Clipmarks | invictus's 'volcanoes' clips

Hawaiian Volcanoes: Beauty & Terror

Sun, 23 Dec 2007 23:28:27 GMT

clipped by: amgumen

Pu'u 'O'o cone on Kilauea, Big Island of Hawaii (aerial view) -

Eruptions in the Hawaiian volcanoes are normally preceded by multiple earthquakes which create fissures and facilitate the magma's flow to the surface.

The Paoehoe (pah-ho-ay-ho-ay) lava flows reach the seawater and explode, as ocean waves enter the fiery lava tubes.

The semi-solidified lava structures may look as curious lava-lamp oddities, but conceal behind their fanciful shapes a highly dangerous nature. The lava tongues and "tentacles" may look solid but often they remain incredibly hot and unstable for long time.

Like alien bread dough they creep forward, quickly cooling off and adding perplexing shapes here and there. The imaginary sequel to "The Blob" movie could certainly use such visuals:

A creeping lava tongue... A fiery waterfall curtain...

The bizarre coloring observed in the lava flowing in the tubes:

Such openings are called "skylights", offering a view into a hellish kingdom below:

Tags: optional. separate by commas., geology, interesting, nature, science

Sunset on Mars

Sat, 07 Jun 2008 08:51:47 GMT

clipped by: shunyax

Clip Source: www.nasa.gov

Sunset on Mars

On May 19, 2005, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit captured this stunning view as the Sun sank below the rim of Gusev crater on Mars. This Panoramic Camera mosaic was taken around 6:07 in the evening of the rover's 489th Martian day, or sol.

Sunset and twilight images are occasionally acquired by the science team to determine how high into the atmosphere the Martian dust extends, and to look for dust or ice clouds. Other images have shown that the twilight glow remains visible, but increasingly fainter, for up to two hours before sunrise or after sunset. The long Martian twilight (compared to Earth's) is caused by sunlight scattered around to the night side of the planet by abundant high altitude dust. Similar long twilights or extra-colorful sunrises and sunsets sometimes occur on Earth when tiny dust grains that are erupted from powerful volcanoes scatter light high in the atmosphere.

Volcanoes. Wow!

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 16:35:08 GMT

clipped by: JohnWaterman
clipper's remarks: Great Pics.

Clip Source: www.boston.com

Recent Volcanic Activity

Several volcanoes have erupted in the past few months - two in Chile (Chaiten and Llaima) and one in Alaska (Okmok). At any given time, approximately 20 to 50 volcanoes are active worldwide (depending on the definition of "active"). Collected here are photos of volcanic events from the the past several years, seen from many angles, including low Earth Orbit. (15 photos total)

Lava explodes from the Llaima volcano, one of Chile's most active volcanoes, in Cherquenco, Chile, early Thursday, July 10, 2008

Okmok Caldera in Alaska as viewed from an Alaska Airlines jet in early June, 2007. The 3,500-foot Okmok Caldera, which consists of a 6-mile-wide circular crater about 1,600 feet deep, erupted with little warning Saturday morning July 12, 2008

July 13, 2008

the Okmok Caldera erupting

Rabaul volcano, near Kokopo, Papua New Guinea on Sunday, April 13, 2008

Mt. Etna's eruption on October 30th, 2002

Mt Augustine

2006

Chaiten volcano

Chile

June 17, 2008

Kliuchevskoi Volcano

Great Volcano Pics

Wed, 10 Oct 2007 06:16:37 GMT

clipped by: CrazyRedHead

Clip Source: slightlywarped.com

In those few places in the Earth where the ground opens and rock flows like water, we find a sight so breathtaking in both its beauty and its danger that it holds us captivated at the raw unsurging power beneath our feet.

