Oppenheimer's research interests are in
volcanology and
geochemistry, particularly in
Antarctica. He has spent 13 seasons doing field work on
Mount Erebus in
Antarctica. In addition to his volcanological work he discovered two previously lost campsites used by a group of explorers from Scott's
Terra Nova expedition in 1912, now recognised as protected sites under the
Antarctic Treaty System. In 2011, the
Government of North Korea invited him, his PhD student
Kayla Iacovino, and volcanologist James Hammond of
Imperial College, London to study the
Baekdu Mountain for recent volcanic activity. Their project was continuing in 2014 and expected to last for another "two or three years". Oppenheimer is co-founder and co-deputy director of the Mt. Paektu Research Centre. He has also appeared on
The Infinite Monkey Cage alongside
Jo Brand and
Tamsin Mather and
Midweek and
In Our Time on
BBC Radio 4. In 2024, Oppenheimer was awarded the Volcano and Magmatic Studies Group ThermoFisher Award (now known as the VMSG Award), presented to individuals who “have made a significant advance to our understanding of volcanic and magmatic processes and who has made substantial contributions to the research community.”
Selected publications His publications include
Eruptions that Shook the World which formed the basis of the 2016 film
Into the Inferno directed by
Werner Herzog. In 2023, Hodder Press published
Mountains of Fire: The Secret Lives of Volcanoes. Writing for
Literary Review, John Gribbin said: "This...is neither a dry academic account of his research nor a standard popularisation. Instead, Oppenheimer weaves together science, history and culture into a book that is far greater than the sum of its parts." •
Eruptions that Shook the World •
Volcanoes by
Peter Francis and Clive Oppenheimer • ''Volcanism and the Earth's Atmosphere'' •
Volcanic Degassing ==References==