Life finds a way in the most extreme environments on Earth and sparks the imagination about far-off places where we may yet find it.
hydrothermal systems
Posted inScience Updates
Seismic Sensors Probe Lipari’s Underground Plumbing
An international team of scientists installed a novel, dense network of 48 seismic sensors on the island of Lipari to investigate the active magma system underground.
Posted inScience Updates
Planning an International Magma Observatory
A planned project will drill into a magma reservoir in Iceland that has never erupted to the surface, giving scientists a fresh look at Earth’s underground “plumbing.”
Posted inNews
Microbes Spotted in “Polyextreme” Hot Springs
Hot springs that are as acidic as battery acid are home to single-celled microorganisms that may indicate that life could have been sustained on ancient Mars.
Posted inScience Updates
In Search of Life Under the Seafloor
A multinational research team drilled into the seafloor to see whether chemical processes in exposed shallow mantle rocks could generate nutrients to support life in the subsurface.
Posted inFeatures
Lava Clues Chronicled Kīlauea’s Unusual 2018 Eruption
Samples from Kīlauea volcano’s extraordinary eruption that began last May could offer important insights into the behavior of volcanoes and the underlying mantle.
Posted inNews
Kīlauea Eruption Abruptly Slows Down
Volcanologists say it’s too soon to know whether the sudden drop in activity signals the end of the eruption or just a pause.
Posted inNews
Two Active Volcanoes in Japan May Share a Magma Source
Evidence collected following the 2011 eruption of Japan’s Shinmoedake volcano suggests that the powerful event affected the behavior of an active caldera nearby.
Posted inFeatures
Four Ways Kīlauea Is Redrawing the Map
From burying communities to building new land, this historic eruption is changing the landscape of Hawai‘i Island.
Posted inNews
Huge Spike in Quakes Badly Damages Kīlauea Observatory
Meanwhile, some scientists say that the 35-year eruption from the Pu‘u Ō‘ō vent has ended and that the flows since 3 May are a new eruption. Others take issue with this view.