YELLOWSTONE ERUPTION THREAT!!!!!!!

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george_r_1961
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YELLOWSTONE ERUPTION THREAT!!!!!!!

#1 Postby george_r_1961 » Tue May 10, 2005 2:31 am

http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/article ... 4009990004

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. (May 9) - The Yellowstone caldera has been classified a high threat for volcanic eruption, according to a report from the U.S. Geological Survey.

Yellowstone ranks 21st most dangerous of the 169 volcano centers in the United States, according to the Geological Survey's first-ever comprehensive review of the nation's volcanoes.

Kilauea in Hawaii received the highest overall threat score followed by Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainer in Washington, Mount Hood in Oregon and Mount Shasta in California.

Kilauea has been erupting since 1983. Mount St. Helens, which erupted catastrophically in 1980, began venting again in 2004.

Those volcanoes fall within the very high threat group, which includes 18 systems. Yellowstone is classified with 36 others as high threat.

Recurring earthquake swarms, swelling and falling ground, and changes in hydrothermal features are cited in the report as evidence of unrest at Yellowstone.

The report calls for better monitoring of the 55 volcanoes in the very high and high threat categories to track seismic activity, ground bulging, gas emissions and hydrologic changes.

University of Utah geology professor Robert Smith, who monitors earthquakes and volcanic activity in Yellowstone, said more real-time monitoring should be helpful.

''We've really been stressing over the last couple of years that the USGS should consider hazards as a very high priority in their future,'' he said. ''We need to get the public's confidence and the perception that we're doing it right.''

The university has joined the Geological Survey and Yellowstone National Park in creating the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, which uses ground-based instruments throughout the region and satellite data to monitor volcanic and earthquake unrest in the world's first national park.

The USGS report recognizes Yellowstone as an unusual hazard because of the millions of people who visit the park and walk amid features created by North America's largest volcanic system, Smith said, a status he has been advocating for years.

Smith does not paint the devastating picture portrayed in a recent TV docudrama but said smaller threats exist. For example, a lower-scale hydrothermal blast could scald tourists strolling along boardwalks.

Emissions of toxic gases from the park's geothermal features also pose a threat. Five bison dropped dead last year after inhaling poisonous gases trapped near the ground due to cold, calm weather near Norris Geyser Basin.

Stepped up monitoring and a new 24-hour watch office could lead to more timely warnings and help avoid human catastrophes at Yellowstone and nationally, according to the USGS.

Forty-five eruptions, including 15 cases of notable volcanic unrest, have been documented at 33 volcanoes in the U.S. since 1980, according to the report, released April 29.


05-09-05 20:14 EDT
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#2 Postby kevin » Tue May 10, 2005 2:37 am

Yes I read that. At first I was 'oh crap, not this... not what we need' There is no mention of a supervolcanic eruption threat. Let us hope it never does come to that while we're around.
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#3 Postby Brent » Tue May 10, 2005 9:06 am

Relax. It's a new thing the USGS is starting to do... it's like the terror alert, doesn't mean it will happen and it's nothing new. We've known for years Yellowstone has a good chance to erupt. There would be warning signs though... like with Mount St. Helens.

My dad came running in here yesterday about it and I had to calm his nerves. :P
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#4 Postby x-y-no » Tue May 10, 2005 9:08 am

Brent wrote:Relax. It's a new thing the USGS is starting to do... it's like the terror alert, doesn't mean it will happen and it's nothing new. We've known for years Yellowstone has a good chance to erupt. There would be warning signs though... like with Mount St. Helens.

My dad came running in here yesterday about it and I had to calm his nerves. :P


Condition Yellow(stone). :wink:
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#5 Postby southerngale » Tue May 10, 2005 11:20 am

Brent wrote:Relax. It's a new thing the USGS is starting to do... it's like the terror alert, doesn't mean it will happen and it's nothing new. We've known for years Yellowstone has a good chance to erupt. There would be warning signs though... like with Mount St. Helens.

My dad came running in here yesterday about it and I had to calm his nerves. :P


What kind of warning signs? I admit I don't really follow this closely but I would think some of this could be warning signs:


Recent eruptions, 200 degree ground temperatures, bulging magma and 84 degree water temperatures prompt heightened srutiny of park's geothermal activity...



BILLINGS, Mont. -- Yellowstone National Park happens to be on top of one of the largest "super volcanoes" in the world. Geologists claim the Yellowstone Park area has been on a regular eruption cycle of 600,000 years. The last eruption was 640,000 years ago making the next one long overdue. This next eruption could be 2,500 times the size of the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption. Volcanologists have been tracking the movement of magma under the park and have calculated that, in parts of Yellowstone, the ground has risen over seventy centimeters this century.



In July, 2003, Yellowstone Park rangers closed the entire Norris Geyser Basin because of deformation of the land and excessive high ground temperatures. There is an area that is 28 miles long by 7 miles wide that has bulged upward over five inches since 1996, and this year the ground temperature on that bulge has reached over 200 degrees (measured one inch below ground level).



