- 2 days ago
Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:00At this very moment, scientists are getting ready to explore the Earth's deepest layers,
00:06where temperatures are insanely high and the pressure is crushing.
00:10It might sound like a plot from Journey to the Center of the Earth, but it's for real.
00:16By 2026, the Krafla Magma Testbed Project plans to drill into an active volcano in Iceland.
00:23Their goal is to search for magma, yep, that boiling molten rock that we often associate with destruction.
00:31It is a high-risk mission and a huge technical challenge, but the payoff can transform our future.
00:38This isn't our first attempt to journey to the center of the Earth.
00:42Back in 1959, Hawaii witnessed a breathtaking spectacle,
00:47as red-hot lava violently erupted from 400-foot Kilauea-Iki Crater.
00:53Over the next five weeks, lava fountains erupted in 17 major bursts,
00:59with the tallest reaching a record 1,900 feet.
01:04This spectacular and terrifying event left behind a glowing lava lake in the crater.
01:10A few months after the eruption, the lava began cooling and forming crusts.
01:15That was a perfect chance for scientists to drill into that lake,
01:19see what was going on beneath it, and collect data about the magma reservoir.
01:24Over the next two decades, they kept coming back, digging a little deeper each time.
01:30By 1979, they managed to get 173 feet down.
01:36Up to that point, it was the closest we had ever come to an actual magma chamber.
01:40And by that, I mean the underground pool where magma sits
01:45before eventually rising to the surface and causing a volcanic eruption.
01:51Decades later, the dream of reaching magma finally became a reality.
01:56We are now in Iceland in the year 2009.
01:59The Iceland Deep Drilling Project has just kicked off.
02:03Their goal is to transform the Earth's inner heat into clean energy for everyday needs,
02:08such as heating homes and supplying hot water for baths.
02:12You see, using heat from the Earth's interior to make energy isn't new,
02:17but it usually comes from hot water underground,
02:19not directly from a freaking scorching magma chamber.
02:23That's why the Iceland Deep Drilling Project was such a big deal.
02:27Magma could be a clean, renewable power source.
02:30And since it's hotter than the geothermal energy we normally use,
02:34it could generate a lot more power.
02:38Iceland is a natural choice for this kind of project.
02:41Known as the land of fire and ice,
02:43this country is home to some of the most active volcanoes on the planet.
02:48One of the most popular ones is Kraffla,
02:50a volcanic caldera of about 6 miles in diameter,
02:54located north of the island.
02:56So, the initial plan of the Iceland Deep Drilling Project
02:59was to go there and excavate 13,000 feet deep.
03:03But, something unexpected happened.
03:08When they were only 6,900 feet down,
03:12the drill hit magma.
03:14Wow!
03:15On one hand, it was exciting,
03:17because, well, we finally found it.
03:19And just like that,
03:21Kraffla became the first place in the world
03:23where we know exactly where magma is.
03:26But, on the other hand,
03:28their equipment wasn't prepared or built for it,
03:30and the molten rock basically corroded their infrastructure,
03:33bringing the project to an end.
03:36Instead of being a failure,
03:38this accidental discovery gave us a ton of valuable data.
03:42We realized that,
03:43with the right equipment,
03:45drilling in such extreme heat is definitely possible.
03:48Scientists found that these underground molten pools
03:52can, in fact,
03:53produce a significant amount of geothermal energy.
03:56And, most importantly,
03:58we learned exactly where the magma was.
04:01That brings us to the current
04:02Kraffla Magma Testbed Project.
04:05This scientific program aims to create
04:08the world's first magma center.
04:10The idea is to set up a base
04:12where scientists can safely work with magma
04:14and have all the necessary infrastructure
04:17to run experiments on volcanic risks
04:19and geothermal energy.
04:21So, that's, like, the basic idea.
04:23But, their real plan is to return to Kraffla,
04:26drill back into it,
04:27and create a gateway to the magma chamber.
