The Power Within
Earthquakes and volcanoes are the most dramatic manifestations of the power of nature. Discover what causes these violent and destructive events, what they feel and look like, and how scientists work to predict them.
Massive natural forces from within the Earth make their effects felt on its surface. Find out what happens – above and below the ground – when a volcano erupts or when an earthquake takes place.
Feel the earth move for yourself with a visit to the Kobe Supermarket earthquake machine. You can also see the amazing effects of an earthquake, captured live on supermarket security cameras.
Dramatic natural events account for the appearance of these columns of basalt. The rock was part of a lava flow that formed the extraordinary Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland. The lava shrank as it cooled, creating these multi-faceted shapes.
To give you an idea of what it’s like to be under a volcano, watch terrifying footage of flowing lava and ash, and examine a reconstruction of what happened when Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines erupted in 1991.
When Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD, hardened volcanic ash preserved the remains of the inhabitants of nearby Pompeii. See reconstructions of the casts of two volcano victims – a man and a dog.
Toolbox
The Museum's smallest members of staff are our flesh-eating beetles, Dermestes maculates, who strip carcasses to the bone.
