Lesson Y9-U04-L05

Y9-U04-L05 Living with Tectonic Hazards Quiz: KS3 Geography, Unit 16

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson Y9-U04-L05, Living with Tectonic Hazards: 20 multiple choice questions for the KS3 Geography (National Curriculum), Unit 16: Year 9: Dynamic Landscapes: Tectonics and Ice, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. What is a lahar?

    • A hot cloud of gas and ash that flows down a volcano's slope.
    • A river of molten rock that cools into glass.
    • A fast mudflow of ash and water that buries valleys.
    • A fault line where two plates slide past each other.

  2. Which volcanic hazard is a fast flow of hot gas and ash down the slopes?

    • A lahar.
    • A geothermal spring.
    • A seismic wave.
    • A pyroclastic flow.

  3. Why can ash from a volcano affect places far from the volcano?

    • Ash is heavier than air and stays only close to the crater.
    • Ash sinks into the ground and reaches the sea quickly.
    • Ash falls only on mountain tops and never reaches towns.
    • Ash travels far on the wind, ruining crops and grounding aircraft.

  4. Which volcanic hazard can bury whole valleys after heavy rain?

    • A tourist hot spring.
    • Fertile soil.
    • A geothermal spring.
    • A lahar.

  5. Why is weathered volcanic rock good for farming?

    • It is made of ice that keeps crops cool.
    • It is so hard that roots cannot grow into it.
    • It contains no minerals at all.
    • It makes very fertile soil, so crops grow well.

  6. What is geothermal energy?

    • Electricity or heat made from the natural heat inside the Earth.
    • Electricity made by burning coal in a power station built beneath a volcano.
    • Wind power generated on the slopes of a mountain.
    • Heat from the Sun reflected off volcanic ash clouds that drift over the land.

  7. Which benefit of living near a volcano is linked to tourism?

    • Lahars carry fish into the town's water supply.
    • Ash falls make the roads smooth for cars.
    • Pyroclastic flows create new jobs in the emergency services only.
    • Hot springs and dramatic scenery attract visitors who spend money.

  8. Why do many people feel the day-to-day risk of a volcano is low?

    • Volcanoes never produce any hazards at all.
    • Eruptions are rare, so the chance of harm on any given day seems small.
    • The risk applies only to people who live inside the crater.
    • Volcanoes erupt every single day in the same place.

  9. According to the bar chart, about how many million people live within 30 km of Vesuvius?

    • About 30 million.
    • About 1.1 million.
    • About 3.0 million.
    • About 0.3 million.

  10. On the chart, how many more people live within 30 km of Vesuvius than of Merapi?

    • About 1.1 million.
    • About 1.9 million.
    • About 0.5 million.
    • About 3.0 million.

  11. What is the purpose of monitoring a volcano?

    • To stop all lava flows with a wall of concrete built across the mountain's whole slope.
    • To detect warning signs early so people can be warned and evacuated.
    • To sell tickets for viewing the crater.
    • To make the volcano erupt on a planned schedule so that tourists can visit at a set time.

  12. Which of these is an example of planning to reduce volcanic risk?

    • Concrete channels built to divert lahars.
    • Seismometers placed under the volcano.
    • Hot springs used for swimming.
    • An exclusion zone and evacuation drills.

  13. Which of these is an example of protection against volcanic hazards?

    • An exclusion zone that keeps people out of danger.
    • Evacuation drills practised twice a year.
    • Concrete channels that divert lahars away from a town.
    • Seismometers that detect tiny earthquakes.

  14. Why do people accept the volcanic risk near Vesuvius?

    • Because the government forces everyone to live there.
    • Fertile soil, jobs and family ties outweigh the rare but serious hazard for many people.
    • Because volcanoes only erupt in the winter months, so people feel safe to live there all summer long.
    • Because the volcano is too small to cause any real harm, and its eruptions are never dangerous to people.

  15. A pupil writes 'people stay because it is nice'. Which is the best improvement?

    • People stay because nobody has ever told them about volcanoes or about the danger they face each year.
    • People stay because the sky is blue, the air smells good, and the views from every window are lovely.
    • About 3.0 million people stay within 30 km of Vesuvius, because the land and jobs give a living despite the risk.
    • People stay because the volcano is quite far from every home and is hidden behind the hills most days.

  16. Which combination of strategies is most likely to reduce deaths from an eruption?

    • Cutting down all the fertile farmland near the volcano.
    • Building homes right inside the crater.
    • Ignoring warning signs so that people stay calm.
    • Monitoring that gives early warning, plus practised evacuation.

  17. Why might more days of warning reduce the death toll from an eruption?

    • People have time to leave the danger zone before the eruption strikes.
    • Warning days stop ash from falling on roofs.
    • Warning days mean people can ignore the danger completely.
    • Warning days make the volcano erupt more gently.

  18. Which judgement about a volcano's benefits and hazards is the most balanced?

    • A volcano has no effect on people, whatever their choices.
    • A volcano is only ever a benefit, because it never causes harm to anyone who lives nearby at all.
    • A volcano is only ever a threat, so no one should live near one, whatever the soil or jobs nearby.
    • A volcano is both a threat and a resource, so people weigh its benefits against the risk.

  19. Why might a poorer place find monitoring and evacuation harder to afford than a richer one?

    • Poorer places have no volcanoes, so they never need protection.
    • Instruments, drills and roads cost money, so limited budgets can leave gaps in protection.
    • Monitoring costs nothing, so poorer places always have it in place.
    • Poorer places are always further from volcanoes, so no protection is needed.

  20. To what extent is wealth, rather than the volcano itself, the main factor deciding how dangerous it is?

    • Completely: planning never changes the outcome of any eruption, whatever the wealth or warnings of the place.
    • Not at all: wealth has no connection with any safety measure.
    • Entirely: the volcano has no size or power at all, so wealth and planning can never change its effects.
    • Largely: wealth funds monitoring, planning and protection, though the size of the eruption still matters.

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