04:30The goal is to understand its potential
04:33for generating energy,
04:34study its properties,
04:35and see if we can use it safely and efficiently.
04:40If they pull this off,
04:41it could provide a nearly endless source
04:44of geothermal energy
04:45for Iceland's homes and buildings.
04:47Even though magma is incredibly hot,
04:50reaching over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit,
04:53experts say it is safe to take energy from it
04:56and believe the process won't trigger
04:58another volcanic eruption in the country.
05:00They're so sure about this,
05:02partly thanks to the Iceland Deep Drilling Project.
05:05But, this whole process
05:06isn't like drilling for oil or gas.
05:08It's way more challenging and risky.
05:12Magma is not just extremely hot.
05:14It's molten rock,
05:15which can wreck equipment
05:17and pose serious safety issues.
05:20Right now,
05:21the Kraffla Magma Testbed Project
05:23is in its early stages.
05:25Scientists and engineers
05:27are working hard
05:28to develop the tech
05:29needed to drill into magma safely.
05:32They're testing new drilling techniques,
05:34creating heat-resistant materials,
05:36and running simulations
05:38to figure out what happens
05:40when you actually drill
05:41into a magma chamber.
05:43They hope that by 2026,
05:45they will be ready for the next step,
05:47which means going back to Kraffla
05:49and drilling all the way down
05:51towards the magma chamber.
05:53It might take two months to reach it.
05:55Their plan is to drill a single hole
05:58that will go right into the magma body
06:00and hopefully keep the equipment running there
06:02for many years.
06:04If they succeed,
06:06scientists also plan
06:07to add special sensors down there
06:09to measure and monitor pressure.
06:11This could help predict eruptions better
06:14and prevent disasters,
06:15like what happened with Mount St. Helens
06:18in the United States.
06:19In 1980,
06:21this volcano erupted,
06:22causing massive destruction
06:24and claiming over 50 lives.
06:26The eruption was so intense
06:28that it completely blacked out sunlight
06:29in Spokane, Washington,
06:31which is about 250 miles away.
06:35While that sounds terrifying,
06:37it's nothing compared to a super eruption,
06:40like the one that happened
06:41over 70,000 years ago
06:43at Toba Volcano in Indonesia.
06:46This disaster was about
06:48a thousand times more powerful
06:50than Mount St. Helens.
06:52Toba is just one of the 20 super volcanoes on Earth.
06:56A super volcano is what people call a volcano
06:59that can produce an eruption of magnitude 8.
07:03These eruptions,
07:04known as super eruptions,
07:06are the largest and most explosive ones.
07:08They could have global consequences
07:10by affecting the climate
07:12and causing widespread destruction.
07:14For example,
07:16if Yellowstone had a super eruption today,
07:18the surrounding states of Wyoming,
07:20Idaho and Montana
07:22would be directly affected.
07:24They could be hit by hot avalanches
07:26of volcanic ash,
07:28gases and rocks
07:29that might reach temperatures
07:31of up to 932 degrees Fahrenheit
07:34and speeds of over 180 miles per hour.
07:39This nightmarish scenario
07:41is a real possibility,
07:42but predicting when it might happen
07:44is almost impossible.
07:46Volcanoes don't follow a precise schedule,
07:48so it is hard to predict
07:50when a super volcano will erupt next.
07:53That is also why
07:54the Krofla magma testbed is so crucial.
07:57By examining a volcano's activity from within,
08:00scientists could potentially predict eruptions
08:03with much more accuracy.
08:05As you might have guessed,
08:07drilling into magma
08:07is definitely uncharted territory,
08:09but the potential benefits are huge.
08:12Besides providing a clean energy source
08:14and making people who live near volcanoes
08:16feel safer,
08:18this project might also help us learn
08:20more about what is beyond Earth.