There was no choice but to close off the entire area. Everything in this area is dying: The trees, flowers, grass and shrubs. A dead zone is developing and spreading outward. The animals are literally migrating out of the park.



Then during the last part of July one of the Park geologists discovered a huge bulge at the bottom of Yellowstone Lake. The bulge has already risen over 100 feet from the bottom of the lake and the water temperature at the surface of the bulge has reached 88 degrees and is still rising.



Keep in mind that Yellowstone Lake is a high mountain lake with very cold water temperatures. The Lake is now closed to the public. It is filled with dead fish floating everywhere. The same is true of the Yellowstone river and most of the other streams in the Park. Dead and dying fish are filling the water everywhere.

Many of the picnic areas in the Park have been closed and people visiting the Park usually stay but a few hours before leaving since the stench of sulfur is so strong they literally can't stand the smell.



The irony of all this is the silence by the news media and our government. Very little information is available from Yellowstone personnel or publications. What mainstream newsstories do appear underscore the likelihood of a massive volcanic eruption. Though geologists publicly admit Yellowstone is "overdue," they have been quoted as stating another massive magma release may not occur for 100,000 or 2 million years. Others close to the story are convinced that a massive eruption is imminent. A source that has demonstrated first-hand knowledge of the park's history and recent geothermal events stated the following: "The American people are not being told that the explosion of this 'super volcano' could happen at any moment. When Yellowstone does blow, some geologists predict that every living thing within six hundred miles is likely to die. The movement of magma has been detected just three-tenths of a mile below the bulging surface of the ground in Yellowstone raising concerns that this super volcano may erupt soon." This report was taken from a series of articles, emails and official information at http://www.proliberty.com/observer/20031219.htm

http://www.crawford2000.co.uk/yellblow.htm
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#6 Postby Brent » Tue May 10, 2005 11:32 am

Earthquakes would be the main warning sign... the reason Mt. St. Helens erupted in 1980 was because of a moderately strong earthquake. There had been small earthquakes for months before that. The magma has been rising for decades and decades.

Trust me, there are people who do nothing but monitor every little thing at Yellowstone. If there was any chance of an eruption we would know about it.

FWIW: Most of the well-known volcanoes in the U.S. is on that list, there's actually a level higher than the one Yellowstone is on that includes St. Helens.

Yellowstone ranks 21st most dangerous of the 169 volcano centers in the United States, according to the Geological Survey's first-ever comprehensive review of the nation's volcanoes.

Kilauea in Hawaii received the highest overall threat score followed by Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainier in Washington, Mount Hood in Oregon and Mount Shasta in California. Kilauea has been erupting since 1983. Mount St. Helens, which erupted catastrophically in 1980, began venting again in 2004.

Those volcanoes fall within the very high threat group, which includes 18 systems. Yellowstone is classified with 36 others as high threat.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7789918/
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#7 Postby george_r_1961 » Tue May 10, 2005 1:27 pm

Brent theres no way to tell exactly when an eruption may occur although its starting to look like it could happen in the not to distant future. The preliminary signs are already there.
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#8 Postby Uncle Henry » Tue May 10, 2005 4:46 pm

Brent wrote:Trust me, there are people who do nothing but monitor every little thing at Yellowstone. If there was any chance of an eruption we would know about it.

....Yellowstone is classified with 36 others as high threat.


Sounds rather contradictory to me... you are basically saying "there's no chance - but it is a high threat to erupt sometime soon."

It's amazing that most of Yellowstone is a volcano! :eek:
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#9 Postby kevin » Tue May 10, 2005 5:33 pm

Guys its below the other volcanoes. Including Mt. Ranier and other west coast volcanoes. If there was something going to happen, don't you think it would be #1???

Nothing like the internet to hype situations.
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#10 Postby StormChasr » Tue May 10, 2005 5:36 pm

Everyone is overstating this entire thing. A level 8 erruption Vo8 is not likely. It may have a low level erruption a la St. Helens, or it may do absolutely nothing. I would not worry---it is like the chance of 4 'canes hitting the same area again. It just ain't gonna happen.
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#11 Postby Brent » Tue May 10, 2005 5:39 pm

kevin wrote:Guys its below the other volcanoes. Including Mt. Ranier and other west coast volcanoes. If there was something going to happen, don't you think it would be #1???

Nothing like the internet to hype situations.


Exactly.

A small eruption is always possible... but that's not going to be one that brings the world to a new ice age. It's been 640,000 years and we'll probably all be long past dead when it happens again.
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#12 Postby Brent » Tue May 10, 2005 5:40 pm

Uncle Henry wrote:
Brent wrote:Trust me, there are people who do nothing but monitor every little thing at Yellowstone. If there was any chance of an eruption we would know about it.

....Yellowstone is classified with 36 others as high threat.


Sounds rather contradictory to me... you are basically saying "there's no chance - but it is a high threat to erupt sometime soon."

It's amazing that most of Yellowstone is a volcano! :eek:


Your misunderstanding... it's like the terror alert. "Significant risk of attack" but nothing has happened in 3 1/2 years.
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