Earthquakes cannot be predicted yet, but modern surveillance for earthquakes in Yellowstone conducted with seismographs (instruments that measure earthquake locations and magnitudes) and GPS - Global Positioning Systems (instruments that measure slow ground movements) help scientists understand the state of stress in the Earth's crust. Those stresses could trigger earthquakes as well as magma movement.
Yellowstone lies within a tectonically active region of the western United States. Large earthquakes have occurred there in the past, like the 1959 M7.3 Hebgen Lake earthquake just west of Yellowstone National Park, and they will occur again in the future, but it is impossible to know when. The University of Utah uses seismograph stations to carefully monitor earthquakes in the greater Yellowstone area and works with other Yellowstone Volcano Observatory partners to keep watch on the entire volcanic system.
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How do scientists know what’s going on beneath the ground at Yellowstone? Is Yellowstone monitored for volcanic activity?
Yellowstone Volcano is monitored for signs of volcanic activity. The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) is a partnership between the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Yellowstone National Park, the University of Utah, the University of Wyoming, UNAVCO, the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, the Idaho Geological Survey, and the Wyoming State Geological Survey. YVO closely monitors volcanic...
Can earthquakes trigger volcanic eruptions?
Sometimes, yes. A few large regional earthquakes (greater than magnitude 6) are considered to be related to a subsequent eruption or to some type of unrest at a nearby volcano. However, volcanoes can only be triggered into eruption by nearby tectonic earthquakes if they are already poised to erupt. This requires two conditions to be met: Enough "eruptible" magma within the volcanic system...
Do earthquakes large enough to collapse buildings and roads accompany volcanic eruptions?
Not usually. Earthquakes associated with eruptions rarely exceed magnitude 5, and these moderate earthquakes are not big enough to destroy buildings and roads. The largest earthquakes at Mount St. Helens in 1980 were magnitude 5, large enough to sway trees and damage buildings, but not destroy them. During the huge eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in 1991, dozens of light to moderate...
Can an eruption at one volcano trigger an eruption at another volcano?
There is no definitive evidence that an eruption at one volcano can trigger an eruption at a volcano that’s hundreds of kilometers/miles away or on a different continent. There are a few historic examples of simultaneous eruptions from volcanoes (or volcanic vents) located within about 10 kilometers (6 miles) of each other, but it's difficult to determine whether one eruption caused the other...
Why are there so many earthquakes at Yellowstone?
Almost all earthquakes at Yellowstone are brittle-failure events caused when rocks break due to crustal stresses. Though we've been looking at Yellowstone for years, no one has yet identified "long-period (LP) events" commonly attributed to magma movement. If LP events are observed, that will NOT mean Yellowstone is getting ready to erupt. LP earthquakes commonly occur at other volcanoes in 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 much as a few hundred meters across. Though the...
Can we drill into Yellowstone to stop it from erupting?
In some cases, limited scientific drilling for research can help us understand magmatic and hydrothermal (hot water) systems; however, drilling to mitigate a volcanic threat is a much different subject with unknown consequences, high costs, and severe environmental impacts. In addition to the enormous expense and technological difficulties in drilling through hot, mushy rock, drilling is unlikely...
Volcano and earthquake monitoring plan for the Yellowstone Caldera system, 2022–2032
Yellowstone Volcano Observatory 2020 annual report
Yellowstone Volcano Observatory
Integrated geoscience studies in the Greater Yellowstone Area - Volcanic, tectonic, and hydrothermal processes in the Yellowstone geoecosystem
Steam explosions, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions -- what's in Yellowstone's future?
Tracking changes in Yellowstone's restless volcanic system
Related Content
- FAQ
How do scientists know what’s going on beneath the ground at Yellowstone? Is Yellowstone monitored for volcanic activity?
Yellowstone Volcano is monitored for signs of volcanic activity. The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) is a partnership between the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Yellowstone National Park, the University of Utah, the University of Wyoming, UNAVCO, the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, the Idaho Geological Survey, and the Wyoming State Geological Survey. YVO closely monitors volcanic...
