“The supervolcano under Yellowstone National Park is overdue an eruption. Fears that earthquake activity (as well as full moons, asteroids, comets and just about anything else you can think of) will set off Yellowstone have been with us for years. Subsidence of Yellowstone Caldera, which has been ongoing since 2015, continued at an average rate of 2-3 cm (about 1 in) per year. 2020-12-02 06:49:01 UTC 2.4 magnitude, 1 km depth West Yellowstone, Montana, United States 2.4 magnitude earthquake 2020-12-02 06:49:01 UTC at 06:49 December 02, 2020 UTC Yellowstone volcano and the surrounding areas witnessed a period of seismic activity in January 2020. Swarm of Earthquakes in Yellowstone Renews Fears of Supervolcano Eruption Posted on 06/04/2020 by EraOfLight — Leave a reply The US Geological Survey says it is monitoring the area near Yellowstone National Park where a swarm of earthquakes has caused renewed concern over the area’s underground supervolcano. We will use your email address only for sending you newsletters. Approximately 1,000 to 3,000 earthquakes occur each year in the Yellowstone area; most are not felt. The current volcano alert level for Yellowstone is NORMAL and there are no indications of an eruption brewing deep underground. The San Andreas faultline is overdue an earthquake. Upon returning to the lower 48, I covered politics, energy and the environment as a freelancer for National Public Radio programs and spent time as an online editor for AOL and Comcast. YELLOWSTONE has been rocked by almost 300 earthquakes in the last month, prompting fears the supervolcano could unleash a devastating eruption. Seismic trackers in the Yellowstone National Park region recorded a total of 41 earthquakes last month. It would be statistically meaningless. Exactly one year ago, Yellowstone rumbled in its sleep, with three quakes ranging from 3.7 to 4.3 magnitude on the Richter scale. A sign prohibiting recreation on the Yellowstone River in Livingston, MT on August 19, 2016. It’s true that over 100 earthquakes, including a few “swarms” were reported in the Yellowstone region in March alone, which has fueled a lot of the fear and speculation about possible imminent eruptions. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. A similar magnitude earthquake happened in 1983 in the same area, which is half a lifetime for most of us, but just a second ago on geologic time scales. This tectonic environment has created a series of regional faults that are responsible for large and devastating earthquakes in the Yellowstone region along the Teton and Hebgen Lake Faults. Home of the Daily and Sunday Express. Yellowstone commonly experiences earthquake swarmsa series of earthquakes over a short period of time in a localized area. You don’t have to spend too much time looking online to find fresh tabloid headlines warning about a possible eruption and predictions that the caldera will blow its top sometime in the next year. See today's front and back pages, download the newspaper, Most recently, a devastating M w 7.3 (M s 7.5) earthquake in 1959 killed 28 people and caused $11 million in damage (1959 dollars). This event occurred on August 17, 1959 just west of Yellowstone National Park in the Madison Canyon. The USGS said Yellowstone earthquake activity remains at background levels. YVO scientist-in-charge Mike Poland said in the below monthly update that the earthquakes are not tied to the Yellowstone supervolcano. Human bones were found on the river last year. Yellowstone Volcano remains at NORMAL/GREEN for the June 1, 2020 update. The volcano I want y’all to be aware of is Yellowstone. Yellowstone’s National Park Service said that the region usually has about 700 (7) earthquakes a year. Yellowstone’s last major eruptions took place some 640,000 years, 1.3 million and 2.1 million years ago. READ MORE: ‘First signs’ of Yellowstone eruptions reared amid overdue claims. Ground deformation remains unchanged from last month. Yellowstone earthquake activity remains at background levels. It seems that any time calamity is in the headlines, often whether it has to do with the earth’s plumbing or otherwise, talk online inevitably turns to Yellowstone and the supervolcano that lies beneath the famed park and beyond. You may opt-out by. I began covering Silicon Valley for the now defunct Business 2.0 Magazine in 2000, but when the dot-com bubble burst, I found myself manning a public radio station in the Alaskan Bush for three years. The fault, when it goes, might unleash “only” an earthquake between 8 and 8.6 magnitude, which itself would rank as one of the most powerful and destructive quakes to ever hit the United States. Updated 6 Dec 2020 17:22 GMT - During the past 14 days, there were 5 quakes of magnitude 2.0 or above. The three eruptions occurred 2.1 million, 1.3 million and 0.64 million years ago. “Nevertheless, we cannot discount the possibility of another such eruption occurring sometime in the future, given Yellowstone's volcanic history and the continued presence of magma beneath the Yellowstone caldera.”. Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park, United States. “We're overdue an influenza pandemic. “These are actually related to mountain-building processes in the western US... those sorts of earthquakes are not uncommon for the region.”. PUBLISHED March 19, 2020. Subsidence of Yellowstone Caldera, which has been ongoing since 2015, continued at an average rate of 2-3 cm (about 1 in) per year. According to the USGS, there is also no evidence to support the idea Yellowstone is overdue another blast, based on past eruptions alone. Yellowstone National Park is open and seasonal field work began last month. I cover science and innovation and products and policies they create. We're overdue a recession. PICS/Universal Images Group via Getty Images), No, The Yellowstone Supervolcano Is Actually Not Overdue For An Eruption, EY & Citi On The Importance Of Resilience And Innovation, Impact 50: Investors Seeking Profit — And Pushing For Change, Michigan Economic Development Corporation With Forbes Insights, volcanic eruptions around the Pacific “ring of fire.”, talk online inevitably turns to Yellowstone and the supervolcano that lies beneath, Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) lists the alert level for the Yellowstone Volcano, aftershocks were still being felt from a magnitude 6.5 earthquake near Boise. I've written e-books on Android and Alaska. According to Yellowstone National Park’s website: “Yellowstone is one of the most seismically active areas in the United States…. “Again, the last eruption was 0.64 million years ago, implying that we are still about 90,000 years away from the time when we might consider calling Yellowstone overdue for another caldera-forming eruption. According to the USGS, Yellowstone was struck by 41 weak earthquakes in January. At the same time, the world-famous Steamboat Geyser erupted twice last month, on January 9 and January 23 respectively. Swarm Of Earthquakes In Yellowstone Renews Fears Of Supervolcano Eruption. Mike Poland, Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, gives an overview of activity at Yellowstone during May 2020. But is there any reason for people to genuinely believe Yellowstone volcano is overdue an eruption? But the science states quite simply that no eruption is imminent at Yellowstone and when a real threat does begin to emerge, we’ll start to signs - at an absolute minimum - decades in advance. — USGS in Idaho (@USGS_Idaho) April 16, 2020. On Thursday evening, a 4.5 magnitude earthquake shook the region, the epicenter approximately eight miles northeast of Western Yellowstone in Montana. However, prevailing research suggests that flu vaccines actually raise the risk from coronavirus infection. Last week Yellowstone rumbled again, but with greater intensity. U of U Seismograph Stations Reducing the risk from earthquakes in Utah through research, education, and public service The strongest one measured a magnitude of 3.1. Last summer’s California tremors raised that anxiety, so it shouldn’t be surprising that strong quakes in neighboring states are getting people riled up again. Y ellowstone has experienced the largest historical earthquake in the Intermountain West in the 1959 M W 7.3 Hebgen Lake earthquake. order back issues and use the historic Daily Express For the past decade, I’ve returned to focusing on the world of technology. Small earthquakes in the area are constantly monitored as it could trigger the big eruption they fear the most. YELLOWSTONE has been struck by over a hundred earthquakes in the last month alone, according to US officials monitoring the site of the volatile super volcano, amid growing fears of an eruption. Yellowstone Supervolcano is Hit by 878 Earthquakes in Just Over TWO WEEKS”) from 28 June 2017: A swarm of nearly 900 earthquakes have hit Yellowstone … YVO scientist-in-charge Mike Poland said in the below monthly update that the earthquakes are not tied to the Yellowstone supervolcano. “But for those who insist... let's do the arithmetic. Yellowstone is one of the most seismically active areas in the United States. I've covered science, technology, the environment and politics for outlets including CNET, PC World, BYTE, Wired, AOL and NPR. It’s important to remember that this process obviously happens very slowly over eons. The USGS said: “First of all, one cannot present recurrence intervals based on only two values. 2020-05-29 10:11:15 UTC 1.7 magnitude, 8 km depth West Yellowstone, Montana, United States 1.7 magnitude earthquake 2020-05-29 10:11:15 UTC at 10:11 May 29, 2020 UTC By David Haggith. On the upper scale, Yellowstone can experience up to 3,000 (3) quakes in a year. I've written e-books on Android and Alaska. What you won’t learn if you don’t read beyond the headline or dig deeper than a tweet, however, is that the strongest of those earthquakes was just a magnitude 3.1 and that this kind of activity is “pretty normal,” as Poland puts it. Largest earthquake in Montana. 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