Guest Thinkers — September 1, 2010

Back from New Zealand

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

I made it back from New Zealand yesterday after spending the last two weeks looking at some of the most remarkable volcanic landscapes you could imagine. I’ll add more detail soon for those of you interested in the volcanism of the North Island, but I’ll leave you with a picture of yours truly in from of Ngauruhoe (a.k.a Mt. Doom) along the Tongariro Crossing. The volcano last erupted in 1977 and it considering the youngest vent of Tongariro. Ngauruhoe has had >60 eruptions over the last 150 years.

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

Earth viewed from space, partially obscured by a graphical overlay illustrating how oxygen once nearly killed life.

Starts With A Bang

What was it like when oxygen killed almost all life on Earth?

Known as the Great Oxygenation Event, Earth froze over as oxygen accumulated in our atmosphere, nearly driving all life extinct.

Hard Science

Earth’s core has a gas leak

Contrary to conventional wisdom, matter can escape the center of the Earth.

Hard Science

The violence of the Tonga eruption is a wake-up call to watch other submarine volcanoes

Out of sight, but not out of mind.

Strange Maps

Fernanda, the Galápagos tortoise that came back from the dead

Genetic analysis reveals that a specimen collected in 2019 is the same subspecies as one caught more than a century earlier.

Strange Maps

No, the Yellowstone supervolcano is not “overdue” for an eruption

Here’s why mega-eruptions like the ones that covered North America in ash are the least of your worries.

Up Next

Guest Thinkers

Two weeks in New Zealand

nn Right as Yellowstone is getting interesting (or at least had signs of interest), Eruptions is going on a bit of a break again starting January 2. This time it is […]