When Volcanoes Erupt Metallic Lava; A Geologic Oddity

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  • čas přidán 14. 06. 2024
  • Approximately 2 million years ago, a volcano in a remote and arid part of the world erupted, leaving behind large amounts of metallic cooled lava. This occurred at Chile's El Laco volcano, and the reason this occurred is quite extraordinary. The lava was not primarily composed of silica like 99.9% of the planet's lavas, but rather iron oxide. These iron oxide rich lavas are today worth more than 80 billion U.S. dollars.
    Thumbnail Photo Credit: U.S. Geological Survey (Data Owner), Peterson, D.W. (Photographer), "Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. 1972-1974 eruption of Kilauea Volcano. Skylight in lava tube feeding Kaena Point flow. 1972.", USGS Denver Library Photographic Collection, Public Domain, library.usgs.gov/photo/index..... This image was overlaid with text and then overlaid with GeologyHub made graphics (the image border & the GeologyHub logo).
    If you would like to support this channel, consider using one of the following links:
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    Google Earth imagery used in this video: ©Google & Data Providers
    This video is protected under "fair use". If you see an image and/or video which is your own in this video, and/or think my discussion of a scientific paper (and/or discussion/mentioning of the data/information within a scientific paper) does not fall under the fair use doctrine, and wish for it to be censored or removed, contact me by email at geologyhubyt@gmail.com and I will make the necessary changes.
    Various licenses used in sections of this video (not the entire video, this video as a whole does not completely fall under one of these licenses) and/or in this video's thumbnail image (and this list does not include every license used in this video and/or thumbnail image):
    Public Domain: creativecommons.org/publicdom...
    CC BY 2.0: creativecommons.org/licenses/...
    CC BY 4.0: creativecommons.org/licenses/...
    Sources/Citations:
    [1] Keller, T., Tornos, F., Hanchar, J.M. et al. Genetic model of the El Laco magnetite-apatite deposits by extrusion of iron-rich melt. Nat Commun 13, 6114 (2022). doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-33.... CC BY 4.0.
    [2] Ovalle, J.T., La Cruz, N.L., Reich, M. et al. Formation of massive iron deposits linked to explosive volcanic eruptions. Sci Rep 8, 14855 (2018). doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-33.... CC BY 4.0.
    [3] Pietruszka, D.K., Hanchar, J.M., Tornos, F. et al. Magmatic immiscibility and the origin of magnetite-(apatite) iron deposits. Nat Commun 14, 8424 (2023). doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-43.... CC BY 4.0.
    [4] U.S. Geological Survey
    [5] USGS Denver Library Photographic Collection
    0:00 Iron Lavas
    1:20 El Laco Deposit
    2:09 Other Iron Deposits
    3:01 Ol Doinyo Lengai
    3:24 Scientific Model

Komentáře • 242

  • @Furry-xr4hp
    @Furry-xr4hp Před měsícem +231

    That's kinda metal

  • @AaronGeo
    @AaronGeo Před měsícem +126

    New lava just dropped

  • @Vesuviusisking
    @Vesuviusisking Před měsícem +85

    You’re one of the most underrated channels

    • @calci2679
      @calci2679 Před měsícem

      Seconded

    • @Enonymouse_
      @Enonymouse_ Před měsícem

      Wish they would pick someone else to voice this, I like their content, but this monotone ' tallking through your nose' manner of speech is near impossible to tolerate. 😢

    • @Jameson1776
      @Jameson1776 Před měsícem +10

      @@Enonymouse_who’s they? He produces this channel himself. Also there is subtitles.

    • @newq
      @newq Před měsícem +4

      Geology in general is underrated by most people who are interested in science.

    • @stephenwhelan2515
      @stephenwhelan2515 Před 27 dny

      @@Enonymouse_each to their own I suppose- i rather like his voice, its individual and if your listening on earbuds it immediately identifies the channel. Plus it is not AI!

