Lava and ice are two of nature’s extremes that rarely ever meet. But, when they do, oh boy is it exciting!
Photographer George Steinmetz recently traveled to Antarctica to shoot one such marvel. Documented by Smithsonian Magazine, Steinmetz climbed the slopes of Mount Erebus, an active volcano on the frozen continent, where he explored what happens when very, very hot meets very, very cold.
One of the results can be seen in the above photograph taken by Steinmetz. This ice chimney, known as a fumarole, is created when steam escapes from the sides of the volcano, works it way up through the snow, and then freezes when it hits the cold Antarctic air. Such chimneys can reach up to 60 feet tall.
Below the chimneys, the warm air also carves out very large ice caves which must be simply outstanding to explore. As if all this wasn’t cool enough, visitors to Mount Erebus can also be entertained by lava bombs. These blobs of molten lava, some of which measure up to ten feet across, are shot into the air by the active volcano and come raining down upon the snowy landscape like some apocalyptic firestorm. So, be sure to bring along an umbrella if you happen to visit…