on trifles and jump into the crater of the volcano entirely, "fish", you can come across another unpleasant surprise.

In the films, characters who have fallen into magma drown in it, gradually sinking to the bottom. The most famous example is Gollum from The Lord of the Rings. But in reality this will not happen, because in fact, lava is much, much denser.The Right (and Wrong) Way to Die When You Fall Into Lava / Wired human body. So, having fallen into the mouth of a volcano, a person will not sink to the bottom.

The effect of a fall will be approximately the same as from a collision with asphalt.

Fractures and shaking, if the crater is deep enough, is practically guaranteed. And, of course, combustion and charring.

Although, despite the lethality of volcanoes, there are cases when a person who fell into the lava survived, if it erupted a long time ago and had already begun to cool down. So, on August 21, 2007, a Maasai porter accidentally fellReport on Ol Doinyo Lengai (Tanzania) - February 2008 / Bulletin of Volcanology in the crater of the Ol Doinyo Lengai volcano in Tanzania. He received serious burns to his legs and one arm, but was able to get out of the vent and escape.

However, you shouldn't count on the same luck. If possible, it is better to stay away from the lava and even more so avoid falling into the mouth of the volcano.

Dmitry Sazhko