A hot time in Antarctica - new volcano discovered buried under ice sheet
From
LiveScience:
Buried Volcano Discovered in Antarctica
A volcano beneath Antarctica’s icy surface has been detected for the first time.
Under the frozen continent's western-most ice sheet, the volcano erupted about 2,300 years ago yet remains active, according to a study published Sunday in an online issue of the journal Nature Geosciences.
"We believe this was the biggest eruption in Antarctica during the last 10,000 years," said study co-author Hugh Corr, a glaciologist for the British Antarctic Survey (BAS). "It blew a substantial hole in the ice sheet, and generated a plume of ash and gas that rose around 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) into [the] air."
Nature wants $18 to access the letter but the first paragraph can be found here:
A recent volcanic eruption beneath the West Antarctic ice sheet
Hugh F. J. Corr & David G. Vaughan
Very cool discovery. Mt. Erebus is still very active, maintaining a pool of magma in the crater but this bad boy was running in stealth mode until now...
Posted by DaveH at January 20, 2008 6:48 PM
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