Es Safa is a striking basaltic volcanic field located in Syria, within the larger Harrat Ash Shamah—the largest volcanic field on the Arabian tectonic plate.
Published Sep 20, 2010
Part of the back-arc volcanism of the Andes, this complex landscape formed over 300,000 years.
Published Dec 30, 2012
This detailed astronaut photograph depicts a portion of the Gila River channel in south-central Arizona. The northernmost boundary of the Sentinel Volcanic Field is visible in the image, recognizable by the irregular flow fronts of thin basalt lava flows. Active agricultural fields along the Gila River are a rich green set against the surrounding desert.
Published Jul 28, 2008
In June 2015, a team of scientists, journalism students, and an astronaut conducted a geological field study similar to what future astronauts might have to do when they first land on the Moon or Mars.
Published Jun 15, 2015
The western half of the Arabian Peninsula contains not only large expanses of sand and gravel, but extensive lava fields known as haraat. One such field is the 14,000-square-kilometer Harrat Khaybar, located approximately 137 kilometers to the northeast of the city of Al Madinah (Medina). The volcanic field was formed by eruptions along a 100-kilometer, north-south vent system over the past 5 million years. The most recent recorded eruption took place between 600–700 AD.
Published Apr 14, 2008
This astronaut photograph highlights Cerro (Spanish for “hill”) Culiacan, part of the 50,000 km2 Michoacán-Guanajuato volcanic field of west-central Mexico. The volcanic field contains over 1,400 known vents, with cinder cones, steep, cone-shaped hills, being the dominant landform. Cerro Culiacan however, is a shield volcano, a more gently sloping mound formed by basaltic lavas.
Published Apr 28, 2008
A jet black plateau in central Libya harks back to a time when lava flowed across the dry landscape.
Published Apr 28, 2016
East of the Andes, the volcanic field is a product of complex geological processes.
Published Jan 30, 2012
A new constellation of satellites from the European Space Agency can detect minuscule changes in the planet’s magnetic field.
Published Sep 7, 2014
