A man has contacted the US Geological Survey to ask a very important question: can you toast marshmallows over a volcano vent?
Presumably inspired by the lava flow in Hawaii at the moment, Jay Furr contacted the USGS’s Twitter account to ask his all-important question, and received a prompt and interesting response.
@USGSVolcanoes Is it safe to roast marshmallows over volcanic vents? Assuming you had a long enough stick, that is? Or would the resulting marshmallows be poisonous? @JimGriffith_SV @DrFunkySpoon
— Jay Furr (@jayfurr) May 29, 2018
Erm…we're going to have to say no, that's not safe. (Please don't try!) If the vent is emitting a lot of SO2 or H2S, they would taste BAD. And if you add sulfuric acid (in vog, for example) to sugar, you get a pretty spectacular reaction.
— USGS Volcanoes🌋 (@USGSVolcanoes) May 29, 2018
In short, don’t do it.
So what happens if you mix sulphuric acid and sugar? This video from Home Science shows the reaction in action.
Others had a different take on it from the USGS.
Darwin says that it is fine.
— Patrick Milroy (@patrickmmilroy) May 29, 2018
I used my Ouija Board to check with Charles Darwin…he said "Sure..it's fine …go ahead, but make sure you have no offspring first".
— Ken (Taters) Flask (@tatersbd) May 29, 2018
Bravo.