An astronaut on board the Worldwide House Station (ISS) has snapped a surprising photograph of an historic lava movement stretching throughout the desert in New Mexico. From above, the frozen river of volcanic rock seems to be like a darkish scar carved into the encompassing desert.
The basaltic lava movement, often called the Carrizozo Malpaís, covers round 130 sq. miles (337 sq. kilometers) and is round 50 miles (80 kilometers) lengthy. It’s positioned close to Carrizozo, a metropolis within the Chihuahuan Desert in New Mexico, and is likely one of the largest lava flows to have shaped on Earth up to now 10,000 years, in keeping with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) (opens in new tab).
The eruption that birthed the Carrizozo Malpaís started round 5,000 years in the past and lasted for between 20 to 30 years. Throughout that point, magma slowly trickled out of the bottom from a subsurface protect volcano, which has since grow to be dormant. Insulated lava tubes beneath the floor unfold the molten rock out over an unusually giant space, in keeping with USGS.
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The brand new picture is a mosaic of 4 images taken on June 30 by an unidentified astronaut from the Expedition 67 crew on board the International Space Station. The stitched-together shot, which is likely one of the most detailed aerial photos of the lava movement ever taken, was launched on-line Sept. 26 by the NASA Earth Observatory (opens in new tab).
A majority of the lava within the picture emerged from a small, 88-foot-tall (27 meters) vent, which locals have dubbed “little black peak,” positioned on the north finish of the lava area (the left-hand facet of the picture). The vent sits in the midst of a zone of crustal weak point, often called the Capitan lineament, the place magma simply rises by means of Earth’s crust and erupts on the floor, in keeping with USGS.
The uneven, textured look of the frozen lava is the results of mild scattering off fissures, collapses and depressions within the volcanic rock, in keeping with Earth Observatory. A fundamental street and railway additionally bisect the northern finish of the lava area.
The traditional lava area could seem lifeless from above, however a variety of desert plant species, corresponding to prickly pear cactuses (Opuntia), perennial flowers, and juniper timber, can develop within the frozen magma, in keeping with Earth Observatory.
Initially printed on Stay Science.
