Volcanoes

How a Magnetic ‘Tug-of-War’ With Io’s Volcanic Eruptions Creates Jupiter’s Auroras

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Jupiter’s auroras – the lights that dance around its poles – are the most distinct in our solar system and over a thousand times brighter than Earth’s aurora. Now, a new study confirms that these otherworldly polar lights come from a unique source: space lava.   Jupiter‘s moon Io is the most volcanically active world in the solar … Read more

How satellites have revolutionized the study of volcanoes

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Developments in satellite technology over the past decade have allowed the world to witness the devastating Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai eruption and its aftermath in real time and in unprecedented detail. The findings might shed light on the anatomy of rare explosive volcanic eruptions and their effects on the planet. But satellites are also helping volcanologists … Read more

Volcanoes: Plumes of rock that feed volcanic hotspots are surprisingly cold

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Geologists may need to come up with a new explanation for the sources of volcanic activity in places like Iceland and Hawaii Earth 6 January 2022 By Alex Wilkins Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano erupting in 2018 U.S. Geological Survey via Getty Images The plumes of rock feeding Earth’s volcanic hotspots are much cooler than previously thought, … Read more

Prehistoric Volcanoes Heated Earth in a Global Chain Reaction

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Climate experts have warned for decades of “tipping points” at which modern global warming might cause a cascade of accelerating, irreversible effects. Now geologists are beginning to identify similar junctures in the fossil record. For example, around 56 million years ago—when our small primate ancestors still hopped through the trees—volcanic eruptions may have sparked hothouse … Read more