Yellowstone+Supervolcano

The Yellowstone supervolcano (or Yellowstone caldera) is a 55 km by 72 km volcanic caldera located in the Yellowstone National Park in the United States. The caldera has erupted at least three times before, 2.1 million, 1.3million and lastly 640 000 years ago, forming the Island Park Caldera, the Henry's Fork Caldera, and the Yellowstone calderas, respectively. The geysers, one of the main attractions in the park are a direct result of the volcanic activity below.

The Yellowstone supervolcano is only one of the seven known supervolcanos. A supereruption of the caldera would instantly wipe out anything within an almost 500 km radius. Additionally, it would eject over 1000 square kilometers of rock, dust and volcanic ash, of which the ash and dust carried by the winds would form a layer in the atmosphere, blocking almost any radiotion from the sun and ultimately causing a new ice age. These changes in the climate would result in mass extinctions, famine and other problems around the world.



It is a known fact that the Yellowstone caldera will erupt sometime in the future. When, though, is imposible to predict. Scientists are actively mesuring any elevations of the ground, caused by pressure changes in the magma chamber below. The ground has risen over 72 cm since the measurements first began in 1923, roughly 1 cm/year, indicating a steady increase in the pressure. Any earthquakes in the area, caused by the volcanic activity, are also being carefully monitored. The region experiences roughly 1000-2000 measurable earthquakes a year, though, in 1984 over 3000 of such earthquakes were measured within just a few months.