A volcano in Antarctica spews out gold crystals every day
The Erebus volcano in Antarctica releases microscopic gold crystals into the atmosphere every day, and scientists have been unable to fully explain this process for over 30 years. The planet’s southernmost active volcano remains one of the most mysterious natural phenomena still being actively studied.
In Antarctica, scientists are observing a unique natural phenomenon that has defied a definitive explanation for several decades: Mount Erebus, the southernmost active volcano on Earth, releases microscopic crystals of pure gold into the atmosphere every day. Erebus is located approximately 1,350 kilometers from the South Pole and is one of the few volcanoes in the world with a permanent lava lake, making it particularly active and geologically unstable.
As early as 1991, studies showed that the volcano could emit about 80 grams of ultrafine gold dust daily. These particles are so light that air currents can carry them up to a thousand kilometers from the crater. In fact, Erebus is the only known volcano in the world that regularly emits actual crystals of elemental gold, rather than just traces of the metal in ash or gases.
Traces of gold, however, have also been detected at other volcanoes around the world, including Kilauea in Hawaii, Etna in Italy, Mount Augustine in Alaska, and El Chichón in Mexico. But only Erebus demonstrates the consistent formation of individual crystals of the precious metal. A team of researchers led by geochemist Kimberly Miker of the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology analyzed samples of snow, volcanic gases, and air in the vicinity of the volcano. In all samples, they detected microparticles of pure gold.
Under an electron microscope, these particles have an almost perfectly regular shape, and the size of individual crystals reaches about 60 micrometers in diameter. Scientists suggest that volatile compounds containing chlorine or sulfur may play a key role in this process. As volcanic gases cool, gold may crystallize and be deposited along with volcanic emissions, settling on snow and ice.
At the same time, there is still no definitive answer to the question of exactly how this “gold dust” forms. Among the hypotheses is a scenario in which gold forms on the surface of a lava lake, after which it is carried up by hot volcanic gases and released into the atmosphere.
Despite decades of research, Erebus remains a natural laboratory that constantly presents scientists with new mysteries, forcing them to rethink their understanding of volcanic behavior and the chemical processes occurring within them. This is reported by Science Alert.
