VOLCANO EXPERTS ON THE EDGE

Three young volcanologists visit Iceland to model scientific research.

The expedition takes Owen, Katie, and Austin, a diverse group of young people depicted in Powell’s staid cartoon scenes, to the top of the Herdubreid volcano to test the theory that it’s gone from merely dormant to actually extinct. Having done this by collecting observational satellite data, employing a ground-based sensor (“This device sends out signals to measure movements in the ground”), releasing a drone to detect recently released sulfur and carbon dioxides, if any, and determining that lava rocks gathered at the site are eroded, the three wave goodbye from a helicopter as they fly off to publish their findings. The book brims with purposeful statements—“Even dormant volcanoes can erupt again,” explains one researcher, ostensibly to his professional colleagues. Aimed at a younger audience than the much-lauded Scientists in the Field series, this glimpse of science in action gets the details, if not the dialogue, right and closes with both a step-by-step summary of one version of the scientific method and an overview of the academic requirements for choosing volcanology as a career. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Stodgy but specific.