Videos

Over the past few decades, an area on the north rim of Yellowstone Caldera has risen and fallen. Just last year a new period of uplift in this area began!

Did you hear that???  Well, Roaring Mountain isn’t quite as loud as it used to be, but it’s still one of the hottest thermal areas in all of Yellowstone National Park!

Meet a friend of ours. This friend has been monitoring changes of the ground surface in Yellowstone for decades and is so good that it can detect movement of just a few millimeters in magnitude (just a fraction of an inch). The friend? A continuous GPS station!

Happy New Year! Let's go back and take a look at the top five geologic stories for Yellowstone in 2025.

Number five: Rumors. It was a year of internet rumors, mostly related to animals fleeing the park, and none of which were true.

Just last week, Kīlauea put on another dramatic display of lava fountaining and flows within the caldera, during its 37th episode of this most recent eruption. It doesn't seem like Hawaii and Yellowstone have a lot in common, but actually, those two magmatic systems have a common cause.

The Yellowstone caldera is vast – 45 miles across by 30 miles wide. You could fit over 60 islands of Manhattan in this area. There are deep canyons, like the one on the Yellowstone River, that reveal a complex geologic history. And, forested landscapes and features remind us that this special place is ever-changing.

Picture a Yellowstone eruption. What comes to mind? It’s a huge explosion, right? Like the one that formed the caldera about 631,000 years ago. But the most common form of eruption in Yellowstone isn’t a huge explosion, it’s a lava flow.

During a USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory helicopter overflight on the morning of August 5, geologists observed a lava pond within the north vent of the ongoing Kīlauea summit eruption. The pond was feeding a subterranean lava tube contained within the east side of the vent cone, toward the floor of Halema‘uma‘u crater.

In this video, Cascades Volcano Observatory (CVO) scientists Tyler Paladino and Alex Iezzi and Mount Rainier National Park Geologist Scott Beason provide an update on the earthquake swarm at Mount Rainier.

Grand Prismatic Spring is the largest hot spring in the US, and one of the largest in the world. The boiling lake was named for the spectacular array of colors along its rim.

There’s a lot of hot water in Yellowstone. What’s it heated by? The magma chamber beneath the surface, of course!

If you want to find a lava flow in Yellowstone, look to the trees! The vegetation is telling us more than you might think.

YVO Scientist-in-Charge Mike Poland reveals how vegetation can be used to map geology in this month's update from the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory.

This presentation by Dr. Jake Lowenstern was prepared for the AGU 2024-2025 Distinguished Lecture Series. It discusses the challenges of volcano monitoring, eruption forecasting, and protecting vulnerable populations.

Let’s get you caught up on what we’ve learned about the July 23, 2024, hydrothermal explosion in Biscuit Basin, in this Yellowstone Volcano Observatory Monthly Update for October 2024. 

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Is it true that there's oil in Yellowstone? Watch this month's Yellowstone Monthly update and find out.

The beautiful Morning Glory pool is located near Old Faithful. However, it has changed over time because of people and  past climate. But how? 

The purpose of the USAID USGS Volcano Disaster Assistance Program is to make sure that volcanic eruptions don't become volcanic disasters. VDAP’s focus is to support volcano observatories through a combination of in-country or virtual support during volcanic eruptions or unrest and long-term capacity building through donations and training.

Up until the 1950s, visitors to the Old Faithful area could take a dip. Not at a geyser, but in a real swimming pool. The full story is in this month’s video update. 

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists visited the fissure that formed on the upper Southwest Rift Zone of Kīlauea volcano early this morning, June 3, 2024. Elevated gas emissions are being carried downwind, in a southwest direction. USGS video.

During an overflight at approximately 6 a.m., USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory geologists observed the fissures system that opened on the upper portion of the Southwest Rift Zone early this morning. Approximately half a mile (about 1 km) in length, only the southwest portion of the system was active by daylight. 

Aerial video of the Southwest Rift Zone eruption of Kīlauea, viewed during an overflight at approximately 6 a.m. on June 3, 2024. USGS video.