Man's death-defying trek for breathtaking volcano footage
Adventurer Sam Cossman considers himself an "Indiana Jones of the digital era" and when you see his videos, it's not hard to understand why.
He traveled to the volcanic, South Pacific, multi-island nation of Vanuatu, making two expeditions and six descents inside the active Marum crater.
"You're about 20 meters from the actual lava -- it's kind of exploding like the Bellagio Fountain and it's unlike anything I've ever experienced. It's like taking a glimpse into the center of the world," Cossman said Monday on "CBS This Morning."
On his latest trip, using drones and GoPro cameras, Cossman and a team shot dramatic footage by hiking down into the volcano.
He also ported technology that monitored heartbeats per minute and galvanic skin response, which recorded his emotional response in real-time.
"I believe that we're at a point now where technology is becoming increasingly available and we're able to use it ways that are unconventional and peer into parts of the world that other explorers and adventurers in the past haven't been able to see," Cossman said.
Teamed with volcanologists, Cossman descended 1,200 feet -- the height of the Empire State Building -- down a heat-resistance rope to come face-to-face with the 2,000-degree, bubbling lava lake, known locally as "The Entrance to Hell."
"You can only stand there for a couple of seconds before it's too hot to stand any longer, so you go back," he said. "The edge is about 200 degrees, by the wall where you drop in, but then as you walk to towards the shore of lava it's about 1,000," he said.
Before his video of the volcano, which now has over 4 million views, went viral, Cossman worked with a software company that specialized in outdoor adventures.
Now, he's on a mission to share his breathtaking adventures with the world.
"I think I was just wired this way. I'm fascinated by the planet and science, and you know, I've always gotten a kick out of going places that are hard to reach, hard to gain access to, and I have the desire to share these miraculous, hidden gems of the world with others who don't have the opportunity to go explore that," he said.
For one of his next projects, Cossman has teamed up with National Geographic to create a new series exploring volcanoes and other natural phenomena in the heart of Africa.