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In early 1960, an eruption suddenly broke up out of the ground in Kapoho, the location of the many earthquake cracks shown at the start of this clip. This eruption destroyed the town of Kapoho in addition to wiping out Warm Springs, a scenic spot nearby which can be seen in the map shown at 1:32. Nature in the raw is seldom mild.
Wild fact- May 18th 1924 a man by the last name of Truman was killed by a volcano. Then EXACTLY 56 years later- May 18th 1980 a man by the last name of Truman was killed by a volcano.😮
If 710 to 640 million years ago, the earth was a snowball. Was there a giant supercontinent under the ice, and where was it in comparison to Yellowstone? Plus, when Yellowstone last erupted 640 million years ago, was it under ice and water? If so, why have I never heard this? I've watched 100s of documentaries on Yellowstone throughout my life and have never heard it was under ice and water on a snowball earth. Peace and Ahev
You are mixing up different timescales the eruption in question from Yellowstone was 640 thousand years not million that is 3 orders of magnitude different.
Yellowstone's most recent caldera-forming eruption was 631,000 years ago. There was no ice covering the area at the time. Lava flow eruptions have happened when the region was glaciated, however -- about 130,000-150,000 years ago. Some of the lava flows that erupted during this time (www.usgs.gov/observatories/yvo/news/lotta-lava-new-insights-timing-yellowstones-most-recent-rhyolite-eruptions) show signs of having interacted with ice, and there is evidence that glacial lakes might have been present in the region at various times. More information about Yellowstone's glacial history is at www.usgs.gov/news/yellowstones-icy-past.
@usgs thanks for answering me. I see what I did. I was reading about snowball earth, then pangea, which made me think about Yellowstone, and all I saw was 640. I had millions on my mind. Lol. Thank you for taking the time to point out my mistake. Peace and Ahev
@@usgs Isn't ice what makes volcanism on Iceland form steeper features? Normally Icelandic volcanoes form shields, but around the recent eruptions there are some steep and tall features. I imagine that happens when the lava extrusion is under a glacier which cools the lava rapidly and makes it deposit closer to the eruption site.
@@HotelPapa100 Yes indeed! subglacial eruptions can generate a lot of ashy debris, called hyaloclastite, and lead to steeper features once the ice melts. These are called tuyas, and you can find them all over Iceland, as well as in British Columbia (Canada)!
Amen ... did the helicopter flight looking down in the cone seeing the molten lava ... pouring slowly through the pods as grew and moved down to the sea. As you say ... a magical ... mystical experience. What meaning is there ... but the obvious. The Force behind Creation ... TAINT FINISHED ... and so I have a choice of FITTING only in the NOW.
Wonderful retrospective from a legendary figure. I remember being able to walk into the Kilauea caldera and overlook the Halemaumau crater the first time I visited the volcano park and wondering if I would live long enough to see another eruption there. I have many fond memories of visiting the Jagger museum and enjoying the amazing view from the rim’s edge.
Wow, very interesting to hear from 100 years ago what the volcano was doing! The gentleman narrating was very descriptive, it was easy to imagine what was happening.
@@HDPersonal777 Where did you come with that date? Specifically? These kinds of phreatic eruptions can happen on any volcano whenever water comes into contact with magma. Both after and before 1850 since the earth, volcanoes and water have existed for over 4 billion years.
@@sigisoltau6073 Where is your proof? Real proof? Besides someone saying that timeline based on no facts. Maybe you should research silicone vs. carbon eras, etc.
@@HDPersonal777 Really? You're asking me for proof? Shouldn't you provide proof for your claim about 1850? Or that these DEW existed back then. Or that they were used to start volcanic eruptions. Let's see. There's radiometric and potassium-argon dating that shows the earth is billions of years old. In rock layers we can see evidence of lava flows and pyroclastic deposits. Both are evidence that volcanic eruptions have been going on long before 1850.
Kilauea has a history of deadly explosive eruptions with deadly pyroclastic flows … Google several hundred Hawaiian warriors killed by Kilauea pyroclastic flow .
@@melodiefrances3898 No fluke … Scientists have recently been digging around Kilauea and have new evidence that pyroclastic events as they like to call it have happen several times . .. The history is there for geologist to discover in the layers .
In your opening you refered to the old question,if no one's around does it make a noise. Actually if no ear drums (or microphone) is there to convert the waves into sound, then answer is NO, noise or sound waves must be converted before the compression wave is "heard".
Hmmm... maybe it's just me, but the title says on the cover USGS "Volcano and Earthquake Monitoring Plan for the Yellowstone Caldera System 2022-2032" yet further down the cover is printed "Scientific Investigations Report 2022-5032". Is the USGS planning for 3000 years into the future out to "5032". I can see planning for 10 years out to 2032, but 5032?
Why do nearly all geologists adhere to a timeline that goes against the Bible? What is the motivation, incentive, or assumptions that cause that hubris? Is it because you want to gain knowledge for yourselves apart from God?
Why do all Christians assume theirs is the only right religion when there’s over 3000 of them in the world. If science followed a particular religion then it would be biased which is the exact opposite of what science needs to be…impartial.
That's the best monitored volcano in the Cascade Range! You can see a map of monitoring stations at www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/mount-st.-helens. Click on any of the sites to see the data!
Always an interesting update, and great for keeping REAL information on social media to combat the alarmist mis-informers. When I see Mike on a thumbnail, I click, and am never disappointed.
File that under "strange but true." Volcanism has been occurring in the region for 275,000 years, but the mountain we know today only started growing about 3900 years ago. More info on that at www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/mount-st.-helens/science/holocene-activity-prior-may-18-1980-eruption.
