Lava domes typically form during the eruption of highly viscous lava from a volcanic vent. Due to its high viscosity, the lava spread relatively slowly over a limited spatial area. Nevertheless, lava domes pose a lethal risk, as they can explode or undergo cyclic collapse, generating pyroclastic flows. In 1982, a theoretical model was developed
Gravity currents are flows driven by density differences between a fluid and its surroundings. These occur in various natural phenomena, such as volcanic ash flows, snow avalanches, and dust storms, as well as industrial applications like seabed mining. Over the years, much work has been done at the Institute to investigate the behaviour of these
We are delighted to announce a series of PhD Scholarships for students with backgrounds in Applied Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Chemical Engineering or Engineering, interested in embarking on a PhD project related to energy, environment and fluid mechanics, in the Institute. Details of the research in the Institute may be found here and some of the
Particle-driven gravity currents arise in many situations in nature and industry, including large turbidity currents that spread up to hundreds of km over the sea floor, volcanic ash flows that travel tens of km from volcanic vents, and particle suspensions produced during deep-sea mining operations. Much research into the dynamics of these flows has been
Greenland and Antarctica are the world’s largest store of freshwater ice, with the potential to become the main drivers of sea-level rise. Subglacial water plays a key role in determining how the ice sheets slide over their bases, and hence how much ice is transported to regions where melting is enhanced. At the base of
Small-scale turbulent mixing in the ocean interior is vital in governing ocean circulation and tracer distributions, and hence global climate. However, the planetary extent of this role and its dependence on the microphysics of mixing remain inadequately understood. A new article published in Nature Communications and co-authored by professor Colm Caulfield emphasises the variety of
Over the last few decades, several marine-terminating glaciers in Greenland and Antarctica have retreated. Submarine melting of the calving glacier fronts is thought to be one of the dominant drivers of this retreat. In fact, for ice floating on seawater, the volume loss below the surface can be several times larger than the loss due
The ocean plays a central role in the global carbon cycle. Ocean water can absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and sequester it at depth for hundreds or thousands of years. In fact, it is estimated that the deep ocean contains a massive reservoir of carbon, which dwarfs all other reservoirs combined (including vegetation, soil
The interdisciplinary study of volcanic processes requires a multitude of approaches, ranging from analogue and numerical modelling to observations and fieldwork and extending to mathematics. In September 2025, a conference was held at the East African Institute for Fundamental Research in Kigali, affiliated with the University of Rwanda, a country which, along with the Democratic
Deep ocean water contains a very large reservoir of carbon, and so understanding how this water moves and mixes over time is essential for all climate models. Over the last few decades, observations have shown that passive tracers initially located in the deep ocean have gradually resurfaced, suggesting that there are pathways through which deep