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If you have ever visited Antigua Guatemala, you know the view: three huge volcanoes rise above the town. Guatemala has about 37 volcanoes in total, and three of them are active almost all the time. Why does such a small country have so many?
To answer that, we need to look under our feet. The surface of the Earth is not one solid piece. It is made of huge slabs of rock called tectonic plates, and they move very slowly, only a few centimeters a year. Sometimes one plate slides under another, and this is called subduction.
That is exactly what happens near Guatemala. The Cocos plate is being pushed under the Caribbean plate, along a long line on the ocean floor called the Middle America Trench. As the Cocos plate goes deeper, it gets hotter, and some of the rock melts. The melted rock, called magma, is lighter than the rock around it, so it rises toward the surface.
Sometimes the magma stops underground, in a space called a magma chamber. Gas builds up inside, and the pressure grows. Finally, the magma finds a weak place in the rock and is forced out. This is an eruption. After the magma reaches the surface, it is called lava. Layer after layer of lava and ash is piled up, and over thousands of years, a volcano is built.
This process happens along the whole coast of Central America, which is why the region has a long line of volcanoes. Guatemala is also part of the Ring of Fire, the huge circle of volcanoes and earthquakes around the Pacific Ocean.
Three of Guatemala's volcanoes are constantly active. Fuego, the one you can see from Antigua, often sends up small clouds of ash. Pacaya has been erupting since 1965, and Santiaguito, near Quetzaltenango, has been active since 1922.
Volcanoes are dangerous, but they also give. The ash makes the soil very rich, and this is one reason why Guatemala's highlands are so good for growing coffee. So the next time you look at a volcano, ask yourself a question: is it a threat, or is it a gift?
