Volcanoes are something we’ve all heard of. While some of us may have heard of them, others may be inexperienced with them as experienced would be long dead by now.
A volcano is a vent in the Earth’s crust that babbles molten or hot rock together with steam.
Volcanoes can be found on land, in deep oceans, or even along mid-ocean ridges. Some volcanoes are enormous, while others are little, and some are active while others are dormant.
A lot of visitors like to see volcanoes, but only those that are no longer active, of course!
What Is Special About This Yellowstone Volcano?
If the Supervolcano under Yellowstone National Park erupted again, ash would be blown hundreds of miles across the United States, destroying houses, suffocating crops, and shutting down power facilities. It would be a complete disaster. But it is the remote potential of deadly “super-eruptions” that draws so much attention to Yellowstone.
A super-eruption is defined as an eruption with a magnitude of 8 or higher on the Volcano Explosivity Index, discharging at least 1,000 cubic kilometers (240 cubic miles) of material. That would be enough to bury Texas five feet beneath the surface. That’s how he earned the moniker SUPERVOLCANO.
But it doesn’t mean we should all start freaking out and saying our goodbyes at the same time!! No way. Thankfully, the chances of it happening are slim. Only three genuinely massive eruptions have occurred in the history of the Yellowstone Supervolcano, which is thousands of times more powerful than a usual volcano.
One happened 2.1 million years ago, one happened 1.3 million years ago, and another happened 664,000 years ago.
What Are The Chances Of Volcano Eruption And How Does That Actually Work?
So, the basic procedure of volcano eruption is that a five-mile-deep pool of hot lava lurks under Yellowstone National Park, fed by a massive surge of molten rock rising from hundreds of miles below. In addition to this, many of the park’s famed geysers and hot springs are due to the heat. As magma flows into the chamber and cools, the earth above rises and lowers regularly. Feels like making him breathe!!
So, some of mentioned below points can be the reason why this giant Supervolcano might get angry and increased the chances of eruption.
Earthquake – An earthquake swarm occurs when a large number of earthquakes are observed in a relatively short period. Over several months in 1985, more than 3,000 earthquakes were recorded.
In December 2008 and January 2009, more than 500 earthquakes were recorded beneath the Northwest end of Yellowstone Lake, with the biggest magnitude of 3.9. What is more, these little shakings might get the Supervolcano irritated.
Volcanoes – The Lava Creek eruption (about 640,000 years ago) expelled roughly 1,000 cubic kilometers (240 cubic miles) of rock, dust, and volcanic ash into the atmosphere, making it the final Supereruption of the Yellowstone Caldera.
Between 2004 and 2008, the Yellowstone caldera floor rose by almost 75 millimeters (3.0 in) each year.
NASA performed research in 2017 to see if it was possible to prevent the volcano from erupting. According to the findings, cooling the magma chamber by 35% would be adequate to prevent such an occurrence. NASA suggested injecting high-pressure water into the earth at a depth of 10 kilometers just to keep him cool!!!
Hydrothermal Explosions – The flowing water would produce heat near the surface, which might be exploited as a source of geothermal energy. The idea would cost $3.46 billion if implemented.
Hydrothermal activity, which occurs independently of volcanic activity, may pose a bigger threat, according to studies and analyses. In the last 14,000 years, over 20 huge craters have formed, resulting in features including Mary Bay, Turbid Lake, and Indian Pond, which were formed in an eruption about 1300 BC.
How Will It Look Like If The Supervolcano Might Get Angry?
The most likely eruption scenario in Yellowstone is a smaller eruption with lava flows and a potential volcanic explosion. As the magma made its way to the surface, a swarm of earthquakes would likely occur in a specific area of the park.
In addition to this, the warning signals would be substantially larger in the rare case of a much larger super-eruption. Before an eruption, the tremors might take weeks or months to crack up the rocks above the magma as he is a bit tough!!!
Volcanic ash – a mixture of shattered rock and glass — blasted miles into the air and spread over the country would do the most destruction. The eruption would produce an umbrella cloud that would spread evenly in all directions.
Well, now that was a really startling discovery. A super-eruption may cover the northern Rockies in three feet of ash, wreaking havoc throughout Wyoming, Idaho, Colorado, Montana, and Utah. Meanwhile, the Midwest would get a few inches of ash, with even lesser quantities on both coastlines.
Ash, Ash, Ash!!! That much volcanic ash has the potential to kill people, plants, and animals, as well as destroy buildings. Even a few inches of ash (which is what much of the nation is likely to experience) may ruin crops, jam highways, create major respiratory issues, block sewage systems, and even short out transformers. Much of North America’s air traffic would have to be halted.
A large volcanic eruption would have a significant impact on the worldwide climate. Volcanoes may spew sulfur aerosols into the atmosphere, which reflect sunlight and chill the environment. The impact is just transitory since these particles are short-lived in the atmosphere, yet it may still be spectacular.
Also, there are currently no signs of an upcoming eruption. Earthquakes continue to strike Yellowstone Park, and the ground continues to rise and fall, but this is nothing unusual.
The chances are extremely excellent that Yellowstone will remain eruption-free for the next millennia. The Earth will witness super-eruptions in the future, but will they occur in Yellowstone? Yellowstone has already had a prolonged life. It may not even see the fourth eruption.
