Synopsis
Iain Stewart explains the conditions that cause rocks to flow in a rock avalanche.
- Programme: 10 Things You Didn't Know About...
- Episode: Avalanches
- Channel: BBC Four
- Broadcast year: 2008
- Geography | Natural hazards | Plate tectonics | Earth structure and plate movement
Licence: ERA Licence required
UK only
Staff and students of licensed education establishments only
Cannot be adapted
Add Notes
More clips from 10 Things You Didn't Know About...
3: Avalanches | 10 Things You Didn't Know About...
3: Avalanches | 10 Things You Didn't Know About...
Iain Stewart reveals ten remarkable stories about avalanches, including how the deadliest one killed 18,000 people in thre...
Controlled Avalanches | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Controlled Avalanches | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Following the 'winter of terror' in 1951, many measures have been put in place to protect people from avalanches, ...
Formation | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Formation | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart explains the complex conditions that produce an avalanche.
Kolka Glacier | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Kolka Glacier | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart explains how an avalanche caused by global warming forced a large section of the Kolka glacier to break away ...
Skiers | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Skiers | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart explains the conditions that caused the devastating 1999 avalanche in Mont Blanc.
The Mysterious Avalanche | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
The Mysterious Avalanche | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart investigates the case of an aeroplane that mysteriously disappeared while flying over the Andes.
The Saltation Layer | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
The Saltation Layer | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
From a bunker built in the path of an avalanche, scientists discovered the saltation layer at the centre of every av...
The Worst Avalanche In History | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
The Worst Avalanche In History | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
The worst avalanche in history occurred in 1970 in Peru, when an underwater earthquake triggered a glacia...
More resources about Volcanic eruptions
Episode 1 | Expedition Volcano
Episode 1 | Expedition Volcano
Chris Jackson, Xand van Tulleken and Aldo Kane take part in an expedition to Nyiragongo - one of the world's most dangerous and spectacular vo...
Part 1 | Supervolcano: The Truth about Yellowstone
Part 1 | Supervolcano: The Truth about Yellowstone
Documentary exploring some of the issues raised in the accompanying 'Supervolcano' drama. Yellowstone National Park contai...
4: Volcanoes | 10 Things You Didn't Know About...
4: Volcanoes | 10 Things You Didn't Know About...
Iain Stewart takes a grand tour of the world's most extraordinary volcanoes, rightly considered among the most destructive ...
Pompeii: The Last Day
Pompeii: The Last Day
Dramatised reconstruction using special effects to re-enact one of the most destructive volcanic eruptions in history.
Effects of Volcanoes | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Effects of Volcanoes | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart investigates the largest volcanic eruption in recorded history and its effect on global weather.
2: Volcano | Dangerous Earth
2: Volcano | Dangerous Earth
Dr Helen Czerski looks at volcanoes. With shocking eyewitness footage of eruptions, and new thermal imagery and ultra high-speed photography, we...
Earthquake Engineering | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Earthquake Engineering | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart investigates the 1985 Mexico City earthquake and how buildings are now being engineered in Mexico to...
Episode 2 | Expedition Volcano
Episode 2 | Expedition Volcano
Chris Jackson and his fellow geologists head for the volcano Nyamulagira - one of the most active yet least explored volcanoes on the planet.
Mount St Helens | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Mount St Helens | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
In 1980, after 100 years of stillness, Mount St Helen's erupted sideways and produced devastating pyroclastic flows.
Yellowstone | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Yellowstone | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart investigates the geology of the super volcano in Yellowstone National Park.
Anak Krakatoa | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Anak Krakatoa | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart investigates Indonesia's largest volcano Krakatoa and it's devastating eruption in 1883.
Deadliest Earthquake in History | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Deadliest Earthquake in History | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart investigates the world's deadliest earthquake that happened in China in 1556.
Effusive and Explosive eruptions | Dangerous Earth
Effusive and Explosive eruptions | Dangerous Earth
Dr Helen Czerski demonstrates the differences between effusive and explosive eruptions.
Famous volcanoes | Fierce Earth
Famous volcanoes | Fierce Earth
Around three-quarters of the worlds volcanoes are found around the Pacific Ocean and as such is known as the "ring of fire".
Geography: Mountains and Volcanoes | Bitesize Daily: 9-11 Year Olds
Geography: Mountains and Volcanoes | Bitesize Daily: 9-11 Year Olds
Learn about volcanoes, mountains, and living near an active volcano.
Iceland Erupts: A Volcano Live Special | Volcano Live
Iceland Erupts: A Volcano Live Special | Volcano Live
Kate Humble heads to Iceland and meets the scientists monitoring the country's most dangerous volcanoes. She also inves...
Living near a volcano | Fierce Earth
Living near a volcano | Fierce Earth
A volcano's lava is full of minerals that make the ground perfectly fertile for growing food. Dougal visits the Italian island of Stromb...
Mount Tambora | Journeys into the Ring of Fire
Mount Tambora | Journeys into the Ring of Fire
In 1815 Tambora erupted, it was the largest known eruption of the last millenia. Dr Iain Stewart views Tambora from the sky.
Mt Etna | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Mt Etna | 10 Things You Didn't Know About…
Iain Stewart investigates the eruptions from Europe's highest and most active volcano, Mount Etna.
S1E7: Volcanoes | Fierce Earth
S1E7: Volcanoes | Fierce Earth
The team take on one of the most feared forces on the planet - the volcano. Dougal explores the secret lava tubes of Etna and climbs Stromboli...
More from Iain Stewart
1: Deep Earth | How Earth Made Us
1: Deep Earth | How Earth Made Us
Series telling the story of how the development of civilisation was influenced by planetary forces. Professor Iain Stewart explores the rol...
5: Rare Earth | Earth: The Power of the Planet
5: Rare Earth | Earth: The Power of the Planet
Life on Earth prospers because it enjoys the right amount of heat from the sun, and the atmosphere prevents meteorite bombardm...
Episode 1 | Planet Oil: The Treasure That Conquered The World
Episode 1 | Planet Oil: The Treasure That Conquered The World
From the moment we first drilled for oil, we opened a Pandora's box that changed the world forever. It transfor...
Africa | Rise of the Continents
Africa | Rise of the Continents
Geologist Prof Iain Stewart shows how the continent of Africa was formed from the wreckage of a long lost supercontinent.
Iceland Erupts: A Volcano Live Special | Volcano Live
Iceland Erupts: A Volcano Live Special | Volcano Live
Kate Humble heads to Iceland and meets the scientists monitoring the country's most dangerous volcanoes. She also inves...
1: Life From Light | How to Grow a Planet
1: Life From Light | How to Grow a Planet
How plants have driven the greatest changes to the Earth. Prof Iain Stewart shows how they first harnessed light from the sun and c...
1: Scotland's Trees | Making Scotland's Landscape
1: Scotland's Trees | Making Scotland's Landscape
Professor Iain Stewart reveals how Scotland's unique landscape was shaped. Here, he uncovers the devastating impact of mank...
2: Moving Mountains | Men of Rock
2: Moving Mountains | Men of Rock
Iain Stewart finds out how gung-ho geologist Edward Bailey discovered that Scotland was once home to super volcanoes. Plus the story of uns...
1: Tsunamis | 10 Things You Didn't Know About...
1: Tsunamis | 10 Things You Didn't Know About...
Iain Stewart journeys across the oceans to explore stories about the most powerful giant waves in history, including how one...
The Geology of Japan | Journeys into the Ring of Fire
The Geology of Japan | Journeys into the Ring of Fire
Iain Stewart explains the geology of the tectonic plates that make up the landscapes of Japan.