Volcanic Styria

On October 23rd, 5c visited Riegersburg for a biology excursion on volcanic Styria.

Dr. Ingomar Fritz, an expert on Volcanism at the Universalmuseum Joanneum, led the excursion.

We expected rainy, cloudy weather with little visibility.  But the previous day’s rains pushed away the clouds and allowed us to see way into the distance. We could see the Wechsel mountain range in the north and the Bachern towards the south. A vast open area spread before us in the east and towards the west we could see Koralpe, Gleinalpe and Grazer Bergland (Schöckl, Hochlantsch, etc).

With chilly winds surrounding us, we learned about the two volcanic phases that occured in the Styrian basin millions of years ago. We understood how the Riegersburg rock was formed and how a lake had once covered the ground we were standing upon. Dr. Fritz taught us about the type of volcano that formed the lake – the maar diatreme volcano.

Nini Heugle