Natural Hazards

When was the last time Yellowstone erupted?

The most recent volcanic activity at Yellowstone consisted of rhyolitic lava flows that erupted approximately 70,000 years ago. The largest of these flows formed the Pitchstone Plateau in southwestern Yellowstone National Park.

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Excelsior Geyser erupting as a violent hydrothermal explosion. The ...

What type of eruption will Yellowstone have if it erupts again?

The most likely explosive event to occur at Yellowstone is actually a hydrothermal explosion —a rock-hurling geyser eruption—or a lava flow . Hydrothermal explosions are very small; they occur in Yellowstone National Park every few years and form a crater a few meters across. Every few thousand years, a hydrothermal explosion will form a crater as...

Large umbrella shaped cloud of volcanic ash viewed from a distance

How do the giant eruptions in the Yellowstone National Park region compare to other large historic eruptions?

The diagram below shows that the three largest Yellowstone eruptions emitted much more material than the eruptions of Mount St. Helens (1980), Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines (1991), Krakatau in Indonesia (1883, incorrectly known as Krakatoa), and Tambora in Indonesia (1815). The largest eruption in the last two million years was about 74,000...

Image: Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, Alaska

What was the largest volcanic eruption in the 20th century?

The world's largest eruption of the 20th century occurred in 1912 at Novarupta on the Alaska Peninsula. An estimated 15 cubic kilometers of magma was explosively erupted during 60 hours beginning on June 6th. This volume is equivalent to 230 years of eruption at Kilauea (Hawaii) or about 30 times the volume erupted by Mount St. Helens (Washington...

Image: Aerial View of Mauna Loa Volcano, Hawaii

Where is the largest active volcano in the world?

Rising gradually to more than 4 km (2.5 mi) above sea level, Hawaii’s Mauna Loa is the largest active volcano on our planet. Its submarine flanks descend to the sea floor an additional 5 km (3 mi), and the sea floor in turn is depressed by Mauna Loa's great mass another 8 km (5 mi). This makes the volcano's summit about 17 km (10.5 mi) above its...

High-resolution lidar image of Mount St. Helens, Washington.

What was the most destructive volcanic eruption in the history of the United States?

The May 18, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens (Washington) was the most destructive in the history of the United States. Novarupta (Katmai) Volcano in Alaska erupted considerably more material in 1912, but owing to the isolation and sparse population of the region, there were no human deaths and little property damage. In contrast, the eruption of...

Aerial view of the caldera of Mt Tambora, island of Sumbawa, Indonesia.

What are some examples of supervolcanoes?

Volcanoes that have produced exceedingly voluminous pyroclastic eruptions and formed large calderas in the past 2 million years include Yellowstone, Long Valley in eastern California, Toba in Indonesia, and Taupo in New Zealand. Other 'supervolcanoes' would likely include the large caldera volcanoes of Japan, Indonesia, Alaska (e.g. Aniakchak,...

Aerial view of the caldera of Mt Tambora, island of Sumbawa, Indonesia.

What are some examples of supervolcanoes?

Volcanoes that have produced exceedingly voluminous pyroclastic eruptions and formed large calderas in the past 2 million years include Yellowstone, Long Valley in eastern California, Toba in Indonesia, and Taupo in New Zealand. Other 'supervolcanoes' would likely include the large caldera volcanoes of Japan, Indonesia, Alaska (e.g. Aniakchak,...

Screenshot of Volcanoes and Current Activity Alerts

How many active volcanoes are there on Earth?

There are about 1,500 potentially active volcanoes worldwide, aside from the continuous belts of volcanoes on the ocean floor at spreading centers like the Mid-Atlantic Ridge . About 500 of those 1,500 volcanoes have erupted in historical time. Many of those are located along the Pacific Rim in what is known as the " Ring of Fire ." In the United...

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January 22, 2014

The Yellowstone Volcano: Past, Present and Future

Public Lecture on Yellowstone Volcano by Jake Lowenstern at Menlo Park, CA on January 23, 2014. The Q&A at the end of the talk can be found on the original source video (Source URL).

Attribution: Natural Hazards, Volcano Hazards Program Office, Yellowstone

Image: Active Lava Flow

July 22, 2010

Active Lava Flow

Flows continue to be active south of the Kalapana access road, heading in a generally eastward direction. These breakouts were active just a few hundred meters east of the County lava viewing area.

Attribution: Hawaiian Volcano Observatory

Image: Lava Flow

April 27, 2010

Lava Flow

Lava, on its southward journey to the ocean, crossed and buried the County lava viewing trail. The viewing area was relocated a short distance back from the flow margin.

Attribution: Volcano Hazards Program Office

Image: Lava Flow Breakouts

March 16, 2010

Lava Flow Breakouts

After a short pause in surface activity late last week, breakouts resumed over the weekend and continued through this week. Scattered pahoehoe flows were located above the pali, about 1.6 km (1 mile) north of Royal Gardens subdivision.

Attribution: Volcano Hazards Program Office

Image: Lava Flows

December 29, 2009

Lava Flows

This is the upper-most of several active breakouts from the lava tube system that started over this past weekend. Pu`u `Ō `ō is at the upper right.

Attribution: Volcano Hazards Program Office

video thumbnail: Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (Part 2 of 3)

January 29, 2009

Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (Part 2 of 3)

USGS Scientist-in-Charge of Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, Jake Lowenstern, answers
the following questions to provide a tour of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory: "What is YVO?", "How
do you monitor volcanic activity at Yellowstone?", "How are satellites used to study deformation?", "Do
you monitor geysers or any other aspect of the Park?", "Are

Attribution: Yellowstone

video thumbnail: Yellowstone Eruptions (Part 3 of 3)

January 29, 2009

Yellowstone Eruptions (Part 3 of 3)

USGS Scientist-in-Charge of Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, Jake Lowenstern, answers
the following questions to explain volcanic eruptions at Yellowstone: When was the last supereruption at
Yellowstone?", "Have any eruptions occurred since the last supereruption?", "Is Yellowstone overdue for
an eruption?", "What does the magma below indicate about a

Attribution: Yellowstone

video thumbnail: Yes! Yellowstone is a Volcano (Part 1 of 3)

January 29, 2009

Yes! Yellowstone is a Volcano (Part 1 of 3)

USGS Scientist-in-Charge of Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, Jake Lowenstern, answers
the following questions to explain volcanic features at Yellowstone: "How do we know Yellowstone is a
volcano?", "What is a Supervolcano?", "What is a Caldera?","Why are there geysers at Yellowstone?",
and "What are the other geologic hazards in Yellowstone?"

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Attribution: Yellowstone