Volcanism is sometimes like food poisoning, where the Earth spews forth unstable material. New research suggests that a significant pulse of volatile carbon was released from the Earth’s mantle around 500 million years ago. But why?

Although volcanoes do not eat, some form as underlying magma consumes and digests unstable parts of the Earth’s mantle. And like eating spoiled food left out for too long, what goes in, must come out. Read more.