Tags: volcanoes, photography, nature, science

The Earth fights back

Tue, 07 Aug 2007 17:40:43 GMT

clipped by: JohnWaterman

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Never mind higher temperatures, climate change has a few nastier surprises in store. Bill McGuire says we can also expect more earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides and tsunamis

Unlike most apparently intractable problems, which have a tendency to go away when examined closely and analytically, the climate change predicament just seems to get bigger and scarier the more we learn about it.

periods in our planet's history when the climate was swinging about wildly, most notably during the last ice age, it appears that far more than the weather was affected

an increase in volcanic activity, earthquakes, giant submarine landslides and tsunamis

there was a close correlation between how quickly sea levels went up and down during the last ice age and the level of explosive activity at volcanoes in Italy and Greece

how can rising sea levels cause volcanoes to erupt?

answer lies in the enormous mass of the water pouring into the ocean basins

seems to be sufficient to load and bend the underlying crust.

Tags: science, earth, global warming, earthquakes, volcanooes

Birth of an Island

Thu, 21 Jun 2007 18:39:17 GMT

clipped by: axelsenzon

Clip Source: www.boreme.com

August 2006, the yacht 'Maiken' is travelling in the south Pacific when they came across a weird sight...

Clip Source: www.boreme.com

This is not a beach, it is volcanic stones floating on the water.

Clip Source: www.boreme.com

The trail left by the yacht...

Clip Source: www.boreme.com

And then this was spotted... ash and steam rising from the ocean...

Clip Source: www.boreme.com

And, while they were watching...

Clip Source: www.boreme.com

A brand new island formed...

Clip Source: www.boreme.com

Tags: nature, amazing, earth, volcanoes, pics, ocean

Bio-Earth: Are Planets Living Super-Organisms?

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 17:48:23 GMT

clipped by: Mohir
clipper's remarks: He believes that expanding the study of life sciences to the core of our world and the depths of outer space will help us find distant relatives of our own Earth -- planets that could also sustain life.
To explain why contintental plates drift on the surface of the Earth's molten mantle, Maruyama argues that continents actually have life cycles. Old, cold plates on continental fringes sink to “plate graveyards” deep in the Earth’s mantle, and then rise again, creating volcanoes fueled by three-dimensional convection movements deep below the surface.

Clip Source: www.dailygalaxy.com

Japan's Maruyama Shigenori, one of the world's leading geophysicists, is working on a global formula for a vast new field of study that would include dozens of disciplines collaborating to produce an overall picture of the Earth.

Maruyama is creating a new institute called the Center for Bio-Earth Planetology will be launched in 2009 and fully dedicated to creating a new conception of life in space.He wants to find out if the continents will merge again in 250 million years to form a single super-continent; how meteorites change the chemical composition of the Earth; and what the connection is between the temperature of a planet and its magnetic field, which protects plants and animals from being bombarded with cosmic radiation, which in turn influences the rate of mutations and thus the development of new forms of life.

As he connects the dots from astronomy to life sciences, the outlines emerge of an all-encompassing image of entire planets, which appear as living super-organisms.

Tags: planet, gaia, geophysics

Our Earth as Art

Wed, 05 Dec 2007 18:19:57 GMT

clipped by: Aribeth
clipper's remarks: Welcome to the Earth as Art Gallery.Here you can view our planet through the beautiful images taken by the Landsat-7 satellite - and most recently, the Terra Satellite's Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER). This gallery of images uses the visceral avenue of art to convey the thrilling perspective of the Earth that satellites provide to the viewer.

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Akpatok Island

northern Quebec, Canada

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Aleutian Clouds

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Alluvial Fan, China

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Bogda Mountains

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Bolivian Deforestation

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Cancun

Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Campeche

Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Chilean Volcanoes

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Colima Volcano

Mexico

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Delta Region, Netherlands

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Demini River

Brazil

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Desolation Canyon

American West

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Florida Everglades

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Ghadamis River

Libya

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Great Salt Desert

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Great Sandy Scars

Western Australia

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Guinea-Bissau

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

The Himalayas

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Icefall, Lambert Glacier, Antarctica

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Jordan

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Lake Carnegie

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Malaspina Glacier

Alaska

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Mt. Etna

Sicily

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Namib Desert, Namibia

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Ocean Sand, Bahamas

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Syrian Desert

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Vatnajökull Glacier Ice Cap

Iceland's Skaftafell National Park

Clip Source: earthasart.gsfc.nasa.gov

Tags: pics, images, photo, photos, gallery, beautiful, satellite

Unreal Landscapes of the Bolivian Salt Lake

Tue, 28 Nov 2006 05:54:48 GMT

clipped by: abramsv
clipper's remarks: The Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni is perhaps one of the most spectacular landscapes in the world. A magnificent area with an impressive Salt Desert (the world's largest), active volcanoes, tall cacti islands and geyser flats, it exists like an alien mirage, something completely out-of-this-world...

