Strangely worded headline. I interpreted it to mean that scientists in the lab had a beaker of lava heating over a Bunsen burner and it was getting close to the boiling point.
Yes, "gets too close" implies something happened. But the scientist got away in time. He appeared unharmed and got his suit off without trouble.
He definitely took a risk as scientists typically do, but I don't think this justifies the Journalistic Hype "gets too close".