Yellowstone volcano: the location of the supervolcano, how great is the threat of an eruption

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:48

There are 1532 volcanoes on our planet, but these data are approximate and no one knows the exact answer. The Pacific Ring of Fire has the most.

The leader in the number of volcanoes is the United States. There are 180 giants on the territory of this state. Also, the scientific world is aware of the existence of 20 supervolcanoes on Earth. Their eruption can lead to serious climatic changes on the planet. The most famous is the Yellowstone Volcano.

The term "supervolcano"

This term first appeared in 2000. The BBC channel broadcast the documentary popular science film "Horizon", where the concept of "supervolcano" was applied. This name meant the most powerful eruption, which reached 8 points on the volcanic scale.

The main difference between a supervolcano and stratovolcanoes is the absence of a pronounced cone. To date, the largest and most mature for the eruption is the Yellowstone volcano.

Location

The world-famous supervolcano is located in the United States. The size of its caldera is impressive - 55 km by 72 km. Many will be interested to know more exactly where the Yellowstone Volcano is located. Its caldera is located in northwestern Wyoming. It occupies the vast territory of the Yellowstone National Park. The dimensions of the caldera were determined during surveys that took place in the 1960s and 1970s. US Geological Survey scientist Robert Christiansen found that the volcano occupies a third of the nature reserve.

Supervolcano Eruption

Recently, scientists have been concerned about the question of when the Yellowstone volcano will explode, and their fears are not groundless. The pressure in the magma chamber is increasing, and seismic activity in the National Park area has also increased in recent months. In February alone, more than 200 strong tremors were recorded over 10 days.

According to scientists, the Yellowstone volcano has already erupted at least three times:

The first case dates back to 2.1 million years ago. After this cataclysm, the Island Park caldera was formed and the tuff deposits called Huckleberry Ridge formed. It is assumed that this eruption led to the disintegration of mountain ranges, and the height of the emissions reached 50 km. Roughly over a quarter of the North American continent was covered in volcanic ash.
The second time the supervolcano erupted 1.3 million years ago. He threw out more than 280 km3 of volcanic rocks from his bowels. As a result of the eruption, one of the largest calderas, Henrys Fork, was formed.
The Yellowstone Volcano erupted for the third time 640,000 years ago, this time its activity was half that of the first eruption. A natural disaster led to the formation of the Lava Creek tuff formations. The third eruption caused the cone to subside, in place of which a huge basin was formed, the diameter of which is 150 km.

Currently, the state of the Yellowstone volcano worries many scientists. At the moment, they estimate the possibility of an eruption as 0.00014% per year. However, these assumptions are based on given calculations of the time intervals that passed between the eruptions of the supervolcano.

But as the latest observations made in the National Park area show, the geological processes are irregular, so it is impossible to determine exactly when the Yellowstone volcano will explode.

The highest geyser has awakened

On March 15, 2018, the Steamboat Geyser, which had been dormant since 2014, erupted. It is considered the highest active geyser. The eruption happened around 19:30. This phenomenon was observed by dozens of people who said that the emissions of hot vapors were accompanied by a roar, as if a steamship or a locomotive was humming. Minor tremors were also felt.

According to historical reports, the geyser erupts at intervals of 1 time in 50 years. Although induring this cycle, he can throw out puffs of steam much more often. The geyser itself is located in an area that is very popular with tourists. It's called the Gates Norris Basin. The last eruptions occurred in 2013 and then in 2014. There was also a whole series of short periods of activity from 1989 to 1991. Previously, it erupted only in 1911 and 1961.

Scientists believe that changes in the frequency of geyser activity are closely related to the Yellowstone volcano, whose size is impressive. In the place where it is located, intense fluctuations of the earth's crust are observed, caused by the advancement of magma.

Area of impact and consequences

The size of the volcano is 55 by 72 km. Therefore, it is not surprising that the likelihood of its eruption scares many. The explosion of a supervolcano threatens not only the destruction of the United States, but the whole of humanity. The planet will suffer enormous environmental damage. The consequences will be dire, scientists say:

the air temperature will decrease by about 21 degrees;
whole populations of flora and fauna will be destroyed;
at least 87 thousand people will die.

Scientists make regular observations of seismic and volcanic activity in this region. A dormant volcano is increasingly demonstrating its readiness for an eruption. In October 2017, black smoke emissions were observed, which seriously frightened the local population. Interestingly, smoke was pouring from the famous Old Servant Geyser.

This phenomenonreally weird. In its normal state, the geyser ejected steam and hot water to the height of a nine-story building. The frequency of eruptions is 45-125 minutes. However, this time, instead of water and steam, black smoke erupted from the geyser. There are no explanations for this phenomenon. Most likely, there was an ignition of organic substances that rose to the surface of the soil.

Prevention measures

To prevent a possible supervolcano eruption, the US government is funding programs led by NASA.

The construction of a geothermal power plant is planned, which will make it possible to reduce the pressure of the magma bubble. In order not to provoke an eruption by accidental entry of gases into the rock cavities, they want to use a horizontal drilling method. It is planned to allocate more than 3.5 billion US dollars for this project.