Clip Source: thrillingwonder.blogspot.com

Fantastic Landscapes of the Bolivian Salt Lake

Salar de Uyuni - Bolivian Salt Lake and islands

The Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni is perhaps one of the most spectacular landscapes in the world. A magnificent area with an impressive Salt Desert (the world's largest), active volcanos, tall cacti islands and geyser flats, it exists like an alien mirage, something completely out-of-this-world...

"...We finally reached the salt flats. Imagine being surrounded by endless white salt covered by a few inches of water. Without any reference points the sky meets the salt and creates an odd illusion that objects in the flats are flying. I had never seen anything like it... The truck drove through the salt flats and stopped at an island full of cacti. We had lunch on a table made of a large salt tablet and eventually stopped at a hotel made completely of salt."

Tags: travel, photography

Surprising Activity Discovered at Yellowstone Supervolcano

Thu, 15 Mar 2007 22:41:43 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks:

What the researchers think is happening, on a short-term basis at least, is that the bulging Yellowstone hotspot north of the Tetons is pushing against the north edge of Jackson Hole and jamming it against the mountains. (This is also causing the southwest part of the Yellowstone plateau, under the hotspot, to slide downhill at a rate of one-sixth of an inch each year.).

Clip Source: www.livescience.com

Supervolcanoes can sleep for centuries or millennia before producing incredibly massive eruptions that can drop ash across an entire continent. One of the largest supervolcanoes in the world lies beneath Yellowstone National Park, which spans parts of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.

Though the Yellowstone system is active and expected to eventually blow its top, scientists don’t think it will erupt any time soon.

Yet significant activity continues beneath the surface. And the activity has been increasing lately, scientists have discovered. In addition, the nearby Teton Range, in a total surprise, is getting shorter.

The findings, reported this month in the Journal of Geophysical Research—Solid Earth, suggest that a slow and gradual movement caused by a giant hotspot of molten rock beneath a volcano can shape a landscape more than sudden ground movements caused by the volcano’s frequent earthquakes.

Tags: volcanoes, geology, yellowstone, eruption, caldera, fault lines

Ancient Chaiten Volcano Erupts after 10,000 Years

Sun, 04 May 2008 03:28:22 GMT

clipped by: BobbyDelray

Clip Source: news.aol.com

The Chaiten volcano spewed light ash on a nearly deserted village Saturday, two days after its first eruption in thousands of years

Just six miles away, the volcano belched fat smoke plumes that at times rose as high as 12 miles into the air, the government's Emergency Bureau said.

Winds carried the ash to other towns in the region and across the Andes mountains to Argentina, where two airlines suspended flights due to poor visibility.

The Chaiten volcano has "probably been dormant for about 9,000 or 10,000 years but that's not unusual," said Charles Stern, a professor of volcanology at the University of Colorado who specializes in Andes volcanoes.

"This could be the end of our town,"

"We have worked an entire life here and now all we could do was to put a few things in a bag and depart, leaving everything behind."

Mass extinctions? Blame it on the ocean

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 16:19:31 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks:

In the course of hundreds of millions of years the world's oceans have expanded and contracted in response to the shifting of the Earth's tectonic plates and to changes in climate. There were periods of the planet's history when vast areas of the continents were flooded by shallow seas such as the shark and mosasaur infested seaway that neatly split North America during the age of the dinosaurs.

As those epicontinental seas drained, animals like mosasaurs and giant sharks went extinct, and conditions on the marine shelves where life exhibited its greatest diversity in the form of things like clams and snails changed as well.

