Unified Interior Regions

The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens was monumental in so many different ways. It had a huge impact on the geography of southwestern Washington, ash affected many people, lives were lost, and lessons were learned. The eruption also led to the creation of the USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory in Vancouver, Washington. Seth Moran talks about three of CVO’s mission areas—

The good news is that volcanoes usually change behavior before they erupt, in ways that are detectable by monitoring instruments. During times of relative quiet, scientists use different sensors and instruments to help visualize and quantify the structures and processes that are occurring beneath a volcano so they can provide a better estimate of what might happen when a

Throughout most of human existence, we haven't known much about how volcanoes work. Because of their immense power, they have terrified and fascinated us, and remain places of great spiritual importance for many people. The lack of knowledge about volcanoes has sometimes resulted in tragic and deadly disasters. But with the emergence of the science of volcanology and as

Warmer, drier and longer fire seasons in the Northwest have led to larger and more frequent wildfires. These changes in fire activity, combined with warmer and drier post-fire conditions, have in turn led to growing concern that in some areas of the Northwest, particularly in forests and shrublands east of the Cascade Range, existing plant communities may face difficulty

How did the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens change peoples’ lives? Carolyn Driedger talks about events that led up to the 1980 eruption and influenced scientists’ response to it, as well as what happened on May 18, and how the eruption changed people's lives and professions. This talk was presented for the Sno-Isle Libraries’ 2021 Whidbey Reads program.
 

What stories do rocks tell? What techniques do scientists use to study volcanoes? Dr. Heather Wright talks about the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, provides an overview of volcanoes and how they erupt, and shows why scientists continue to monitor this active volcano, in this presentation to the Sno-Isle Libraries’ 2021 Whidbey Reads program.
 

The Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP) is a partnership of the USGS and USAID. Now in its 34th year, VDAP performs a combination of in-country and remote responses to volcanic crises. Though forecasting volcanic eruptions remains a challenge, advances in technology and our understanding of volcanoes means we are better equipped to track volcanic unrest and forecast

A seismologist with the Cascades Volcano Observatory checks the data output on a newly installed monitoring station at Mount Rainier.

Seismic and infrasound station PARA, installed October 6-8, 2020 at Mount Rainier.

A geophysicist from the Cascades Volcano Observatory notes the location of a newly buried seismometer at station PARA, on Mount Rainier.

NAGT intern Emily Bryant installs one of three infrasound sensors at volcano monitoring station PARA, at Mount Rainier.