USGS Volcano Notice - DOI-USGS-YVO-2024-01-02T09:58:43-08:00

YELLOWSTONE VOLCANO OBSERVATORY MONTHLY UPDATE
U.S. Geological Survey
Tuesday, January 2, 2024, 11:04 AM MST (Tuesday, January 2, 2024, 18:04 UTC)

YELLOWSTONE (VNUM #325010)
44°25'48" N 110°40'12" W, Summit Elevation 9203 ft (2805 m)
Current Volcano Alert Level: NORMAL
Current Aviation Color Code: GREEN

Recent Work and News

Steamboat Geyser erupted on December 30—its 9th major water eruption of 2023.

From everyone at the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, Happy New Year!

Seismicity

During December 2023, the University of Utah Seismograph Stations, responsible for the operation and analysis of the Yellowstone Seismic Network, located 89 earthquakes in the Yellowstone National Park region. The largest event of the month was a minor earthquake of magnitude 2.1 located about 3 miles northeast of West Thumb in Yellowstone National Park on December 16 at 8:19 PM MST.

December seismicity in Yellowstone was marked by three swarms:

1. A swarm of 16 earthquakes, located approximately 4 miles northeast of West Yellowstone, MT, occurred December 8–14. The largest earthquake in the sequence was a magnitude 1.7 event on December 11 at 11:59 PM MST.

2. A swarm of 14 earthquakes occurred approximately 3 miles northeast of West Thumb, in Yellowstone National Park, during December 16–17. The largest earthquake in the sequence was also the largest of the month (described above).

3. An ongoing swarm, approximately 12 miles south of West Thumb, in Yellowstone National Park, began on December 29. 11 earthquakes occurred during December 29–31. The largest earthquake in the sequence was a magnitude 1.9 event on December 29 at 9:37 PM MST.

Earthquake sequences like these are common and account for roughly 50% of the total seismicity in the Yellowstone region.

Yellowstone earthquake activity is currently at background levels.

Ground Deformation

During the month of December, continuous GPS stations in Yellowstone caldera showed subsidence, which has been ongoing since 2015, interrupted in summer months by a pause or slight uplift caused by groundwater accumulation from snowmelt and runoff. Approximately 2 cm (0.8 in) of subsidence has occurred in the caldera since the end of September. No significant deformation has occurred at Norris Geyser Basin since the end of summer.

An example of GPS data can be found at http://www.unavco.org/instrumentation/networks/status/pbo/data/NRWY (click on Static Plots / Cleaned)

The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) provides long-term monitoring of volcanic and earthquake activity in the Yellowstone National Park region. Yellowstone is the site of the largest and most diverse collection of natural thermal features in the world and the first National Park. YVO is one of the five USGS Volcano Observatories that monitor volcanoes within the United States for science and public safety.

YVO Member agencies: USGS, Yellowstone National Park, University of Utah, University of Wyoming, Montana State University, Earthscope Consortium, Wyoming State Geological Survey, Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, Idaho Geological Survey

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Michael Poland, Scientist-in-Charge
mpoland@usgs.gov