Hiking across lava flows on Mt Etna to use a GPS point on the cone in the background. Credit: Rick Wall (c) Geology for Global Development 2013
Photos
Friday Photo (90): Eruption at Sakurajima, Japan
An eruption at Sakurajima, in Japan on 25th July 2013. Explosions of this type occur almost daily at this volcano. Our Friday Photos for the following few weeks will all be of volcanoes visited by Rick Wall during research for his PhD at UCL. Credit: Rick Wall (c) Geology for Global Development 2013
Friday Photo (89) – Satellite Monitoring of Volcanoes
In order to monitor the earth movements in the Phlegraean Fields, near Naples, the Osservatorio Vesuviano, together with other national and international research institutions, has installed two artificial reflectors which can monitor slow ground movement over specific features or locations of interest. The parabolic antenna is used to transmit the data to a geo-stationary satellite, which …[Read More]
Friday Photo (88): Volcanic Mud Pits
The Solfatara volcanic crater at Pozzuoli, part of the Campi Flegrei volcanic area, has many fumaroles and mud pools. The bubbling mud pits are created by rainwater and vapor condensation, which mix with the clay material present on the surface of the volcanic crater. The gas composition which spews out from the mud pit is …[Read More]
Friday Photo (87): Wildlife in the Field – Lizards at Cape Point
A lizard chills out in the sunshine at Cape Point – the southernmost tip of the African continent. There is nothing between here and Antarctica. (c) Geology for Global Development 2013
Friday Photo (86): Wildlife in the Field – the Rock Hyrax
This little guy (can you spot him?!) is a Dassie, or “Rock Hyrax” – a familiar friend to many geologists in the field. These animals live in groups among large fallen blocks of rock, and will pop their heads up periodically to keep an eye on you as you go about your fieldwork. They can …[Read More]
Friday Photo (85): Wildlife in the Field – Caterpillar Wiggles Across Old Burrows
This unusual looking caterpillar is working his way across the Houjiashan Formation on the North China Craton. These rocks formed in the lower Cambrian, and are crossed with burrows formed by some of the earliest motile animals. (c) Geology for Global Development 2013
Friday Photo (84): Wildlife in the Field – Ostriches at the Craton Boundary
These wild ostriches (two female on the left hand side, one male on the right) are lined up alongside the boundary between the Congo and the Kalahari cratons in southern Namibia. The craton boundary is marked by a visible fault scarp. (c) Geology for Global Development 2013
Friday Photo (83): Wildlife in the Field – Giant Millipede Inspects Stromatolites
A giant millipede kindly provides a scale for a photo of some stromatolites in the Nama group, Namibia. Microbial communities grow upwards towards the light. Each growth phases is cemented by carbonate grains that stick to the sticky EPS substance that the communities produce, forming layered stromatolite columns. The stromatolites pictured above formed 550 million …[Read More]
Friday Photo (82): Wildlife in the Field – Confused Sheep
Each morning when we arrived in the field, hoards of sheep* would come marching over sandstone ridges from miles around to congregate in front of our car. After spending a while thinking we may have established a new animal religion, we realised the poor animals mistook us for their farmer coming to feed them. *We …[Read More]