David Pyle
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davidmpyle.bsky.social
David Pyle
@davidmpyle.bsky.social
1.8K followers 1.3K following 120 posts
Volcanologist at the University of Oxford: volcanic histories, imaginaries, resources and futures. https://curatingcrises.omeka.net/ https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/rethinking-natural-resources/ https://www.torch.ox.ac.uk/vesuvius-22
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davidmpyle.bsky.social
Wow! Volcanoes Top Trumps - on i-player; season 1, episode 6 of Leonard and Hungry Paul.

'Wow factor 89. Mount St Helens. Fantastic card'

winningmoves.co.uk/products/vol...?

#volcanoes
Screenshot of the BBC iplayer photograph advertising episode 6 of the comedy Leonard and Hungry Paul. The image shows two men, sitting side by side, both holding a hand of cards - which are Volcano Top Trumps.
October 23, 2025 at 9:58 AM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Very sad to hear that Peter Friend has died.

Peter was a wonderful teacher and a lovely colleague, and first introduced me to the geology of Almeria in the 1990s for an undergraduate field class.

Here's Peter, still running the trip 4 years into retirement.⚒️

www.darwin.cam.ac.uk/news/dr-pete...
Photograph of two people standing by some rocks in a gorge, with vegetation in the background. On the left - Dr Peter Friend, on the right Dr Irene Gomez-Perez, in conversation by the Carboneras fault, Granatilla valley, southern Almeria, Spain in April 2005. Peter and Irene were co-leading a Cambridge undergraduate Earth Sciences field class at the time. @cambridge-earthsci.bsky.social
October 14, 2025 at 3:22 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Colonial-era yellow firebrick, manufactured by Rufford & Co., Stourbridge, and imported to #StLucia where it was used in the bakery near Fort Rodney, Pigeon Island.
Photograph of some bricks, one of which is made from yellow clay with the partial impression [RU]FFORD [STOU]RBRIDGE, near the colonial-era bakery building on Pigeon Island, St Lucia. Photograph from Fort Rodney, St Lucia, of Signal Peak, Pigeon island. Bright red flowers of the Flamboyant trees in the foreground.
July 26, 2025 at 1:27 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Director of the Montserrat Tourism Authority, Rosetta West Gerald highlighting the #Montserrat Mural Tour; featuring four murals created in 2023 during the Curating Crises project curatingcrises.omeka.net/exhibits/sho...
Rosetta West Gerald speaking at a podium in front of a slide on the Montserrat Murals tour
July 18, 2025 at 8:05 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Closing presentations at #SHV30 on the themes of geoheritage, and imagining new opportunities for volcano tourism and geopark development on the island of #Montserrat.
Photograph of Rosetta West Gerald at a podium presenting on tourism opportunities on Montserrat. Photograph of Sherene James-Williamson at a podium talking in front of a slide titled geosite, geopark and geoheritage.
July 18, 2025 at 7:57 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat, with a haze descending across the buried city of Plymouth. #SHV30
Photographic view across the sea of southern Montserrat, with the hazy green hill of the Soufriere Hills Volcano in the background, blue sky and clouds above.
July 16, 2025 at 7:23 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Current Montserrat Premier, Reuben T Meade, with his vision for the future. ‘Montserrat Still Home, Still Nice, Still Paradise’. #SHV30
Photograph of Reuben Meade at the podium, reflecting on his times as Chief Minister and Premier.
July 15, 2025 at 2:00 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Frank Savage - Governor in 1995 - and Reuben Meade - Chief Minister in 1995 - with reflections on the start of the eruptive crisis in 1995. #SHV30
Photograph of Frank Savage in a pink shirt and linen jacket, and the Honourable Reuben T Meade, adjusting the microphone, on a stage in front of the SHV30 banner. Savage explains ‘my business suit is still on holiday in Antigua’.
July 15, 2025 at 1:21 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Turning magma into momentum - #SHV30 kicks off on the island of Montserrat, marking the 30th anniversary of the start of the Soufriere Hills Volcano eruption. @mvoupdates.bsky.social
Photograph of Dr Graham Ryan, director of the Montserrat Volcano Observatory standing in front of the SHV30 banner at the opening ceremony of the Soufrière Hills 30 years on conference, Montserrat Photograph of Dr Pat Joseph, director of the UWI seismic research centre, in front of a slide of volcano education and outreach projects on St Vincent, during the opening plenary lecture at SHV30, Montserrat Photograph of a discussion panel, sitting in front of the SHV30 banner. Left to right, Prof Richie Robertson (UWI SRC), Prof Jenni Barclay (University of Bristol), the Honorable Dr Keith Rowley (former prime minister, Trinidad and Tobago) and Dr JC Komorowski (head of observatories, IPGP).
July 14, 2025 at 10:06 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Great to see the first outcomes of a digital archives project led by Martin Mahony @ueaenv.bsky.social, with #Montserrat National Trust, @mvoupdates.bsky.social @dlocaribbean.bsky.social @nationalarchives.gov.uk.web.brid.gy