08:22Yep, it could lead us to breakthroughs
08:25in space exploration,
08:26helping us understand how other rocky planets
08:29and moons formed their crust,
08:31just like Jupiter's moon,
08:32Io,
08:32which is the most volcanically active world
08:35in our solar system.
08:37In the end,
08:38the Krofla magma testbed project
08:40is more than just an experiment.
08:42It is a bold vision
08:43for the future of energy.
08:45It's about pushing the boundaries
08:46of science and engineering,
08:48taking risks,
08:49and dreaming big.
08:51So we should definitely keep an eye
08:53on Krofla,
08:54because this adventure
08:55into the fiery depths of our planet
08:57could end up changing our future.
09:00One day,
09:01you're walking down the street
09:02wearing a mask
09:04connected to an oxygen tank.
09:06There are no clouds in the sky.
09:08There have been no clouds
09:09anywhere in the world
09:10for several months.
09:12You notice a girl
09:13who is having trouble breathing.
09:15You let her borrow your mask
09:16so that she can breathe.
09:18Then someone screams,
09:19Take cover!
09:21Now,
09:21there's a loud whistle,
09:23and you see some kind
09:24of invisible force
09:25tearing trees out of the ground
09:27and pushing away parked cars.
09:29You hide in the nearest house.
09:31A strong icy wind sweeps past.
09:34All the strange changes
09:35in this world
09:36are caused by the atmosphere
09:38that is turned upside down.
09:41So,
09:42to understand what would happen
09:43if Earth's atmosphere
09:44changed so dramatically,
09:46we must first understand
09:47what an atmosphere is.
09:49In simple words,
09:51this is a blanket of air
09:52covering our planet.
09:54It warms us,
09:55protects us,
09:56and allows us to breathe.
09:57The atmosphere
09:58has five main layers,
10:00troposphere,
10:02stratosphere,
10:03mesosphere,
10:04thermosphere,
10:05and exosphere.
10:06The troposphere
10:07is the heaviest.
10:09About 80%
10:10of the total mass
10:11of the atmosphere
10:11is here.
10:13Clouds,
10:14dust,
10:14and water particles
10:15fly in this first layer.
10:17It's filled with more oxygen
10:18than the other layers
10:19and exerts the strongest
10:21atmospheric pressure on us.
10:23The fact is
10:24that all the air around us
10:25has weight.
10:26At ground level,
10:28it's roughly 15 pounds
10:29per square inch.
10:30It envelops all material objects,
10:33but we don't feel 15 pounds
10:35per square inch,
10:36or PSI,
10:37because our internal pressure
10:39is equal to that.
10:40The air is dispersed
10:42in the atmosphere
10:43and on the ground.
10:44The higher we go,
10:45the lower the atmospheric pressure
10:47and oxygen levels are.
10:49For example,
10:50climbers,
10:51while ascending
10:51a high mountain,
10:52use oxygen tanks
10:54to help their bodies
10:55adapt to the changes
10:56in the air.
10:57There's artificial pressure
10:59inside airplanes
10:59to make people
11:00feel comfortable
11:01during takeoff,
11:02landing,
11:03and the entire flight.
11:04So,
11:05the most saturated
11:06and,
11:07at the same time,
11:08the heaviest air
11:09is in the first layer.
11:11But,
11:11in an inverted atmosphere,
11:13it would be
11:14the farthest one from us.
11:16The next layer
11:17is the stratosphere,
11:18and it performs
11:19the function of a shield.
11:20The stratosphere
11:22consists of ozone,
11:23which absorbs
11:24most of the solar radiation
11:26and prevents it
11:27from reaching the ground.
11:28In simple words,
11:29the sun's rays
11:30are filtered
11:31through the stratosphere.
11:32They lose
11:33their harmful properties,
11:34and our planet
11:36receives safe heat.
11:37Then,
11:38the mesosphere comes.
11:39You can experience
11:40the lowest temperatures
11:41in the world
11:42in this layer.
