The frozen continent of Antarctica is, paradoxically, a hotbed of volcanic activity.
In the ice-covered region, there are about 138 volcanoes beneath the snow cover, 91 of which were only discovered in 2017.
While most of them are considered inactive or possibly extinct, three volcanoes have erupted more recently, according to the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program: Penguin Island in 1905, Deception Island in 1970 and Mount Erebus in 1972.
The latter is arguably the most famous volcano in Antarctica – it is the highest active volcano on the continent (with a summit height of 3,794 metres) and the southernmost active volcano on Earth.
Satellite images of this giant show a hot lava lake that has been bubbling in its summit crater for 32 years.
The volcano has been erupting continuously since “at least 1972,” said Conor Bacon, a postdoctoral fellow in volcano seismology at the University of Cambridge. Live science.
Since then, according to NASA Earth Observatory, it has been “ejecting clouds of gas and steam” and occasionally hurling rock bombs, collectively known as “Strombolian eruptions.”
Mount Erebus has been erupting continuously since 1972 (Josh Landis/National Science Foundation)
But the most extraordinary thing is that these volcanic gas eruptions are worth their weight in gold – almost literally.
This is because they are full of tiny gold particles – no larger than 20 micrometers. IFL Sciencereports.
Although this amount may seem small, scientists estimate that over the course of a single day the volcano spews out about 80 grams (2.8 ounces) of the precious metal, worth more than £4,800 ($6,000).
And as is to be expected with dust in the wind, the gold does not simply remain on Mount Erebus.
Rather, traces of it were discovered 1,000 kilometers away from the volcano after the particle flew through the air.
However, not all Antarctic volcanoes are known for their glittering eruption. Many experts are still trying to answer this question: Could they erupt one day? And what would happen if they did?
Researchers admit that it is difficult to predict whether one of the 138 planets on the continent is a ticking time bomb.
This is largely due to the logistical and climatic challenges presented by the region’s unforgiving habitat.
First of all, the volcanoes are much more difficult to access than in other parts of the world. In addition, all monitoring instruments must be “robust enough to withstand the harsh conditions and long polar nights,” Bacon emphasized in his interview with Experience science live.
So what would happen if one or more of these volcanoes erupted?
We can find clues by looking back nearly 20,000 years.
A Landsat image of the Takahe volcano, which erupted about 18,000 years ago and left a hole in the ozone layer.(Landsat Antarctica Image Mosaic (LIMA). USGS and NASA, LIMA)
One of the continent’s volcanoes, Mount Takahe, lies near the remote center of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.
In a 2017 study published in the journal PNASScientists believed that the Takahe volcano was responsible for a series of eruptions that occurred about 18,000 years ago and released large amounts of ozone-depleting halogens.
They claimed that these eruptions had caused an ancient hole in the ozone layer and warmed the Southern Hemisphere.
This led to the melting of glaciers and contributed to the end of the last ice age, according to John Smellie, professor for volcanology at the University of Leicester, explains in an article for Newsweek.
However, Prof. Smellie acknowledged that for environmental impacts of this kind to occur again, it would require a series of eruptions similarly enriched in halogens “from one or more volcanoes currently exposed above the ice.”
“Such a scenario is unlikely but, as the Takahe study shows, not impossible,” he wrote.
“It is more likely that one or more of the many subglacial volcanoes, some of which are known to be active, will erupt at some unknown time in the future.”
And unfortunately, it’s pretty safe to assume that they won’t explode with a friendly shower of gold dust.
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