How would an eruption of Mount Rainier compare to the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens?
Eruptions of Mount Rainier usually produce much less volcanic ash than do eruptions at Mount St. Helens. However, owing to the volcano's great height and widespread cover of snow and glacier ice, eruption triggered debris flows (lahars) at Mount Rainier are likely to be much larger--and will travel a greater distance--than those at Mount St. Helens in 1980. Furthermore, areas at risk from debris flows from Mount Rainier are more densely populated than similar areas around Mount St. Helens.
Learn more: USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory
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Filter Total Items: 18
Volcano hazards from Mount Rainier, Washington, revised 1998 Volcano hazards from Mount Rainier, Washington, revised 1998
Mount Rainier—at 4393 meters (14,410 feet) the highest peak in the Cascade Range—is a dormant volcano whose load of glacier ice exceeds that of any other mountain in the conterminous United States. This tremendous mass of rock and ice, in combination with great topographic relief, poses a variety of geologic hazards, both during inevitable future eruptions and during the intervening...
Authors
R. Hoblitt, J. Wilder, C. Driedger, K. Scott, P. Pringle, J.W. Vallance
Volcanoes! Volcanoes!
Volcanoes is an interdisciplinary set of materials for grades 4-8. Through the story of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, students will answer fundamental questions about volcanoes: "What is a volcano?" "Where do volcanoes occur and why?" "What are the effects of volcanoes on the Earth system?" "What are the risks and the benefits of living near volcanoes?" "Can scientists forecast...
Authors
Water Resources Division U.S. Geological Survey
This dynamic earth: the story of plate tectonics This dynamic earth: the story of plate tectonics
In the early 1960s, the emergence of the theory of plate tectonics started a revolution in the earth sciences. Since then, scientists have verified and refined this theory, and now have a much better understanding of how our planet has been shaped by plate-tectonic processes. We now know that, directly or indirectly, plate tectonics influences nearly all geologic processes, past and...
Authors
W. Kious, Robert Tilling
A method for estimating intermediate and long-term risks from volcanic activity, with an example from Mount St. Helens, Washington A method for estimating intermediate and long-term risks from volcanic activity, with an example from Mount St. Helens, Washington
No abstract available.
Authors
C. Newhall
The 1980 eruptions of Mount St. Helens, Washington The 1980 eruptions of Mount St. Helens, Washington
No abstract available.
Authors
Peter Lipman, Donal Mullineaux
The Geologic Story of Mount Rainier The Geologic Story of Mount Rainier
Ice-clad Mount Rainier, towering over the landscape of western Washington, ranks with Fuji-yama in Japan, Popocatepeti in Mexico, and Vesuvius in Italy among the great volcanoes of the world. At Mount Rainier, as at other inactive volcanoes, the ever-present possibility of renewed eruptions gives viewers a sense of anticipation, excitement, and apprehension not equaled by most other...
Authors
Dwight Crandell
Related
Filter Total Items: 18
Volcano hazards from Mount Rainier, Washington, revised 1998 Volcano hazards from Mount Rainier, Washington, revised 1998
Mount Rainier—at 4393 meters (14,410 feet) the highest peak in the Cascade Range—is a dormant volcano whose load of glacier ice exceeds that of any other mountain in the conterminous United States. This tremendous mass of rock and ice, in combination with great topographic relief, poses a variety of geologic hazards, both during inevitable future eruptions and during the intervening...
Authors
R. Hoblitt, J. Wilder, C. Driedger, K. Scott, P. Pringle, J.W. Vallance
Volcanoes! Volcanoes!
Volcanoes is an interdisciplinary set of materials for grades 4-8. Through the story of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, students will answer fundamental questions about volcanoes: "What is a volcano?" "Where do volcanoes occur and why?" "What are the effects of volcanoes on the Earth system?" "What are the risks and the benefits of living near volcanoes?" "Can scientists forecast...
Authors
Water Resources Division U.S. Geological Survey
This dynamic earth: the story of plate tectonics This dynamic earth: the story of plate tectonics
In the early 1960s, the emergence of the theory of plate tectonics started a revolution in the earth sciences. Since then, scientists have verified and refined this theory, and now have a much better understanding of how our planet has been shaped by plate-tectonic processes. We now know that, directly or indirectly, plate tectonics influences nearly all geologic processes, past and...
Authors
W. Kious, Robert Tilling
A method for estimating intermediate and long-term risks from volcanic activity, with an example from Mount St. Helens, Washington A method for estimating intermediate and long-term risks from volcanic activity, with an example from Mount St. Helens, Washington
No abstract available.
Authors
C. Newhall
The 1980 eruptions of Mount St. Helens, Washington The 1980 eruptions of Mount St. Helens, Washington
No abstract available.
Authors
Peter Lipman, Donal Mullineaux
The Geologic Story of Mount Rainier The Geologic Story of Mount Rainier
Ice-clad Mount Rainier, towering over the landscape of western Washington, ranks with Fuji-yama in Japan, Popocatepeti in Mexico, and Vesuvius in Italy among the great volcanoes of the world. At Mount Rainier, as at other inactive volcanoes, the ever-present possibility of renewed eruptions gives viewers a sense of anticipation, excitement, and apprehension not equaled by most other...
Authors
Dwight Crandell
Updated Date: August 18, 2025