Here is 'SeismiCity News', from 1997 to 1998 dloc.com/title-sets/A...
Screenshot of a part of the front page of SeismiCity News, Volume 1, Issue 1, dated January 24, 1997. This newsletter was jointly produced by the Montserrat National Trust and the Montserrat Volcano Observatory, and documented the continuing eruptions of the Soufriere Hills Volcano. The headline in this issue is 'Rapid Dome Growth Causes Pyroclastic Flows', and describes the growth of the lava dome during December 1996 and January 1997. The digital copies of the newsletter are held in the Digital Library of the Caribbean, dLoC.
June 24, 2025 at 4:44 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Marking the 30th anniversary of the start of Soufriere Hills volcanic eruption (July 1995), with a reception in the Speaker’s rooms, Westminster
The Speaker of the House of Commons Sir Lindsay Hoyle addresses a full room in speaker’s house, with many representatives from the Montserratian community in the UK and Montserrat. Hoyle was the first speaker to visit Montserrat.
June 23, 2025 at 6:18 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
.. delighted to see recognition for Hugh Jenkyns (@oxuniearthsci.bsky.social) who published his first paper in 1967, discovered Ocean Anoxic Events in the 1970s, and is still publishing papers on the Jurassic today!
Photograph of Hugh Jenkyns (University of Oxford; left) receiving the Lyell Medal from Geological Society President, Jon Gluyas.
June 11, 2025 at 8:57 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Lovely afternoon at the @geolsoc.bsky.social celebrating the annual awards. Congratulations to all the award winners and medalists! Here’s a selection of photos of just a few of the awardees..
Photograph of Prof Jenny Collier, Imperial College, accepting the Murchison Medal, in front of an image of Jenny inspecting an instrument on board a research ship Photograph of Prof Kate Hendry, British Antarctic Survey, accepting the Bigsby Medal, in front of an image of Kate on a small boat on Antarctica Photograph of Kathryn Goodenough, British Geological Survey, accepting the Coke Medal Photograph of Clive Oppenheimer, University of Cambridge, receiving the R H Worth Award from Geological Society President Jon Gluyas
June 11, 2025 at 8:43 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
What a show from Grace Petrie in Oxford last night! Anger, passion, humanity, despair and hope all wrapped up into an exuberantly life-affirming performance. I went on a whim - highly recommend!

www.gracepetrie.com/gigs
Photograph of Grace Petrie (facing away from the stage) and her band, in the song of their performance at Oxford’s O2 academy venue.
May 18, 2025 at 9:59 AM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Great thread on seismologist Inge Lehmann!

