As Mauna Loa erupts, Hawaii officials warn of ‘Pele’s Hair.’ What is it?

Sac Bee ^

[Travis McGee]

Breathing volcanic dust is in the league with breathing asbestos dust.

[Ann Archy]

Actually looks worse!

[alexander_busek]

I’m guessing that’s the minimum width and not the average. It does make sense that it could form that small, since we are just talking about a glass made up of silicon molecules, while a red blood cell is a biological construct made up of much larger and complex molecules.

About 99% (by mass) of "Pele's Hair" has the approx. consistency and appearance of human hair (though it is much more brittle). That some miniscule proportion - probably consisting of segments less than 1 mm long - could have a width approaching the 1 micron mentioned in the article is plausible. But to flatly assert - as the article does - that "Pele's Hair" has a width of 1 micron is a gross misstatement and very misleading. RATHER, the figure of "1 micron" should have been characterized as an extreme lower limit.

My reference to RBCs was for size-comparison purposes, only.

FULL DISCLOSURE: I am not a geophysicist, nor a volcanologist, nor do I portray one on t.v.

Regards,

[George J. Jetso]

Mount Vesuvius. Those people that don’t learn from history are bound to repeat it.