Volcanic ash is a mixture of rock, mineral, and glass particles expelled from a volcano during a volcanic eruption. The particles are very small—less than two millimeters in diameter. They tend to be pitted and full of holes, which gives them a low density., The smallest material, volcanic ash (<2 mm diameter) is both easily convected upward within the plume and carried downwind for very long distances; as it falls out of suspension it can potentially affect communities and farmland across hundreds, or even thousands, of square kilometers (miles)., Volcanic ash is a mixture of unconsolidated particles or pieces of rocks, mineral crystals, and glass shards measuring less than 2 mm in size ejected during a volcanic eruption., Volcanic ash consists of sand-sized or smaller shattered bits of rock that have diameters less than 2 mm (0.08 inches). Depending on the eruption, most volcanic ash consists of small fragments of volcanic glass that were torn apart by violently expanding bubbles of gases., Megadrought Reveals Volcanic Ash at Lake Mead, Giving Us a Better Look at the Lake's Past Learn more about the volcanic ash researchers found in the sediment around Lake Mead’s now exposed shoreline, and how it could help us in the future., .