Book 12, Question 8
What Is a Caldera?
A caldera is a huge bowl-shaped hollow in the ground. It forms when a volcano empties its magma so fast that the ground above collapses. Calderas can be many kilometers wide!
More fun facts
- A caldera forms when a big eruption partly empties the magma chamber and the ground above collapses.
- Calderas are usually more than 1 kilometer (0.6 mile) across.
- Technically a caldera is a type of crater, but it is much bigger and made by collapse.
- Smaller craters form when little bits of magma drain from shallow levels.
- In 2018, a large eruption at Kilauea in Hawaii made its summit collapse into a smaller caldera.
Sources: National Park Service, U.S. Geological Survey
Questions kids ask
Is a caldera the same as a crater?
A caldera is a type of crater, but much larger and formed by the ground collapsing.