11:43Atmospheric pressure
11:44is low here,
11:45but the air
11:46is dense enough
11:47to burn meteorites
11:48passing through
11:49the mesosphere.
11:49The thermosphere
11:51follows the mesosphere.
11:53It takes a hot blow
11:54from the sun's rays.
11:56The temperature here
11:57is about
11:573,600 degrees Fahrenheit,
12:00almost one and a half times
12:01higher than in a volcano.
12:04And the final layer
12:05is the exosphere.
12:07This is the last frontier
12:08of our atmosphere
12:09before open space begins.
12:11The pressure here
12:12is so weak
12:13that gas molecules
12:15escape
12:15and head
12:16toward faraway stars.
12:17So here's how
12:19everything works
12:20in an ordinary atmosphere.
12:22The sun's rays
12:23shine on the exosphere,
12:25where almost nothing happens.
12:26Then they heat
12:27the thermosphere
12:28and pass through
12:29the cold mesosphere.
12:31Sunlight cools down
12:32while filtering
12:33through the ozone layer
12:34in the stratosphere.
12:36After that,
12:37its rays pass
12:38through the heaviest
12:39and densest layer
12:40of the troposphere
12:41and reaches the ground.
12:42And now,
12:44let's see how
12:45all this would work
12:46in an inverted atmosphere.
12:48The troposphere,
12:49with all the clouds,
12:50water, and oxygen,
12:51would rise to the top.
12:53The sun's rays
12:54would burn
12:54all the moisture.
12:56Clouds would disappear
12:57from the sky.
12:58Then the sun's rays
12:59would cool slightly
13:00while passing
13:01through the ozone layer.
13:03The stratosphere
13:04would absorb
13:05all the radiation.
13:06Then the rays
13:07would pass
13:08through the cold mesosphere
13:09and quickly reach
13:10the surface of our planet.
13:12The thermosphere
13:13and exosphere
13:14would have almost
13:16no effect
13:16on the beams.
13:18If our planet
13:19had an inverted atmosphere,
13:21a massive drought
13:22would begin.
13:23All the rain clouds
13:24would get dispersed
13:25in the top layers
13:26of the atmosphere.
13:27And all the moisture
13:28on Earth
13:29would start to evaporate
13:30and accumulate
13:31in the exosphere
13:32and thermosphere.
13:34Thus,
13:34we would get
13:35a new troposphere.
13:36It would be filled
13:37with gases,
13:38water particles,
13:39and dust.
13:40The previous troposphere,
13:42which would now
13:42be at the very top,
13:44would lose its weight
13:45and turn into
13:46an exosphere.
13:47But what would happen
13:49to oxygen
13:49at this moment?
13:50The higher we go,
13:52the lower the pressure
13:53and the less oxygen.
13:54But in the inverted atmosphere,
13:57there would be
13:57less oxygen
13:58and less pressure
13:59closest to the surface
14:00of the Earth.
14:01At first,
14:02people would feel
14:03as if they were
14:04on Mount Everest.
14:05Many would lose
14:06consciousness
14:07or experience
14:08severe dizziness.
14:09others would have
14:10bad migraines
14:11and feel unwell
14:12because of dilated
14:14blood vessels.
14:15But what would happen
14:16to people who spend
14:17a lot of time
14:18climbing high mountains?
14:20They would adapt
14:21more easily.
14:22And the rest
14:23would have to do
14:23the same
14:24in the inverted atmosphere.
14:25And when people
14:27felt comfortable
14:28in such conditions,
14:29they would begin
14:30to enjoy the benefits.
14:31We would feel
14:32less air resistance.
14:34It would be like
14:35a vacuum in space.
14:36Cars would drive faster
14:38and use less gasoline.
14:40People would create
14:41trains moving
14:42at the speed of sound.
14:43While running,
14:44we would be less tired.
