This Smiling Volcano Is Clearly Having a Great Day

Mick Kalber of Tropical Visions Video, Inc. recently took a flight with Paradise Helicopters to film molten lava from high above as it trickled into the ocean near the Hawaiian Islands. Part of the video features an excellent shot of the volcanic cone, Puʻu ʻŌʻō. The crater is about six miles from the ocean and part of the rift zone of the Kīlauea volcano. In Kalber's video, you can see lava in the crater shift, then break apart to form two eyes and a smile. Eagle-eyed Jeannie Curtis spotted the happy coincidence and took a screenshot of the video to share on Facebook. The portrait is wonderfully at odds with its destructive medium.

Human beings are predisposed to detect familiar images in random places. The phenomenon is called pareidolia and is the cause for us seeing faces in everything from car headlights to electrical outlets.

[h/t Laughing Squid]

Primary image courtesy of Vimeo.

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