Mount Erebus volcano in Antarctica releases microscopic pure gold particles

Mount Erebus, the world’s southernmost active volcano on Ross Island, continuously harbours a lava lake and emits volcanic gases and ash. Scientists have documented that each day the volcano releases roughly 80 grams of microscopic crystals of elemental gold, 20‑60 µm in size, into the atmosphere. Winds can carry these particles up to 1,000 km from the crater, dispersing them across the Antarctic ice sheet.

Unlike other volcanoes where gold occurs in chemical compounds, Erebus ejects free‑standing gold crystals, a unique geochemical phenomenon observed for more than three decades. Researchers propose that gold may form volatile gold‑chlorine or gold‑sulphur compounds in the magma, which then cool and precipitate as pure crystals when the hot gases mix with the polar air. The spread of the gold dust is too sparse for any practical extraction, but the discovery offers insight into rare volcanic processes and the world’s mineral cycles.