Clip Source: www.nsf.gov

Ebb and flow of the sea is the primary cause of the world's mass extinctions over the past 500 million years

If you are curious about Earth's periodic mass extinction events such as the sudden demise of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, you might consider crashing asteroids and sky-darkening super volcanoes as culprits.

But a new study, published June 15, 2008, in the journal Nature, suggests that it is the ocean, and in particular the epic ebbs and flows of sea level and sediment over the course of geologic time, that is the primary cause of the world's periodic mass extinctions over the past 500 million years.

View a video interview with geoscientist Shanan Peters.

Tags: mass extinctions, geology, ocean, science

what lives in a 'lost world' five kilometres beneath the Caribbean?.

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 06:41:24 GMT

clipped by: einbar

Clip Source: www.sciencedaily.com

Scientists at the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, are set to explore the world's deepest undersea volcanoes and find out what lives in a 'lost world' five kilometres beneath the Caribbean.

The team of researchers led by Dr Jon Copley has been awarded £462,000 by the Natural Environment Research Council to explore the Cayman Trough, which lies between Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. This rift in the Caribbean seafloor plunges to a depth of more than 5000 metres below sea level. It contains the world's deepest chain of undersea volcanoes, which have yet to be explored.

"The deep ocean is the largest ecosystem on our planet, so we need to understand its patterns of life," says Dr Copley. "Deep-sea exploration has also given us new cancer treatments and better fibre-optic cables for the internet, both thanks to deep-sea creatures."

"The Cayman Trough may be a 'lost world' that will give us the missing piece in a global puzzle of deep-sea life,"

The Physics of Interstellar Travel - by Dr. Michio Kaku

Fri, 06 Oct 2006 15:00:10 GMT

clipped by: Djiezes

Clip Source: www.mkaku.org

The Physics of Interstellar Travel

To one day, reach the stars.
By Michio Kaku

The first realistic attempt to analyze extra-terrestrial civilizations from the point of view of the laws of physics and the laws of thermodynamics was by Russian astrophysicist Nicolai Kardashev. He based his ranking of possible civilizations on the basis of total energy output which could be quantified and used as a guide to explore the dynamics of advanced civilizations:

Type I: this civilization harnesses the energy output of an entire planet.

Type II: this civilization harnesses the energy output of a star, and generates about 10 billion times the energy output of a Type I civilization.

Type III: this civilization harnesses the energy output of a galaxy, or about 10 billion time the energy output of a Type II civilization.

Type 0:

Chemical rockets
Ionic engines
Fission power
EM propulsion (rail guns)

Type I

Ram-jet fusion engines
Photonic drive

Type II

Antimatter drive
Von Neumann nano probes

Type III

Planck energy propulsion

A Type I civilization would be able to manipulate truly planetary energies. They might, for example, control or modify their weather. They would have the power to manipulate planetary phenomena, such as hurricanes, which can release the energy of hundreds of hydrogen bombs. Perhaps volcanoes or even earthquakes may be altered by such a civilization.

Tags: physics, science, sf, scifi, michio kaku, kaku, article, essay, space, space travel, civilizations, kardashev, energy, travel, et, type, types, literature, interstellar, astronomy, light, speed

Earth: A Borderline Planet for Life?

Thu, 10 Jan 2008 10:27:46 GMT

clipped by: wildcat

Clip Source: physorg.com

Our planet is changing before our eyes, and as a result, many species are living on the edge. Yet Earth has been on the edge of habitability from the beginning. New work by astronomers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics shows that if Earth had been slightly smaller and less massive, it would not have plate tectonics - the forces that move continents and build mountains. And without plate tectonics, life might never have gained a foothold on our world.

Plate tectonics are crucial to a planet's habitability because they enable complex chemistry and recycle substances like carbon dioxide, which acts as a thermostat and keeps Earth balmy. Carbon dioxide that was locked into rocks is released when those rocks melt, returning to the atmosphere from volcanoes and oceanic ridges.

"There are not only more potentially habitable planets, but MANY more," stated Sasselov, who is director of the Harvard Origins of Life Initiative.

Tags: planet earth, habitability