Chasing Fire on the Frozen Continent - Ken Sims

Antarctica is nicknamed "the frozen continent," so it would seem counterintuitive for a geologist to visit looking for lava. But National Geographic grantee and volcanologist Ken Sims rappelled hundreds of feet into Mount Erebus' crater looking for lava samples, while simultaneously hoping to avoid being hit by a lava "bomb" flying from the volcano. Sims explains that he seeks to better understand some isotope "clocks" hidden inside of the lava, that can indicate the Earth's age, how long the lava takes to move from deep inside the planet, and when the volcano might erupt next.