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This active volcano in Antarctica spews tiny crystals of gold worth $6,000 every single day

The flecks of gold dust sputtered from the volcano were discovered to fan around in an area of 621 miles along the crater and lava lake.

This active volcano in Antarctica spews tiny crystals of gold worth $6,000 every single day
Cover Image Source: Mount Erebus', circa 1911, (1913). (Photo by The Print Collector/Getty Images)

Encapsulated in the wild white wilderness of Antarctica lies a gold-churning volcano. Every single day, this volcano spews gusts of lava and fiery blasts of molten particles, ejecting showers of crystallized gold from its burning mouth. The active volcano is in the terrains of Mount Erebus.

Image Source: The sun lights up the summit of Mount Erebus, the second-highest volcano in Antarctica and the southernmost active volcano on Earth. (Photo by The Print Collector/Getty Images)
Image Source: The sun lights up the summit of Mount Erebus, the second-highest volcano in Antarctica and the southernmost active volcano on Earth. (Photo by The Print Collector/Getty Images)

In Greek mythology, the word “Erebus” refers to a place of darkness in the underworld. Mount Erebus too, nestles in the underworld of the ice-capped continent. It is the second-highest volcano in Antarctica after Mount Sidley, the highest active volcano in Antarctica, and the southernmost active volcano on Earth. It also marks the second most prominent mountain in Antarctica after Mount Vinson.

Image Source: The Summit of Erebus', circa 1912, (1913). Erebus is the second-highest volcano in Antarctica and the southernmost active volcano on Earth. (Photo by The Print Collector/Getty Images)
Image Source: The Summit of Erebus', circa 1912, (1913). Erebus is the second-highest volcano in Antarctica and the southernmost active volcano on Earth. (Photo by The Print Collector/Getty Images)

Antarctica, where mother nature exhibits the enigmatic dance of fire and ice, is known for housing hundreds of volcanoes underneath its ice sheets. While most of these are known to be dormant, nearly eight or nine of the Antarctic volcanoes are regarded as active. And Mount Erebus is one of the most aggressive of all these volcanoes. Erebus sits above a thin crust, allowing the glassy molten rock to easily rise from its surface. It furiously spews flurries of steam and plumes of gas. It is also known to eject boulders of partially molten rock known as “volcanic bombs” in strombolian eruptions.

Image Source: Mount Erebus as Seen from the Winter Quarters, The Old Crater on the Left, and the Active Cone Rising on the Right', circa 1908, (1909). (Photo by Print Collector/Getty Images)
Image Source: Mount Erebus as Seen from the Winter Quarters, The Old Crater on the Left, and the Active Cone Rising on the Right', circa 1908, (1909). (Photo by Print Collector/Getty Images)

However, one of the most odd traits of the Erebus volcano is that it pumps jets of gold dust daily into the planet. According to IFL Science, it's estimated that the volcano ejects a rapid flux of gold at the rate of around 80 grams per day, a quantity that's worth approximately $6,000. It is a vigorous gold machine illustrating nature’s mysterious bounty.

The ejected metal is in the form of tiny crystals of metallic gold, no larger than 20 micrometers. The gold dust sprinkles out into the surrounding crater that spans an area of around 1000 kilometers or 621 miles, as per the 1991 research published in Advancing Earth and Space Sciences journal.

Representative Image Source: Pexels | Pixabay
Representative Image Source: Pexels | Pixabay

According to Interesting Engineering, Philip Kyle, from the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology in Socorro, clarified that gold deposits can originate in volcanic rock. When lava from the mountain, which has a summit elevation of 3,794 meters emits plumes of hot gas, this sprinkles some of the gold particles into the air.

Image Source: Erebus Eruption, June 14th 1908, 3.45 p.m. Showing upper air currents', (1909). (Photo by Print Collector/Getty Images)
Image Source: Erebus Eruption, June 14th, 1908, 3.45 p.m. Showing upper air currents', (1909). (Photo by Print Collector/Getty Images)

Additionally, Conor Bacon of Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory at Columbia University, New York, told Live Science that this fierce volcano has been continuously erupting since 1972. "One of its most interesting features is the persistent lava lake that occupies one of its summit craters, where molten material is present at the surface," Conor said. "These are actually quite rare, as it requires some very specific conditions to be met to ensure the surface never freezes over."

Image Source: A sketch of Robert Falcon Scott's ship 'Discovery' moored at the foot of Mount Erebus in McMurdo Strait, while the volcano sends up a plume of smoke. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Image Source: A sketch of Robert Falcon Scott's ship 'Discovery' moored at the foot of Mount Erebus in McMurdo Strait, while the volcano sends up a plume of smoke. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Mount Erebus is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, which includes over 160 active volcanoes. The eruption of these volcanoes not only spews and fans out generous materials into the atmosphere but also creates meltwater which acts as a lubricant for Antarctic inner glacial coating and thick ice sheets. But the fact that Erebus trickles gold is something beyond poetic.

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