Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Birth of an Island

Posted by kdawson on from the rising-in-fire dept.

slashmojo writes that while some islands are sinking, last August another rose from the ocean, formed by volcanic activity and caught in the act by a passing yacht. From the article: "What looked like a brown stain on the South Pacific turned out to be a spectacular drift of floating pumice stones stretching more than 16 km — and an indication an island was being born nearby... 'We are getting emails from volcanologists saying this is so rare.'" Here is the blog post of the yachtsman who photographed the nascent island.

15 of 136 comments (clear)

  1. Praise Jesus! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    God giveth and God taketh away....
    all balances out in the end we are just a small part of His PLAN

    1. Re:Praise Jesus! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Time for the no sarcastic jackasses in 2007 magic!
      Abracadabra!
      Crap, that guy's still here.

    2. Re:Praise Jesus! by TapeCutter · · Score: 4, Funny

      There is also Krakatoa, but it behaves more like a recursive island.

      --
      And did you exchange a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage? - Pink Floyd.
  2. Natural floater? by CRC'99 · · Score: 4, Funny
    What looked like a brown stain on the South Pacific turned out to be a spectacular drift of floating pumice stones stretching more than 16 km


    So when the earth gets a floater in the pool, it's one big mutha. Try fishing that out with a net ;)
    --
    Sendmail is like emacs: A nice operating system, but missing an editor and a MTA.
  3. So... we lose one, we win one. by markana · · Score: 3, Funny

    Sounds fair.

    First one to the new island gets the prime beachfront property! :-)

    1. Re:So... we lose one, we win one. by Sparr0 · · Score: 3, Funny

      First one to the new island gets shitty landlocked property. LAST one gets beachfront :)

  4. Re:Grr by presidentbeef · · Score: 3, Funny

    "So" is not a synonym of "very".

    I think you meant: "So" is so not a synonym of "very".

    --
    Everything I need to know about copyrights I learned from Slashdot.
  5. I spy with my rich eye. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    "slashmojo writes that while some islands are sinking, last August another rose from the ocean [CC] [MD] [GC], formed by volcanic activity and caught in the act by a passing yacht."

    See. I told you rich people are good for something. :)

  6. Really neat, but... by khendron · · Score: 3, Funny

    This is really neat, but doesn't it strike anybody as odd that they decided to sail
    *towards* an active volcano? Were they trying to get a last minute entry into the 2006 Darwin Awards or something?

    --
    Life is like a web application. Sometime you need cookies just to get by.
    1. Re:Really neat, but... by ColaMan · · Score: 2, Funny

      Most sailors don't even dream of witnessing something like this, it's so far out there. Hell man, you just gotta inspect that thing up-close, you take as many precautions as possible, but some safety will get thrown to the winds. Chalk another one up for curiosity.

      A true sailor would rail against nature like a madman, with wild eyes and a raised fist silhouetted against the sky dramatically. Probably something along the lines of :

      "Damn you, nature! That patch of ocean was mine to sail, MINE I say! And now you've taken that from me! Damn you to HELL! But I'll have my revenge yet! Global warming will bury this island before the century is out - mark my words! The game is not yet over, Nature, not by a long shot!"

      --

      You are in a twisty maze of processor lines, all alike.
      There is a lot of hype here.
  7. I'm convinced... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Between recent plans to map under Greenland's ice to find the home of the Elder Things and Shoggoths, and now this, I think it's obvious H.P. Lovecraft's prophecy is coming true.

    All glory to Cthulhu.

  8. Someone lands on it, plants a flag and yells... by aapold · · Score: 4, Funny

    First post!

    --
    "Waste not one watt!" - CZ
  9. Mother nature is ticked at being... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...caught in the act by a passing yacht.

    Nosy environmnetalists and their cameras. Worst than the paparazzi on a Saturday night.

  10. Who owns it? by TheBismarck · · Score: 5, Funny

    I call dibs.

  11. Birth of an Island, Rise of a Nation... by mikeisme77 · · Score: 4, Funny

    Now if I saw an island being formed, I would anchor my yacht offshore, wait for the land to cool, then plant a flag claiming it in the name of my new sovereign nation... Even if it's just a small island, it would still be cool to be the ruler of an island nation...
    A man can dream...

    --
    Read my blog posts on usability.