Lava that is stretched while molten can cool into the fine glass fibres called Pele’s hair. Credit: Michael Szönyi/imageBROKER.com/Alamy The fragile-looking filaments of cooled lava known as Pele’s hair can form when pockets of bubble-rich lava pull apart rapidly, experiments suggest. Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription $32.99 / 30 days cancel any time Subscribe to this journal Receive 51 print issues and online access $199.00 per year only $3.90 per issue Rent or buy this article Prices vary by article type from$1.95 to$39.95 Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-00766-8 Gillies, J. K., Llewellin, E. W., Wadsworth, F. B. & Rennie, C. Geology https://doi.org/10.1130/G53972.1 (2026).…