  • @robertnichols2283
    @robertnichols2283 Před měsícem +62

    That must make for one hell of a magnetic anomaly

    • @dianevanderflier5444
      @dianevanderflier5444 Před měsícem +2

      I wonder how that anomaly shows up? Does it impact the weather?

    • @nortyfiner
      @nortyfiner Před měsícem +12

      @@dianevanderflier5444 Not the weather, but the Earth's magnetic field in that local area is probably pretty wonky. "OK, the sun is setting over there, so that's west, but why is my compass pointing at it?"

    • @whatfreedom7
      @whatfreedom7 Před 29 dny +8

      @@nortyfinerI would imagine it could drive a compass nuts.

    • @destructurateurmoleculaire6095
      @destructurateurmoleculaire6095 Před 25 dny

      Et bien au contraire je pense qu'il n'apparaît rien, l'extrême chaleur du métal l'empêchant de se structurer, le magnétisme doit grandement diminuer.

    • @enzonavarro8550
      @enzonavarro8550 Před 20 dny

      Ever heard of the south atlantic anomaly? It's that

  • @scifrygaming
    @scifrygaming Před měsícem +54

    Iron mountain in southwest Utah is a magnitite intrusion being mined for Iron ore.

    • @BOEING--mh6xm
      @BOEING--mh6xm Před 28 dny +1

      Oh wow I’ve never known that and it’s actually kinda near to me and I’m in Utah as well wow thank you

    • @KijuanLindsey
      @KijuanLindsey Před 28 dny

      Oh is it now

  • @arrionelton
    @arrionelton Před měsícem +25

    A new achievement has been discovered: you have studied iron volcanoes.

  • @AankerStoneshield
    @AankerStoneshield Před měsícem +31

    Would be cool if you wanted to talk about the unique geology of the Kiruna mine, especially since a recent survey established that there are significant REE deposits in an adjacent ore body

    • @GeologyHub
      @GeologyHub  Před měsícem +22

      I can always do this in a future video :)

    • @garfieldlover6416
      @garfieldlover6416 Před měsícem +2

      ​@@GeologyHubcan you do a video on the lava beds

  • @yochva
    @yochva Před měsícem +23

    "This may surprise even volcanologists, since silica is the basis for 1,349 of Earth's 1,350 volcanoes."
    Made me snort my drink in surprised laughter. I love your dry turn of phrase.

  • @Discotekh_Dynasty
    @Discotekh_Dynasty Před měsícem +21

    A volcano that did this consistently with Molten Iron or other commonly used metal would be so useful

    • @Randomwyomingguy
      @Randomwyomingguy Před měsícem +5

      There's one in Antarctica that erupts about $6000 in gold every day.

    • @billcarruth8122
      @billcarruth8122 Před měsícem +1

      Considering how much gas would be needed to push hundreds of millions of tons of iron through caldera cracks and up to the surface, I imagine everything nearby was killed off.

    • @Discotekh_Dynasty
      @Discotekh_Dynasty Před 29 dny +2

      @@Randomwyomingguy brb taking my coat and shovel

    • @Einwetok
      @Einwetok Před 29 dny +2

      Cost vs. risk. There's guys in South America that mine elemental sulfur inside active calderas. Life's pretty short for them. Like the guys that get in barrels of mercury and stomp gold accumulations.

  • @johnnyc2764
    @johnnyc2764 Před měsícem +12

    Love this type of video. Please do more!

  • @user-nd7rg5er5g
    @user-nd7rg5er5g Před 28 dny +2

    I'm not usually into geology, but I gotta admit that this fascinated me to learn about! Thanks for making this video about such a rarity!

  • @baystated
    @baystated Před měsícem +10

    Wow I bet those lava flows will mess with your compass needles.

  • @jensenchavez265
    @jensenchavez265 Před 28 dny +2

    What an awesome video.

  • @user-pi4wj7bm4z
    @user-pi4wj7bm4z Před měsícem +3

    Thanks for the geological lesson which covers volcanos.I am learning much.Keep up the informative, well presented video.Greg 😊.

