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1 ott 2024 · The largest event of the month was a micro earthquake of magnitude 2.2 located about 5 miles west of West Thumb in Yellowstone National Park on September 1 at 5:09 AM UTC (August 31 at 11:09 PM MDT). There were no swarms identified during the month of September.
1 ott 2024 · The largest event of the month was a micro earthquake of magnitude 2.2 located about 5 miles west of West Thumb in Yellowstone National Park on September 1 at 5:09 AM UTC (August 31 at 11:09 PM MDT). There were no swarms identified during the month of September.
- Overview
- So what is an earthquake swarm?
- What is a supervolcano?
- Still, earthquake swarms and supervolcanoes… Should we be worried?
- Photos of Volcanoes Around the World
Hundreds of earthquakes have rocked the famous supervolcano in the past few days, but this seismic activity is regular in the region.
Something is rocking the massive supervolcano beneath Yellowstone National Park.
Thanks to a recent earthquake swarm, the Yellowstone supervolcano has seen upwards of 200 quakes since February 8, along with countless smaller tremors. The largest earthquake was an unremarkable magnitude 2.9, and all of them have hit about five miles beneath the surface. Larger earthquakes have rocked the region in the past, some as destructive as the Hebgen Lake quake and others causing minimal damage.
With this most recent swarm, scientists say there's no reason to worry. "Supervolcano" and "earthquake swarm" might seem like daunting terms on the surface, but in Yellowstone National Park, these geologic features are relatively nonthreatening.
Earthquake swarms occur when a single area experiences an increase in quakes over a short period of time without the trigger of a single, larger "mainshock." Swarms can result from changes in stress along fault lines, which can be caused by either large-scale tectonic forces or pressure buildup due to changes in magma, water, or gas underneath Earth's surface. (Related: "Why Alaska is Uniquely Prone to Earthquakes and Tsunamis")
4:46
Earthquakes 101
Earthquakes can leave behind incredible devastation, while also creating some of the planet's most magnificent formations. Learn about the geophysics behind earthquakes, how they are measured, and where the most powerful earthquake ever witnessed occurred.
The area where this current swarm is happening—about 8 miles northeast of West Yellowstone, Montana—is under pressure from both these forces, since Yellowstone is a hotbed for seismicity. But earthquake swarms are frequent in the region, accounting for more than half of the parks' seismic activity. And they haven't triggered any volcanic eruptions yet.
Last year, a swarm ten times larger than the current one rocked the same region, generating about 2,400 earthquakes between June and September 2017. This year's swarm could actually be just a continuation of last year's, since seismic activity in the area can be sporadic but ongoing.
A supervolcano is exactly what it sounds like—a massive volcano that is capable of erupting with devastating global consequences. A huge magma pocket lurks below the Yellowstone supervolcano, which violently erupted more than 630,000 years ago. That burst rocked the region, spewing forth ash and rock and carving out a volcanic depression that cradles most of the national park today. (Peek inside Yellowstone's supervolcano with our magazine interactive.)
Terrifying as this may sound, the Yellowstone supervolcano is not going to erupt anytime soon. It's been dormant for tens of centuries, and the most recent eruption happened about 70,000 years ago.
"It is not an imminent hazard," volcanologist Guillaume Girard told National Geographic in 2012. "Every study has concluded that there is no magma that is ready to erupt within any foreseeable future."
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Five Must-See Attractions in Yellowstone
As the world's first national park, Yellowstone has astonished visitors for over a century. Have the rare chance to see grizzly bears, bison, and a thriving population of grey wolves in their natural habitat. Located primarily in the state of Wyoming, Yellowstone National Park sits atop an enormous, slumbering supervolcano and is home to half of the world's geysers. From a 300-foot-tall waterfall to giant hot springs, here are five must-see attractions in Yellowstone.
In short—no.
"While it may seem worrisome, the current seismicity is relatively weak and actually represents an opportunity to learn more about Yellowstone," researchers Michael Poland and Farrell write in a column for the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. "It is during periods of change when scientists can develop, test, and refine their models of how the Yellowstone volcanic system works."
Earthquake swarms are common in Yellowstone, and there's nothing to be concerned about. Of the 1,000 to 3,000 quakes that happen each year in Yellowstone, most are not felt. The largest swarm on record happened in 1985, when more than 3,000 earthquakes hit the area over the course of three months.
It's worth noting that Yellowstone is one of the best monitored volcanoes in the world, closely studied by diligent researchers armed with a slew of data from sensors and satellites. Their task is to look for geologic changes in the area.
As for the current earthquake swarm hitting the Yellowstone supervolcano?
"It's slowly petering out, although these things wax and wane, so it's a bit difficult to say that it's ending," Poland tells Newsweek. "Yellowstone is just a very swarmy place."
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Mount Semeru, seen with an ash plume, is the highest volcano on the Indonesian island of Java and has been in a constant eruption since 1967. It lies at the southern end of the Tengger caldera, which contains smaller volcanoes Mount Bromo and Mount Batok (both seen in the foreground), and several others.
Mount Semeru, seen with an ash plume, is the highest volcano on the Indonesian island of Java and has been in a constant eruption since 1967. It lies at the southern end of the Tengger caldera, which contains smaller volcanoes Mount Bromo and Mount Batok (both seen in the foreground), and several others.
- Elaina Zachos
These earthquakes, however, do not cause volcanic eruptions at Yellowstone. The last time magma reached the surface there was a lava flow about 70,000 years ago. Since that time, there must have been over 10,000 M6+ events in the Basin and Range!
The Yellowstone Caldera, sometimes referred to as the Yellowstone Supervolcano, is a volcanic caldera and supervolcano in Yellowstone National Park in the Western United States. The caldera and most of the park are located in the northwest corner of the state of Wyoming.
The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) is a consortium of nine state and federal agencies who provide timely monitoring and hazard assessment of volcanic, hydrothermal, and earthquake activity in the Yellowstone Plateau region.
1 lug 2024 · June seismicity in Yellowstone was marked by one swarm of 29 earthquakes that occurred June 6–9 and was located about 9 miles north-northeast of West Yellowstone, Montana. The largest earthquake in the sequence was a magnitude 1.5 on June 7 at 6:19 PM MDT.
