They documented everything before touching anything. Dr. Reeve photographed the opening from six angles. Agent Guerrero collected air samples.
A second team member, forensic archaeologist Dr. Sharon Feld, 47, from the University of Wyoming, examined the ground immediately before the opening with a fiber optic scope rather than entering.
What the scope revealed in the narrow beam of its LED light directed into the space beyond the opening was a cavity of modest dimensions, perhaps 12 ft deep, 8 ft wide, the ceiling varying between 4 and 6 ft, formed by the natural geology of overlapping riolyte slabs.
The floor of the cavity was partially covered with what appeared to be fine gray sediment, the product of decades of mineral deposition from the vent activity below.
Partial human remains were found at the back of the cavity against the far wall [music] beneath a 4-in accumulation of mineral sediment.Browse Reference
The position, and this was determined by forensic anthropologist Dr. Peter Bale, who arrived at the site on July 3rd, 2026 and spent 2 days conducting the careful excavation, was consistent with a body that had either crawled or fallen into the cavity and come to rest against the back wall.
