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'Dark Magma' Could Explain Mystery Volcanoes
sciencehabit writes: The magma fueling the volcanoes of Hawaii and Yellowstone National Park pipes up from deep inside the planet. Scientists have struggled to understand why there are hot spots there, so far from the grinding tectonic plate boundaries at which volcanoes normally appear. New research chalks the mystery up to 'dark magma': deep underground pockets of red-hot molten rock that siphon energy from Earth's core. If the team is right, its work could illuminate a key part of Earth's geology. These plumes are one of the most important things to understand because the movement of heat powers many processes on the planet. For one, Earth's magnetic field depends on how the core spins and flows inside the planet. As a result, the way heat flows from the core to the mantle could potentially affect the way Earth's magnetic field evolves over time.
"Dark Magma" -really? no i didnt read tfa but "Dark Magma"!?
Dont you think the term "Dark ???" is being overused now?
Hey! theres something we dont know what it is.. lets call it "Dark... Meatcake!"
oldhack: "Security is a waste of money until shit hits the fan. 5 minutes later, it becomes waste of money again. "
please stop calling things we have yet to understand "dark".
As a geologist, in school I always postulated that hot spots were a function of the magnetic field. Rotation resistance provides the field but the field 'channels' a portion of the mantle. Tit for tat.
because it sure didn't show up in this article.
I love Jesus, except for his foreign policy.
As someone who works in Dark Matter, I have to say I am glad that the brand has now reached the point that scientists in other fields appropriate it, apparently purely as a branding mechanism. I mean, I hate to be pedantic, but magma at 3200 C will not be dark.
Must be the new religion. Anything you don't understand must be explained by the Almighty Dark.
Umm yeah ... until either a proven ... they are both lovely fantasies.
articles about dark penises and dark pussies, oh wait...
Could Dark Magma be responsible for global warming?
I wonder if they can apply this to why New Madrid Missouri had one of the biggest recorded earthquakes in US history while not being very near any fault line.
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So I think that weight I put on over last winter is dark fat - I don't where it came from.
Ubehebe Crater is located in Death Valley, California. You-Bee-Hee-Bee. There is a place to view the crater from above the rim, really impressive. Death Valley attracts visitors from around the world and I met many travelers at the Stovepipe Wells General Store and at the Texas Spring camp. .
Dark Smegma.
Dark Magma? Really? They couldn't have come up with a more original term than to rip off the physicist's term for "we don't know what the fuck it is"?
Obviously they've finally found the cause of global warming! And it is all man kind's fault right to the core! Specifically the fault of the White Male [Republican | Democrat] majority!
Glad to get that all cleared up. Now we can go back to blowing our top and spouting nonsense like normal Vulcans.
"Mystery Magma" would have been my first choice, but after reading the article... seems like a much better choice would have been "Deep Magma"... Dark Magma makes zero sense and is just dumb. Someone needs to get kicked in the arse for thinking this was a good term.
What does the name matter? It's arbitrary. Focus on the theory.
It's like looking only at Jesus's finger, when he's pointing at the moon.
So thats why Anakin/Vader didn't get all burned to a crisp at the end of Ep 3 - it was dark magma
The term "Dark Magma" is oxymoronic.
Mantle plumbs and even a mantle plumb reference frame have been a topic of geophysics research from more than 30 years and well known.
The "Dark Magma Naughts" are severely mistaken and "without a paddle."
Dark Onion going on here?
Table-ized A.I.
There's not any good science in there
Ever since /. was sold to Dice this place is getting darker and darker ...
Dark Dice, anyone?
These plumes are one of the most important things to understand
Not really. We are still at the mercy of Mother Earth, whether we understand what's going on, or not.
This is a *real* simplification. Note that the magnetic field cannot be from the core spinning (directly) because angular momentum is conserved, and the magnetic field periodically switches direction.