  • @tomkzinti2760
    @tomkzinti2760 Před měsícem +4

    I would Like on more of your videos if you had a longer outro to give me a chance to grab my TV remote and give it to ya. With the short cutoff, I get no chance. Thanks for all the hard work narrating and the interesting topics/material and the accurate, professional facts of the matters at hand. Good job, man.

  • @nfrandom3701
    @nfrandom3701 Před měsícem +3

    Ol Doinyo Lengai and this volcano are truly strange.

  • @imqqmi
    @imqqmi Před měsícem +3

    Absolutely fascinating bits of vulcanology!

  • @stevewhalen6973
    @stevewhalen6973 Před měsícem +6

    Nice and fascinating presentation .

  • @bofpwet9500
    @bofpwet9500 Před 18 dny

    Always super interesting, thx for all this content!

  • @ausnorman8050
    @ausnorman8050 Před měsícem +1

    That was amazing. Thank you for explaining and showing a completely new (to me) geological phenomenon!

  • @xwiick
    @xwiick Před měsícem +2

    Thanks for all of your hard work man!

  • @brucesmith9144
    @brucesmith9144 Před měsícem +4

    Thanks for ironing out those details. Was the Swiss Army Knife used to give scale in the photo?

  • @MinasK.97
    @MinasK.97 Před 28 dny +1

    The Geldingadalir 2021 eruption produced 2 types of lava basaltic black then the eruption output was normal, and metallic grey then it was doing the pauses with the big fountains and that lava it was forming pools if you remember. It was different lava from deeper source I believe
    You can see it on the cooled lava field, it is one black and one grey lava

  • @emanuellandeholm5657
    @emanuellandeholm5657 Před 27 dny +2

    I'm from Sweden and Kiruna apatite ore was literally my first thought. I guess I thought the Kiruna apatite was formed by hydrothermal fluid action and now you're suggesting it came out of the magma like that, that it formed by density separation, underground, at the bottom of a magma chamber? Cool!

  • @stephenstone5700
    @stephenstone5700 Před 28 dny +1

    Very interesting report!

  • @kennycarter5682
    @kennycarter5682 Před měsícem +3

    i wonder what it be like to have a iron lava erupt today and have it on film? what color would it glow? how would it flow, would it be explosive?, etc

    • @donaldduck830
      @donaldduck830 Před měsícem +4

      It would glow the same color as any other lava, but its temperature might be slightly different at the same color. The explosivity depends on the amount of water or gases enclosed within the magma, not on they type of magma, afaik.

  • @thespecman7
    @thespecman7 Před měsícem +1

    Woah, thats heavy

  • @anatexis_the_first
    @anatexis_the_first Před 24 dny

    As a geologist, I found this video very interesting. I didn't know that this can happen! Thanks for the video.

  • @TheeSlickShady
    @TheeSlickShady Před 27 dny +1

    Liked and subbed❤

  •  Před měsícem +3

    that's rocks as hard as metal!

  • @stevewhalen6973
    @stevewhalen6973 Před měsícem +1

    Thanks!

  • @epiendless1128
    @epiendless1128 Před měsícem +1

    Learning all the time. 🤘

  • @rogerdudra178
    @rogerdudra178 Před měsícem +3

    Greetings from the BIG SKY. Sounds like a volcano is making good for it's bad.

  • @augustolobo2280
    @augustolobo2280 Před měsícem +1

    This was really cool

  • @billmiller4972
    @billmiller4972 Před měsícem

    Everytime something new!
    Awesome!

  • @paulw3182
    @paulw3182 Před měsícem

    Cool Video - Ty

  • @mskiptr
    @mskiptr Před 28 dny +1

    I'm not usually into geology but this was really interesting!
    Btw, CC BY 4.0 doesn't require using the same license. That's what the -SA variant is for after all.

  • @markalton2809
    @markalton2809 Před měsícem +2

    How very interesting.

