Volcanic hazard
A full-scale eruption of the Yellowstone caldera could result in millions of deaths locally and catastrophic climatic effects globally, but there is little indication that such an eruption is imminent. [1] However, the system is not yet completely understood, and the study of Yellowstone is ongoing. Geologists are closely monitoring the rise and fall of the Yellowstone Plateau, which averages +/- 1.5 cm yearly, as an indication of changes in magma chamber pressure.[1][2] Major eruptions of the Yellowstone hotspot appear to occur roughly every 700,000 years. The Lava Creek Tuff eruption 630,000 years ago was the last major eruption. The Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field developed through three volcanic cycles spanning two million years that included some of the worlds largest known eruptions. ...
Here's a survey map from the USGS with colored legend of areas and places of interest.
(Hope that pic worked?
) www.nationmaster.com...
I live in the Dakotas of the USA, and they actually have an evacuation plan in hand, but the one thing that does allow fear to be instituted into the individuals that live in these areas of concern is that the warning may not be soon enough.
To put things into perspective:
Mount St. Helens explosion in 1980 lasted for nine hours and ejected about 1.2 cubic kilometers of material. Some of the ash circled the globe and stayed in the air for two weeks.
Yellowstone Caldera blew 600,000 years ago, ejecting 1,000 k3 of material and covering half of North America in two meters of debris.
The Toba event 75,000 years ago ejected 2,300 k3 of magma and ash over a two week period, causing the global temperature to drop as much as 10° C in a volcanic winter that lasted six years
The Toba supervolcano has a Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) rating of 8, or "mega-colossal", topping the scale (there is no 9).
There has been a "Super Volcano" comparison and it looks as if "Toba" has won the "Biggest Kid on the block" award.
www.alphapatriot.com...
Here's a excerpt from a documentary that was done sometime back with Tom Brokaw, it doesn't really talk of when the the caldera will erupt, but it does talk about the effects it would have on the planet and the people of the world.
BBC FILMING DOCUMENTARY ON JUNE 22, 2004
EDITORS NOTE: On 7-31-05, I watched a film on the Discovery Channel with Tom Brokaw, most of which was fiction based on a future scenario but, based on real science of Yellowstone history, and using real films from Mt. St. Helens' (1980), Phillipines - Mt. Pinatubo (1991), Hawaii, and Central America. The film was very well done with real science interspersed into the fictionalized future scenario.
The scenario was based on the real 2003 heat up of the Norris Geyser at Yellowstone and the fact that it has been shown that the land is raising over time. Norris Basin itself has raised 5 inches, and the entire Caldera has raised 35 inches since 1923.
It is also known that one end of Yellowstone Lake is 100 feet higher than it used to be and flooding the land at the other end and killing the trees. Trees in various parts of the park are dying because their roots are cooking from the heat under the ground. Bison have died from gas coming out of the holes in the ground.
Water is now boiling along the trails. Some people have fallen into this water and been severely injured. Some paths are now closed.
In the film, they told people that there might be an imminent small eruption and they should prepare for 3 days of being home, and then evacuated all the people from 100 miles around the caldera.
In reality, if there is an eruption, larger than Mt. St. Helens, we would need at least a year's worth of supplies because no food could be grown, farm lands would be useless, temperatures would drop by as much as 15 degrees. Within 3 months, the entire world would be covered by clouds.
Millions of people would die - most within the surrounding 100 miles - fewer people would die from inhalation of ash as it spreads mostly east and south from the caldera in widening circles around the area. 600 miles from the caldera is not safe at all.
FEMA could not handle this big an event. The U.S. economy would come to a halt. Grocery stores would empty out, airlines, trains, buses, and roads would stop.
Though at the end of the film, during the last half hour, Tom Brokaw and workers at Yellowstone Park tried to make it seem like nothing is going to happen, it is already known that the scientists who are monitoring what is going on at Yellowstone is being withheld from the public.
The real truth is, WILL NOT BE TOLD HOW BIG OR HOW BAD AN ERUPTION CAN BE, and the last word by the Yellowstone worker was, "Come and visit Yellowstone and see how it really is."
This is probably a good idea - people 'should' go see what is going on. Don't just go there and see how pretty all the steam and water is that is shooting up out of the ground. Find out the real science of the area and how it is changing.
www.earthmountainview.com...
Here's another read that declares the Yellowstone caldera as one of the 4 most scariest scenarios facing our planet.
Picturesque Yellowstone National Park, one of the most beautiful natural tourist destinations in the world, sits atop one of the largest super volcanoes on the planet. If it erupted, the consequences for the entire planet would be catastrophic. What are the chances it will erupt soon? Geologists say it has an eruption cycle of about 600,000 years and last erupted about 640,000 years ago… meaning, it’s well overdue. And it’s been estimated that Yellowstone’s next eruption could be 2,500 times greater than the Mount St. Helens eruption in 1980. According to The Discovery Channel, which broadcast a documentary about the Yellowstone volcano, “a full-scale eruption of the Yellowstone hot spot would result in a disaster of global proportions." Ash would cover the entire Western half of the United States; the park would be completely wiped out, along with any nearby towns; the plume of ash would reach 20 miles into the atmosphere, lowering global temperatures and plunging us all into a volcanic winter.
paranormal.about.com...
As for the exact time and date, there is no verifiable moment to extract from the existing knowledge of the Yellowstone caldera, all we can say for sure is that it is on the "Growth" path that the scientists have been monitoring for the past century.
