Buzz
Lava lakes hidden within volcanoes, fiery and restless, aren't as frequent as films like The Lord of the Rings and Shrek may lead us to believe. Until now, only seven enduring lava lakes were known to exist on Earth.
Satellite images from the UK have just confirmed the existence of the eighth lava lake, nestled within the crater of Mount Michael, an active volcano on Saunders Island, a British Overseas Territory (BOT) in the Southern Ocean near Antarctica, according to Gizmodo reports.
This false-color image from Landsat 8 reveals the vibrant red lava lake inside the crater of Mount Michael. | Landsat 8, British Antarctic SurveyThe presence of the lava lake wasn’t exactly unexpected; researchers from the British Antarctic Survey and University College London have speculated about it for over 30 years. In the 1990s, thermal anomalies were detected around the crater, but the image resolution wasn’t sufficient for confirmation. Now, with the aid of satellites like Landsat, Sentinel-2, and ASTER, they have definitive proof and have published their findings in the latest edition of the Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research.
Mount Michael’s lava lake is both awe-inspiring and terrifying. While it’s not the largest (that distinction belongs to Mount Nyiragongo in the Democratic Republic of Congo, whose lava lake spans 820 feet), this one’s diameter ranges from 295 to 705 feet, nearly twice the length of a football field. It can reach temperatures of up to 2334°F—hot enough to turn your cast iron skillet into a molten puddle of cast iron.
This lava lake is also the first of its kind discovered in a British territory. Other known lava lakes exist in Ethiopia, Antarctica, Nicaragua, Hawaii, Vanuatu (with two), and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
"We are thrilled to have uncovered such a significant geological feature in the British Overseas Territory,” stated Dr. Alex Burton-Johnson, author and geologist from the British Antarctic Survey. "This discovery enhances our understanding of volcanic activity and hazards on this isolated island, sheds light on these rare features, and has advanced our ability to monitor volcanoes from space," he added in a statement.
To learn more about how volcanoes are monitored from space, take a look at this stunning photo of a volcanic eruption captured from space just last week.