Her classic paper on the seismic (PKP) waves that pass from mantle to core to mantle was simply called: P'

I was delighted to find Lehmann's signature in the Kew Observatory correspondence from 1937!

courses.seas.harvard.edu/climate/eli/...
Letter from Danish seismologist Inge Lehmann, at the Danish Geodetic Institute, to Francis Whipple, at Kew Observatory, dated 21 October 1937. Lehmann thanks Whipple for sending her the drawing of the Kew recording apparatus (for recording seismic waves), but regrets that she is not able to modify her instrument in the same way. Source: The National Archives, Kew Observatory Correpondence, 1937 BJ 1/262
May 13, 2025 at 12:47 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Thank you @katysduncan.bsky.social and @miguelohn.bsky.social for convening such a wonderful discussion meeting on #histsci and #geophysics at @ri-science.bsky.social, and a great keynote from @naomioreskes.bsky.social
Photo of workshop convenors Miguel Ohnesorge and Katy Duncan in the Royal Institution lecture theatre Naomi Oreskes starting her keynote talk, ‘Re-thinking the origins of plate tectonics’ at the Royal Institution
May 13, 2025 at 10:12 AM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Oxford rooftops, old and new.
View of Oxford’s roofline from the top of the Weston library, including the Clarendon Building (left), the Sheldonian theatre (right) and the Radcliffe Camera (dome in the background). View of the new Schwarzman centre for the humanities, Oxford, with its geodesic dome, from the top floor balcony of the Blavatnik school. View from the Blavatnik school across to the new Schwarzman centre (middle) and the Mathematical institute, Oxford.
May 7, 2025 at 5:56 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Thank you Julie Belo, Steffen Kutterolf and Paul Albert for organising a great workshop, and @geomarkiel.bsky.social for hosting!
Julie Belo closing the ‘tephra together’ workshop at GEOMAR
April 25, 2025 at 9:56 AM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Anatol Herzfeld’s ‘kybernetiker’, by the docks at @geomarkiel.bsky.social Kiel
Photograph of the art installation ‘Kybernetiker’ by Anton Herzfeld, near the Wellingdorf dock, Kiel. A collection of metal statues of people all carrying briefcases and umbrellas and wearing hats, installed in 1996 and now taking on a rusty orange colour.
April 24, 2025 at 9:30 AM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
@sofiadellasala.bsky.social presenting her work at the @geomarkiel.bsky.social tephra workshop, on sediments from Santorini caldera recovered during IODP 398 @ukiodp.bsky.social
Sofia Della Sala with her title slide about to give a talk on hydrothermal activity in the Santorini caldera at GEOMAR, Kiel.
April 24, 2025 at 9:20 AM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
There are only three days left to catch the wonderful 'Magma Rising' exhibition at the Heong Gallery, @downingcollege.bsky.social, #Cambridge; curated by Dr Sara Rawlinson, with #volcanic art, film, music, rocks and equipment, all on an #Icelandic theme #sciart
magmarising.org
Extract from mural 'Tempus Fugit' (2025) by artist Anna Gudjonsdottir, Heong Gallery, Downing College Field sketches of volcanoes by artist Emma Stibbon RA, on display at the Heong Gallery, Downing College
April 18, 2025 at 8:31 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
If you get a chance, do see Kyoto - gripping dramatisation of the decade of global negotiations leading to the Kyoto protocol, and a wonderful piece of theatre from @the-rsc.bsky.social

sohoplace.org/shows/kyoto/
‘Delegate’ badge for audience members at the performance of Kyoto, Soho Place Theatre, London
April 18, 2025 at 7:34 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Not quite basalt.. also not boring! 😂
Panorama photo of fans of columnar joints in an igneous intrusion, from the Miocene, Cabo de Gata, Spain.
March 21, 2025 at 5:36 PM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Excerpt from the COPE volcanoes in Korean.
Page on volcanoes from the COPE disaster champions children’s book series, in Korean.
March 11, 2025 at 8:22 AM
davidmpyle.bsky.social
Wonderful launch event at Birkbeck with Martha Keswick, James Hammond and the Mount Paektu Research Centre for the launch of the latest COPE disaster champions children’s DRR books in Korean (free to download). @unesco.org

cope-disaster-champions.com
Author and creator Martha Keswick talking about 10 years of the COPE disaster champions DRR book series designed to help children to ‘be ready’ for disasters (photo)
March 11, 2025 at 7:49 AM