Best rock I have right now, at least it’s my favorite. We were driving past a small old cinder cone vent we’d been past a million times. I realized that the clumps of rock around d the edge, nearest the road (red cinder road), were lava bombs.
When you see a video of sparks streaming or blowing out of a vent, those are tear drop shaped blobs of molten lava. The hotter they are the more liquid. I have some from this vent that have ripples from flight turbulence, and some that aren’t so tear dropped shaped blobs. Depends on the material and how hot it is.
So, we walked around picking up various sizes and shapes, and loading them into the pickup. Last one was tear drop shaped and lying half imbedded in the loose red pumice ash mix. I nudged it then flipped it. Apparently when it hit, it was soft enough that if flatted like a mounded cow patty. The ground side had sat there flat against the pumice and turned into a partial geode.
Only one I ever found like that. Warner mountains. Any cinder cone you explore might have these lava bombs.
When you see a video of sparks streaming or blowing out of a vent, those are tear drop shaped blobs of molten lava. The hotter they are the more liquid. I have some from this vent that have ripples from flight turbulence, and some that aren’t so tear dropped shaped blobs. Depends on the material and how hot it is.
So, we walked around picking up various sizes and shapes, and loading them into the pickup. Last one was tear drop shaped and lying half imbedded in the loose red pumice ash mix. I nudged it then flipped it. Apparently when it hit, it was soft enough that if flatted like a mounded cow patty. The ground side had sat there flat against the pumice and turned into a partial geode.
Only one I ever found like that. Warner mountains. Any cinder cone you explore might have these lava bombs.