  • @lemmeloveyou5410
    @lemmeloveyou5410 Před měsícem +4

    Missouri has KIOA as well! Near Bourbon and Pea Ridge. The largest conventional dynamite blast in Missouri was dome it the underground Iron mine at Pea Ridge. They closed in the early 2000's but are trying to get the tailings from it now since the apatite contains REEs. There are more in the area that haven't been mined and are currently being assessed for their potential at MST.

  • @sandragee2864
    @sandragee2864 Před měsícem

    Fascinating.

  • @garrettmillsap
    @garrettmillsap Před měsícem

    Wow I'm in shock! So cool!

  • @apismellifera1000
    @apismellifera1000 Před měsícem

    Very interesting

  • @philliplamoureux9489
    @philliplamoureux9489 Před měsícem

    Very cool!

  • @timberry4709
    @timberry4709 Před měsícem +8

    In 1965 there was a movie called "Crack in the World" in which scientists drill through the Earth's crust (using a nuclear weapon to breach an extremely hard final layer) to reach the mantle to bring up "mineral rich" magma. Totally silly movie.

    • @mari3489
      @mari3489 Před měsícem +2

      They are drilling,race to be first.

    • @dianevanderflier5444
      @dianevanderflier5444 Před měsícem +4

      ​@@mari3489 🤦 nothing can go wrong 🤦🤦🤦

    • @irenafarm
      @irenafarm Před měsícem +1

      That’s pretty funny. We’ve learned so much more about the asthenosphere since then.
      In reality, drilling a hole to the mantle is not only impossible, it would accomplish nothing. The mantle isn’t like…soda under pressure. It wouldn’t emerge from the hole unless it was a convectively active spot. And the material is so dense we wouldn’t have any way to lift it to the surface.
      The earth is very weird. 😂

    • @mari3489
      @mari3489 Před měsícem

      @@irenafarm China Russia, France & USA are digging in the Pacific and Indian oceans to reach the core, they have been at it for over 40 year now.

    • @user-gz8st9fe8p
      @user-gz8st9fe8p Před 28 dny

      America had a Moho drilling project that failed because President Johnson step in to assign it to a Texas company not qualified for the project.

  • @TheSpaceEnthusiast-vl6wx
    @TheSpaceEnthusiast-vl6wx Před měsícem

    Thanks as always! This volcano is quite fascinating. As alluded to in the video, I wonder if there are similar ones, just eroded or buried.

  • @zoetice433
    @zoetice433 Před měsícem

    Super cool deposits

  • @matusknives
    @matusknives Před měsícem

    Very interesting. But what was the original source of the iron oxides? Was it of older, sedimentary origing?

  • @planescaped
    @planescaped Před měsícem +1

    If the Earth was remotely as geologically active now as it was even in other recent past, we'd be screwed as a species.
    The timing of us coming around was perfect.

  • @allenbatts7971
    @allenbatts7971 Před měsícem +1

    So cool

  • @righteothenable
    @righteothenable Před měsícem

    Wow, I had never heard of iron lava. That is so cool.

  • @paulbasaur
    @paulbasaur Před měsícem +1

    fascinating

  • @swainscheps
    @swainscheps Před měsícem +1

    “Completely Highly Metallic”
    GH’s way with words is the best thing about this channel…
    That and the fact that he has the perfect touch for diving into technical facts and having a 6th sense for when he’s about to go too deep into the weeds.
    PS iirc carbonitite is perfect for preserving rebel warriors…provided they survive the freezing process.

  • @chimknee
    @chimknee Před měsícem +1

    Thanks.

  • @maximilianrpm2927
    @maximilianrpm2927 Před měsícem

    THAT'S BRUTAL!

  • @irenafarm
    @irenafarm Před měsícem +1

    The OG heavy metal.🎸

  • @LuisAldamiz
    @LuisAldamiz Před měsícem +1

    Very interesting, TY. I wonder if the concentration of such occurrences in what used to be a connected part of Gondwana (South Cone and South Africa) has some deep geological implications. Also notice the major deep heterogeneity in Earth's mantle (which some believe is a remnant of the Theia impact) sits just underneath... or rather under where South America and Africa used to be when united (now it's rather under Africa and the South Atlantic), I do wonder if it is somehow related.