Not a mistake! There has been volcanism in the area for 275,000 years. But the edifice that we know today didn't really start growing until about 4000 years ago. More on the history of today's Mount St. Helens at www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/mount-st.-helens/science/holocene-activity-prior-may-18-1980-eruption.
Thanks for these reports! You always do a great job of explaining things in a way that is easy for a layperson to understand. I always look forward to the updates because I find Yellowstone a fascinating place and enjoy learning more about it
Quick correction of a slip of the tongue -- it's subduction of the Juan de Fuca plate that is fueling volcanism in the Cascades. Also, the map showing ash distribution only includes that part of the Mount St. Helens ash fall that was more than an inch. Lesser amounts fell over a much broader area. You can see a generalized map of this area in the USA at pubs.usgs.gov/gip/msh/ash.html.
The range of ash from St Helens is always underestimated. We had considerable ash drop east past Butte Montana. and some spots in the mountains received heavier amounts. I experienced this first hand in the Georgetown Lake area near Philipsburg when visibility was reduced to less than 50 yards.
You're right -- the map shown in this video only indicates the area of thickest ash fall, where it was more than an inch or two. But there was still noticeable fall over a broad area east of the volcano. Another map showing that broader area in the USA is at pubs.usgs.gov/gip/msh/ash.html.
Those smaller eruptions are far more common than the big explosions. Since the last big caldera-forming eruption 631,000 years ago there have been a few dozen lava flows (most recently about 70,000 years ago, so in an absolute sense they still aren't terribly common). These have largely filled the caldera, especially on the west side. There's more information about the occurrence and timing of these flows at www.usgs.gov/observatories/yvo/news/lotta-lava-new-insights-timing-yellowstones-most-recent-rhyolite-eruptions.
...this bout is like putting an ant up against an elephant! I love the cascades and have hiked and camped from Shasta to Garibaldi for years. I listened to a fascinating lecture on estimating eruptions from remnants like welded tuff/ignimbrite. (not a geologist, is that spelled right?) The speaker offered analysis and modeling of deposits of various ages/lava compositions, sizes of eruptions etc and is quite convinced that we have wildly underestimated the volume of essentially all VEI-8 eruptions. There's one caldera, I think Long Valley, so 2-ish hours from Los Angeles, is the one, but I've also seen 10,000km³+ for La Garita. Geology Hub, another fantastic channel has a video including or dedicated to it, but I actually hadn't gotten to it yet, now I'm even more interested to find out what has been found and how it can be explained.
Yes, you spelled it correctly! Caldera-forming eruptions usually produce ignimbrites just because of the volume and thickness of ash deposits. Estimating their thicknesses can be a challenge where exposures are poor. Much of the ignimbrite volume can be found in the source caldera itself -- the ash basically falls back and fills in part of the hole that was created during the eruption. Without drilling records or serendipitous exposures, it can be hard to know the thickness of the deposits within the calderas. In the case of the big calderas of the San Juans in Colorado, like La Garita, there has been enough erosion to be able to see the intracaldera thicknesses.
Not necessarily. Most Yellowstone eruptions are lava flows. Granted, they are really think and voluminous lava flows (not like the thin ones in Hawaii), but they aren't the massive explosions. Since the eruption that formed Yellowstone caldera 631,000 years ago there have been a few dozen of these flows, the last one occurring about 70,000 years ago. You can see a map of the more recent flows at www.usgs.gov/observatories/yvo/news/lotta-lava-new-insights-timing-yellowstones-most-recent-rhyolite-eruptions.
The claim "Mount Saint Helens is the most explosive volcano in the cascade range" is contestable. In the last 100 years maybe. But in the last millenia; Newberry, Mazama, and Three Sisters volcanoes would all like a word. As well as various other rhyolitic centers within the cascade range...
It's definitely true that some Cascade volcanoes have had large explosive eruptions. Glacier Peak has had some biggies, too! But in terms of frequency of explosive eruptions, Mount St. Helens leaves them all in the dust. There's more about the history of the volcano over the last few thousand years at www.usgs.gov/volcanoes/mount-st.-helens/science/holocene-activity-prior-may-18-1980-eruption.
Fortunately, there's no real indication of Yellowstone becoming more active anytime soon. The magma chamber is mostly solid (we know this from seismic imaging, which is sort of like taking an MRI of the subsurface), and there's no sign of any rejuvenation. Most eruptions there are lava flows, not massive explosions, but even a lava flow event needs a supply of eruptible magma.
I know the risk of a major eruption at Yellowstone in the near term is negligible. But I'm curious if there is a risk of a phreatic eruption at any given time given all the geothermal activity?
Not necessarily a phreatic eruption, but a hydrothermal (steam) explosion is definitely a hazard. Water flashing to steam can drive explosions that range from small -- the formation of Porkchop Geyser in 1989, for example -- to huge, like Mary Bay, which is 1.5 miles across and is the largest known hydrothermal explosion crater in the world. These explosions do not involve magma, but rather changes in pressure in the shallow subsurface that can cause rapid phase changes (liquid water to steam). Small hydrothermal explosions occur somewhere in Yellowstone about every year or so, but usually in the backcountry, where they escape notice. Certainly these explosions are an underappreciated hazard in the region. We've got some information on this at www.usgs.gov/observatories/yvo/news/real-hazards-yellowstone and www.usgs.gov/observatories/yvo/news/if-eruption-so-unlikely-why-do-we-monitor-yellowstone-all.
