4.8 earthquake in Yellowstone

[TNPanther]

Happened last night apparently. People are saying that if one of those badboys in the park erupts it could do a lot of damage to the western US. Any science types here who can explain?

[Niner National]

Yellowstone is one of the largest volcanoes in the world and there have been several climate-changing level eruptions there in the past. I don't remember the exact number, but I'm thinking they have evidence they occur every 600-700,000 years.

 

Doubt these things are related to any event like that, but you never know. It would probably remove the U.S. from super power status if it occurred though. It'd be a very, very serious issue for the entire world, but especially for the U.S.

[Wyank]

Article on it.  Won't let me copy and paste.  

 

Link

[Jakob]

if the Yellowstone caldera super volcano erupted most of North America would be done. Here is a little bit of an article from today..

 

 

 

Geologists are closely monitoring the rise of the Yellowstone Plateau. The upward movement of the Yellowstone caldera floor between 2004 and 2008 was almost 3 inches (about 7 cm) each year, according to a University of Utah scientists report in the journal Science in November 2008. That was more than three times greater than ever observed since such measurements began in 1923. 

"Our best evidence is that the crustal magma chamber is filling with molten rock," said seismologist Robert B. Smith, lead author of the study and professor of geophysics at the University of Utah. 

 

if it actually went off, go south and don't look back.

[Inimicus]

When magma pushes up from deep in the earth and then recedes the depression left behind is called a caldera.

 

 

The purple line in this picture outlines the Yellowstone caldera

 

That's about 34miles by 45 miles (otherwise known as big)  and if it were to blow...

 

They estimate it could be 2000 times as big as the St Helens eruption.

[Jangler]

The Earth is a big tease...let's do this!

[Jakob]

Last year they asked a geologist how it would start, he said this.

 

 

"A super eruption, like all volcanic eruptions, begins with an earthquake. "A lot of earthquakes have to occur to break the rocks and allow magma to get to the surface," 

 

[Porn Shop Clerk]

predicted to erupt within the next 120,000 years.   but it could be next year, or a million years before it erupts.   who knows.

[Ja Rhule]

Look at the all reported earthquakes in yellowstone by the University of Utah

 

http://www.seis.utah.edu/req2webdir/recenteqs/Maps/111-44.html

 

Some are very small but earthquakes are ongoing on daily basis.  They're all concentrated in 1 area and there were 7 earthquakes bove 3.0 magnitude.  It means pressure is building.

[Darth Biscuit]

If it does decide to erupt our life here in the US is probably over.

 

Having said that, I believe it is being closely monitored (which is pretty easy nowadays with GPS benchmarks) for elevation rises, which I believe also are occurring... we should have a pretty good idea if something is going to happen.

 

Not really anything that can be done about it however.

 

Lots of interesting reading on the web about the Yellowstone Caldera.

[Porn Shop Clerk]

i subscribe to the theory that its dying and won't erupt again.  doesn't mean there won't be massive earthquakes and magma eruptions as the caldera collapses

[Ja Rhule]

If it does decide to erupt our life here in the US is probably over.

 

Having said that, I believe it is being closely monitored (which is pretty easy nowadays with GPS benchmarks) for elevation rises, which I believe also are occurring... we should have a pretty good idea if something is going to happen.

 

Not really anything that can be done about it however.

 

Lots of interesting reading on the web about the Yellowstone Caldera.

 

They would keep hush hush... imaging the panic and chaos it would cause?

[Darth Biscuit]

They would keep hush hush... imaging the panic and chaos it would cause?

 

Possibly but they can't keep the earthquakes hush hush.  If this thing starts to build, there'll be a lot more of those.

[Ja Rhule]

Possibly but they can't keep the earthquakes hush hush. If this thing starts to build, there'll be a lot more of those.

When u get 7.0 earthquake... It will be time to pack your poo.