  • @headsupfiction8582
    @headsupfiction8582 Před měsícem +1

    Make you wonder if most of those meteorites they’ve found were actually this.

  • @bandcookie88
    @bandcookie88 Před 28 dny +1

    Neat!

  • @AtarahDerek
    @AtarahDerek Před měsícem

    "Oh, look at that, El Laco's erupting again."
    "There are tons of active volcanoes around here. How do you know it's El Laco?"
    "Because the wind's blowing from the east, yet that ash cloud is drifting toward magnetic north."

  • @RagingDong
    @RagingDong Před 26 dny

    Mother nature, truly provides 🙏

  • @StuffandThings_
    @StuffandThings_ Před 20 dny

    IIRC some South American volcanoes also erupt molten sulfur, so I guess that could be considered yet another unique "lava" composition

  • @joelmckinney16
    @joelmckinney16 Před měsícem

    Wow!

  • @ELCADAROSA
    @ELCADAROSA Před měsícem +1

    Any chance that the iron originally came from a meteor impact prior to the development of the volcano? ("prior to" being millions, if not billions, of years prior.)

  • @creforce
    @creforce Před měsícem +3

    WAIT HOLD ON A SEC... your saying Kiruna is a vulcano? was a vulcano?
    am swede and really interested in geology but WHAT!?

  • @alexdrockhound9497
    @alexdrockhound9497 Před měsícem

    All those little roads and square pads are probably for core drilling to explore it for possible mining.

  • @OldBillOverHill
    @OldBillOverHill Před měsícem

    The interesting Molybdenum enriched porphyry in the Colorado mineral belt is similar. I have a large piece of Molybdenite recovered from Henderson mine by my brother. Larger than those displayed at the Smithsonian in DC.

  • @cameronneveu7277
    @cameronneveu7277 Před 24 dny

    What is the likely hood of other types of metal volcanos/eruptions? I remember in the movie Journey 2: the Mysterious Island It featured a Volcano that erupted gold. I there any chance that something like that could exist?
    (My base guess is that because of how dense it is it would be very unlikely)

  • @Dragrath1
    @Dragrath1 Před měsícem

    Interesting I had heard of iron lavas but only in the context of remnant cores of shattered differentiated worlds this seems similar albeit in a more localized manner. There was also a video at a magma lab which showed the viscosity of this stuff is crazy low compared to silica rich magmas but I had no idea we actually had extrusive analogs on Earth.

  • @hashkangaroo
    @hashkangaroo Před měsícem

    It would be interesting to see if the iron that cooled inside the walls of the caldera could be extracted, and how much there is compared to what came up to the surface.

  • @jamesvanwyk1378
    @jamesvanwyk1378 Před 28 dny

    There are large volcanic magnatite deposits deep under Ringwood, New Jersey, USA; also beautiful colored quartzite.

  • @connorferguson2269
    @connorferguson2269 Před 22 dny

    Wow, wish we had more lava like that.

  • @andymat7359
    @andymat7359 Před 16 dny

    If you melted it, would it retain its magnetism when cooled?

  • @NathanaelNewton
    @NathanaelNewton Před 21 dnem

    I take advantage of iron volcanoes in oxygen not included all the time, my favorite though are the gold ones

  • @GRH230377
    @GRH230377 Před 28 dny +1

    I have a rock from the Minnesota Iron Range the has a layer of irom that has surface ripping flow structures.

    • @user-gz8st9fe8p
      @user-gz8st9fe8p Před 28 dny

      Very cool, first time I've heard of this.

    • @leofisher407
      @leofisher407 Před 28 dny +1

      yeah, iirc the Minnesotan Iron Ranges were formed from iron rich sands being deposited on the seafloor.

  • @wtywatoad
    @wtywatoad Před měsícem

    Makes you wonder if there are other metals in these flows that are viable to mine?