Can earthquakes trigger volcanic eruptions?
Sometimes, yes. A few large regional earthquakes (greater than magnitude 6) are considered to be related to a subsequent eruption or to some type of unrest at a nearby volcano. However, volcanoes can only be triggered into eruption by nearby tectonic earthquakes if they are already poised to erupt. This requires two conditions to be met: Enough "eruptible" magma within the volcanic system...
Do earthquakes large enough to collapse buildings and roads accompany volcanic eruptions?
Not usually. Earthquakes associated with eruptions rarely exceed magnitude 5, and these moderate earthquakes are not big enough to destroy buildings and roads. The largest earthquakes at Mount St. Helens in 1980 were magnitude 5, large enough to sway trees and damage buildings, but not destroy them. During the huge eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines in 1991, dozens of light to moderate...
Can an eruption at one volcano trigger an eruption at another volcano?
There is no definitive evidence that an eruption at one volcano can trigger an eruption at a volcano that’s hundreds of kilometers/miles away or on a different continent. There are a few historic examples of simultaneous eruptions from volcanoes (or volcanic vents) located within about 10 kilometers (6 miles) of each other, but it's difficult to determine whether one eruption caused the other...
Why are there so many earthquakes at Yellowstone?
Almost all earthquakes at Yellowstone are brittle-failure events caused when rocks break due to crustal stresses. Though we've been looking at Yellowstone for years, no one has yet identified "long-period (LP) events" commonly attributed to magma movement. If LP events are observed, that will NOT mean Yellowstone is getting ready to erupt. LP earthquakes commonly occur at other volcanoes in 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 much as a few hundred meters across. Though the...
Can we drill into Yellowstone to stop it from erupting?
In some cases, limited scientific drilling for research can help us understand magmatic and hydrothermal (hot water) systems; however, drilling to mitigate a volcanic threat is a much different subject with unknown consequences, high costs, and severe environmental impacts. In addition to the enormous expense and technological difficulties in drilling through hot, mushy rock, drilling is unlikely...
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Volcano and earthquake monitoring plan for the Yellowstone Caldera system, 2022–2032
Executive SummaryThe Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) is a consortium of nine Federal, State, and academic agencies that: (1) provides timely monitoring and hazards assessment of volcanic, hydrothermal, and earthquake activity in and around Yellowstone National Park, and (2) conducts research to develop new approaches to volcano monitoring and better understand volcanic activity in the YellowYellowstone Volcano Observatory 2020 annual report
The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) monitors volcanic and hydrothermal activity associated with the Yellowstone magmatic system, conducts research into magmatic processes occurring beneath Yellowstone Caldera, and issues timely warnings and guidance related to potential future geologic hazards. This report summarizes the activities and findings of YVO during the year 2020, focusing on the YeYellowstone Volcano Observatory
Eruption of Yellowstone's Old Faithful Geyser. Yellowstone hosts the world's largest and most diverse collection of natural thermal features, which are the surface expression of magmatic heat at shallow depths in the crust. The Yellowstone system is monitored by the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO), a partnership among the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Yellowstone National Park, and the UnivIntegrated geoscience studies in the Greater Yellowstone Area - Volcanic, tectonic, and hydrothermal processes in the Yellowstone geoecosystem
Yellowstone National Park, rimmed by a crescent of older mountainous terrain, has at its core the Quaternary Yellowstone Plateau, an undulating landscape shaped by forces of volcanism, tectonism, and later glaciation. Its spectacular hydrothermal systems cap this landscape. From 1997 through 2003, the United States Geological Survey Mineral Resources Program conducted a multidisciplinary project oSteam explosions, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions -- what's in Yellowstone's future?
Yellowstone, one of the world’s largest active volcanic systems, has produced several giant volcanic eruptions in the past few million years, as well as many smaller eruptions and steam explosions. Although no eruptions of lava or volcanic ash have occurred for many thousands of years, future eruptions are likely. In the next few hundred years, hazards will most probably be limited to ongoing geysTracking changes in Yellowstone's restless volcanic system
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