14:46But at the same time,
14:48planes would fly
14:49much more slowly
14:50since they would have
14:51to go through
14:51thick layers of air.
14:52We wouldn't have rain
14:54for long periods of time,
14:55and it would always
14:57be sunny.
14:58Instead of bad weather,
14:59we would face
15:00jet streams.
15:01Now, these powerful
15:03icy winds circulate
15:04in the upper layers
15:05of the atmosphere.
15:06They blow over
15:07the top of Mount Everest
15:08and pose a serious
15:10danger to climbers.
15:11When the sun's rays
15:13heat the air,
15:14it rises
15:14and encounters
15:15cold winds.
15:17They push warm air
15:18even higher,
15:19where it turns
15:20into jet streams.
15:21These winds are howling
15:22at 70 miles per hour.
15:24They can easily
15:25rip out a tree
15:26or tear off some roofs.
15:27We would have to build
15:29sturdy houses
15:30and shelters
15:30to survive this calamity.
15:32But in the end,
15:34the surface of Earth
15:35would warm up
15:35and push jet streams up.
15:37In other words,
15:39even if the atmosphere
15:40turned upside down,
15:41everything would return
15:43to its place
15:44sooner or later.
15:45Perhaps this would happen
15:47in a couple of hundred years
15:48or millions of years.
15:49In any case,
15:51the laws of physics
15:52and nature
15:52would return our planet
15:54to its former state.
15:55But all living creatures
15:57may not live long enough
15:59to see it.
16:00But what if the planet's
16:02atmosphere
16:02was constantly flipping over?
16:04This is unlikely
16:05to happen on Earth,
16:07but one space object
16:08in the solar system
16:09has an inverted atmosphere.
16:11All the solid parts
16:13in it evaporate and rise,
16:14and the atmosphere
16:16sinks and becomes denser.
16:17Thus, the ground
16:19and the sky
16:19on this space body
16:21keep switching up.
16:22This strange celestial object
16:24is Pluto.
16:26They used to be a planet.
16:27The average distance
16:29between Pluto and the Sun
16:30is about 3.7 billion miles.
16:33It also has an elliptical
16:35or oval-shaped orbit,
16:37which is also tilted away
16:38from the orbits
16:39of the other planets.
16:40When Pluto comes closer
16:42to the Sun,
16:43it receives a bit of heat.
16:44And this heat is enough
16:46to turn the ice
16:47on Pluto's surface
16:48into gas.
16:49The higher this gas rises,
16:51the warmer it becomes.
16:53This is quite strange
16:54because everything happens
16:56the other way around
16:57on Earth.
16:57The higher the air,
16:59the colder it is.
17:01Now, imagine a world
17:02that has no solid surface,
17:04but only an atmosphere.
17:06This is Jupiter,
17:07the largest planet
17:08in our system
17:09that consists of gases.
17:1190% is hydrogen,
17:13and the remaining 10%
17:14mostly consists of helium.
17:17Jupiter keeps all these gases
17:19inside itself
17:20thanks to its powerful gravitation.
17:22And the closer to the center,
17:25the greater their concentration.
17:26If a huge spaceship
17:28tried to land
17:29on Jupiter's surface,
17:30it would take a long time
17:32to reach the planet's core.
17:33But at the same time,
17:35it would be impossible
17:36to get to the center
17:37since the weight
17:38of the surrounding gases
17:39would crush
17:41any material object.
17:43Saturn has a similar structure.
17:45The gravity of its gases
17:46is so strong
17:47that it makes the rings,
17:49consisting of pieces
17:50of comets and asteroids,
17:52spin around the planet.
17:53This atmospheric blanket
17:55of air on our planet
17:57is ideal
17:58for all living creatures.
17:59For millions of years,
18:01evolution has been
18:02creating organisms
18:03that can adapt
18:04to the conditions
18:05of the atmosphere.
18:06Hey, good thing, huh?
18:07Good thing.
Comments