8.18 - Volcanic gases and Earth's early atmosphere
Discover how volcanic activity supplied the gases that formed Earth's early atmosphere, and why lava and ash are different from those gases.
From inside Earth to an atmosphere
An atmosphere is the layer of gases surrounding a planet. On the hot early Earth, volcanic activity released gases from the interior. This release is called outgassing. The gases built up around the planet, forming its early atmosphere.
Volcanic eruptions can also produce lava and ash. Lava is molten rock and ash consists of small solid particles. Ash can be suspended in air, but neither lava nor ash is the gas mixture that makes up an atmosphere.
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