Pumice, the lightweight stone used to smooth skin, is usually
found in beauty salons, but on Thursday, August 9th, sailors
from New Zealand’s Royal Navy found nearly 10,000 square miles
of the lava rock bobbing on the surface of the South Pacific
Ocean. By comparison, the state of Rhode Island comprises
approximately 1,200 square miles. Described by one sailor who
witnessed it as “the weirdest thing I’ve seen in 18 years at
sea,” the sea of white rock was initially spotted by air and
then relayed to a ship for further investigation, according to a
statement released by the New Zealand Royal Navy. “The lookout
reported a shadow on the ocean ahead of us, so I ordered the
ship’s spotlight to be trained on the area … as far ahead as I
could observe was a raft of pumice moving up and down with the
swell,” Lt. Tim Oscar said. Pumice is typically a byproduct of
lava that has cooled quickly after a volcanic eruption. The lava
forms a rock so lightweight it floats on the water’s surface.
“As we moved through the raft