Would the big one cause Yellowstone to erupt?

So strong earthquakes can indeed have an impact on volcanoes. But triggering eruptions? That's not common, especially in the mainland USA, where hundreds of M7+ events have clearly had no impact on volcanoes like Yellowstone, Long Valley, Coso, and elsewhere.



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If another large, caldera-forming eruption were to occur at Yellowstone, its effects would be worldwide. Such a giant eruption would have regional effects such as falling ash and short-term (years to decades) changes to global climate.

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A: For the most likely type of volcanic eruption in Yellowstone, everywhere would be safe except in the immediate vicinity of the advancing lava flow. In the highly improbable event of a large catastrophic eruption, the great the distance from the eruptive center, the safer it would be.

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The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) also states that it is very unlikely that a nuclear blast could trigger an eruption of Yellowstone. The now-dormant volcano has been undisturbed by much greater releases of energy in the form of earthquakes.

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The lava flows themselves would be contained within a relatively small radius within the park — say, 40 miles or so. In fact, only about one-third of the material would actually make it up into the atmosphere.

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Yellowstone's greatest geological threat isn't a supervolcano. It's a magnitude-7 earthquake. YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. – While concerns about a potential eruption of the supervolcano beneath this iconic park may garner the most alarming headlines, a more likely hazard in the coming decades is a large earthquake.

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Some stats on the Yellowstone supervolcano: A super-eruption would equal the force of 1,000 Hiroshima atomic bombs exploding every second. You could fit Tokyo, the world's biggest city, in Yellowstone's super-volcanic crater.

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Can we survive a Yellowstone eruption? A massive eruption of the Yellowstone supervolcano would spread deadly ash for thousands of miles, killing plant life and affecting humans in its path. Humans who were in its path would surely die, but it would not mean the extinction of the entire human race.

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In a 2015 article he wrote for the Russian state media outlet VPK News, Sivkov said Moscow could counter NATO moving to the borders of Russia by dropping a nuclear weapon near Yellowstone's supervolcano or the San Andreas fault. Geologists believe that the Yellowstone supervolcano could explode at any moment.

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Based on past research and the general location of the volcano itself, the blast radius of Yellowstone's calderas is quite large. When it comes to lava and magma flows spewing forth from this volcanic eruption, Yellowstone National Park would likely need to evacuate everyone within a 40 to 50 mile radius.

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Yellowstone has erupted three times in the last 2.1 million years, the most recent eruption taking place over 600 thousand years ago. A modern-day eruption of Yellowstone would obliterate a unique ecosystem and catastrophically alter the world in which we live.

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During August 2023, the University of Utah Seismograph Stations, responsible for the operation and analysis of the Yellowstone Seismic Network, located 136 earthquakes in the Yellowstone National Park region.

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Yellowstone volcano eruption simulations show an unexpected blast would produce ash fallout from the Northwest US down to the southern tip of Florida. Volcanic ash fallout of more than 39.4 inches (one metre) would blanket Yellowstone's immediate vicinity in the states of Wyoming, Montana and Utah.

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Always stay at least 100 yards (91 m) away from bears and wolves, and at least 25 yards (23 m) away from all other animals, including bison and elk. Hot springs have injured or killed more people in Yellowstone than any other natural feature. Keep your children close and don't let them run.

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Many Cities Would Be Blanketed In A Thick Layer Of Ash. California, New York, and Texas would also be impacted by falling ash, per the US Geological Survey.

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