In the frozen depths of Antarctica, one volcano has produced a searing hot lava lake and spews thousands of dollars worth of gold into the air every day.
While there are dozens of volcanoes spread across the southern-most continent, there are only nine that scientists believe to be active. Even among such a small group, there is one volcano that stands out as being particularly exciting.
At 12,448 feet, Mount Erebus is the world's southernmost active volcano and the second-most prominent mountain in Antarctica. Since at least 1972, lava produced by Mount Erebus has bubbled in a continually active lava lake.
"It is pumping gas 24/7," Oxford volcanologist Tamsin Mather told Metro.co.uk. "It is one of the few that has persistent active lava lakes in its crater pulsing around, and that makes it an incredible location."
In addition to spewing lava, however, Erebus also produces something that the average person might find slightly more valuable. The volcano regularly produces plumes of gas that contain microscopic gold crystals. While each piece is no more than 20 micrometers, over a day the volcano can eject 80 grams of gold - roughly $6,000 of precious metals, IFL Science reported.
Mather cautions, however, that it would likely be very challenging for an individual to actually gather the gold.
"The problem is if it is being pumped out it is really dilute," she said. "It is really hard to harness it - you can not put an umbrella over a large volcano, trust me. It is really hard to harness that gas coming out."