  • @nian60
    @nian60 Před měsícem +1

    Kiruna is pronounced kee-runa. 🙂 Thanks for the video. 😊

  • @TheAverageNooob
    @TheAverageNooob Před 27 dny

    That's so cool annndddddd mined

  • @thejdmguru621
    @thejdmguru621 Před měsícem

    I assume you were talking about Salpeterkop when you ment South Africa, Last erupted 70 mya?

  • @GamingCeo420
    @GamingCeo420 Před měsícem

    Time to get a giant magnet to extract this

  • @stephenmitchell-we8wi
    @stephenmitchell-we8wi Před měsícem +1

    When a gold lava arrives, hit me up

  • @dudmic
    @dudmic Před měsícem

    I keep wondering what's in some extinct magma chambers, other than usual crystalline dense rocks? You can find plenty of magma chambers around the world, however just drilling to sample is quite costly even for shallower ones.

  • @tcp3059
    @tcp3059 Před měsícem

    While this was clearly an effusive eruption, one is curious as to the physical properties of the flow. Was it a fluid, runny magma like basalt, or something ridiculously sticky like dacite/rhyolite?

  • @ragnapodewski4694
    @ragnapodewski4694 Před měsícem

    Even on lavas of the great Rift valley, compassses are useless for the mass of Iron.

  • @simix6915
    @simix6915 Před měsícem

    Imagine flying a giant floating magnet over it

  • @andrew1717xx
    @andrew1717xx Před měsícem

    I wonder what could be found amongst those fields. 🤔

  • @RobertCraft-re5sf
    @RobertCraft-re5sf Před 25 dny

    Before Europeans invented iron smelting, this could have been an extremely valuable resource for the local populations

  • @jakeaurod
    @jakeaurod Před měsícem +1

    I wonder if that could explain the high heat flow, gravitational anomaly, and magnetic anomalies near me in northern Illinois along an ancient suture between microplates.

    • @KijuanLindsey
      @KijuanLindsey Před 28 dny

      Magnetic anomalies in northern illinois. Tell me more. What have you experienced?

    • @jakeaurod
      @jakeaurod Před 27 dny

      @@KijuanLindsey I'm referring to USGS magnetic anomaly maps.

  • @thinkingbill1304
    @thinkingbill1304 Před měsícem

    These numbers sound "big" but to what scale in everyday life? That is to say, how many New York sky scrapers worth? How many PanaMax ships worth? It would be interesting trivia to have that gauge. Many thanks!

  • @TheeSlickShady
    @TheeSlickShady Před 27 dny +2

    I want this channel to have 5 million subs asap please 🏆❤️

  • @carltuckerson7718
    @carltuckerson7718 Před měsícem +1

    Lot of phosphate and calcium also. That’s interesting.

  • @TitanCameramanShouldRuinMIBU

    Thus gut

  • @GroovyVideo2
    @GroovyVideo2 Před 29 dny

    I’m pretty sure there is iron lava west of Parker Az

  • @adamthethird4753
    @adamthethird4753 Před 29 dny

    My ONI senses are tingling.

  • @tomolson1320
    @tomolson1320 Před měsícem +1

    Let's get Plutonic!

  • @OGParzoval
    @OGParzoval Před měsícem

    Would be interesting to mine the caldera rim down to the magma chamber assuming it's extinct, sufficiently cooled, and stable.

  • @foobargorch
    @foobargorch Před měsícem +1

    "how on earth" heh

  • @pauljs75
    @pauljs75 Před 24 dny

    Aspects of volcanism being tied to the forge and smithing in the lore of some cultures may not have been too far off the mark.

  • @kludgedude
    @kludgedude Před 23 dny

    I talk like this too.

  • @respectbossmon
    @respectbossmon Před měsícem

    Iron-rich lava is fine. But, gold-rich lava would be bettah. ;p

  • @Gunny672
    @Gunny672 Před 28 dny

    Heavy metal flows through its vains🤘