How hot is the tempature of the lava?

rocky Abbey Glick

Hi Abbey,

I'm mostly familliar with the temperature of Hawaiian lavas, and they seem to be at the hot end of the range. When they erupt they are probably around 1170 to 1175 degrees centigrade. That converts to about 2140 degrees farenheit.

The lava at other volcanoes, especially strato-volcanoes like Mount St. Helens, is a good deal cooler, perhaps 100-200 centigrade degrees cooler. That is the main reason why it is so viscous compared to the Hawaiian lavas that are so fluid.

I hope this gives you a good idea of the temperatures.

Sincerely,

Scott Rowland, University of Hawaii 

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