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  • Yellowstone Earthquake Causes Little Damage

    A magnitude 4.8 earthquake rattled Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming on Sunday near the Montana border, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Several aftershocks with a magnitude over 3 were also recorded.

    USGS Yellowstone Volcano Observatory spokesman Peter Cervelli noted that the epicenter of the quake was situated in the middle of park, near the Norris Geyser Basin. Cervilli added that no damage was reported, and that there were not many visitors during the time of the event.

    The park sits atop of the Yellowstone Caldera, sometimes called the Yellowstone Supervolcano, a volcanic caldera. Seismic activity is commonplace in the region, and the Yellowstone Caldera sees between 1000 and 2000 measurable earthquakes a year, though most register a magnitude 3 or less. On occasion, a flurry of earthquakes is detected in rapid succession, an event called an earthquake swarm.

    Here’s some information on the caldera:

    Cervilli pointed out that Sunday’s quake, which occurred at 12:34 am GMT, will likely generate more secondary shockwaves in addition to the three already recorded, though noted that volcanic activity isn’t expected. Yet, Sunday’s earthquake was the most powerful recorded in the park since 1985, when seismologists logged 3,000 events up to magnitude 4.9 during a three-month period.

    The last major eruption of the Yellowstone Supervolcano was the Lava Creek event which occurred 640,000 years ago, which ejected approximately 240 cubic miles of pyroclastic detritus into the air. A repeat of an eruption of that magnitude today might render a large portion of the western United States uninhabitable for at least a decade.

    Geologists have closely monitored the rise of the Yellowstone Plateau, which has seen an accelerated upward movement of almost 3 inches per year between 2004 and 2008. This rise is indicative of an increase in magma chamber pressure. Seismologist Robert B. Smith, lead author of the study and professor of geophysics at the University of Utah, commented,”Our best evidence is that the crustal magma chamber is filling with molten rock. But we have no idea how long this process goes on before there either is an eruption or the inflow of molten rock stops and the caldera deflates again.”

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Yellowstone Earthquake Won’t Cause Volcanic Eruption

    Yellowstone National Park was struck by a magnitude 4.8 earthquake on Sunday morning and scientists say that it is the strongest earthquake to strike the area in 34 years. The quake struck at 6:34 a.m. with an epicenter about 23 miles from Yellowstone, Montana, and at a depth of 4.2 miles.

    The quake is considered fairly small and only a few people reported feeling it. Those who did feel it compared it to the rumble of a passing train. Several smaller quakes were also felt that morning, but no damage or injuries were reported. There were only a few visitors in the park at the time of the quake.

    Although many people feared that the quake might have triggered the mega volcano underneath the park to erupt, geophysicists say that there is nothing to worry about and the volcano is not going to erupt because of the earthquake.

    Geologists are monitoring the volcano and say that when it does erupt, it could do so with 2,000 times the force of Mount St. Helens in Washington. In 2013, geologists determined that the magma chamber underneath the volcano was much bigger than they had originally thought.

    Scientists know that the volcano will erupt again but are not sure when. Each earthquake that occurs makes the volcano more likely to erupt. The biggest earthquake to hit Yellowstone National Park happened on August 17, 1959. The Yellowstone volcano last erupted 640,000 years ago.

    The volcano experiences up to 20 small earthquakes each day. Most of them measure less than 3.0 on the Richter scale and are not felt by people. Geologists study the effects these earthquakes have on the volcano to determine if they are likely to trigger an eruption. They have no way of predicting when the volcano will erupt or if a large earthquake will trigger an eruption.

    Do you think an earthquake will trigger the Yellowstone volcano to erupt?

    Image via Wikimedia Commons