August 30, 2017
This week I'm stepping down as the Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO). I've held this role since 2002, and it's been an incredibly rewarding 15 years. Recently, I was offered the opportunity to lead the Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP), where I'll work with my USGS colleagues to assist volcano observatories in developing countries that face daunting volcanic risk. VDAP is a vibrant program created 31 years ago, and is arguably the premier team of volcano scientists on the globe.
It's not without sadness, though, that I will move on from my work at Yellowstone. I've cherished my many visits to the park, starting with trips as a child and young adult, and later, as a geologist. I've worked with outstanding scientists from our YVO partners and indeed from around the world. I've had the incredible good fortune to travel to remote areas around the park to research the variations in gases that can inform our understanding of the subsurface beneath Yellowstone. Our work has gone smoothly, largely due to the staff of Yellowstone National Park, which is incredibly dedicated to ensuring that visitors and researchers alike get the most of their visits and leave Wonderland without incident. For the many Yellowstone lovers out there in the world, I wanted to take a little time to say a proper goodbye, to recount how we got to the present day, and to reflect on some of what's been learned.
Though I'm sad to be moving on, I'm delighted that the observatory will be in excellent hands. Mike Poland will take over as Scientist-in-Charge. Mike has been with the USGS for fifteen years, and is a veteran of both the Cascades and Hawaiian Volcano Observatories. He is an expert in volcano deformation, and in using satellites to track the subtle ups and downs of volcanic terrain that can indicate magma movement below. That's a very useful expertise at Yellowstone, where earthquakes and ground deformation are the dominant monitored signals. Speaking of earthquakes, Jamie Farrell, at the University of Utah has taken over much of the responsibility for the Yellowstone Seismic Network. After many years working with his mentor Bob Smith, Jamie has gained unparalleled experience in studying Yellowstone earthquakes and the deep magma below. In fact, Jamie was responsible for most of the colorful images of the Yellowstone magma reservoir that you've probably seen on the internet. Jefferson Hungerford is the brand new Park Geologist at Yellowstone. His expertise in volcano science, industrious nature, and remarkable good cheer will serve him well as the park focal point for all things geological.
Now a bit of the history…In 2002, during my first weekend as Scientist-in-Charge, the Denali Earthquake struck in Alaska. Surprisingly, when the surface waves hit Yellowstone, some 2000 miles away, it induced hundreds of local earthquakes, many of which were felt around Yellowstone Lake. Fortunately, University of Utah Professor Bob Smith already had worked at Yellowstone for ~30 years and was able to put the activity in context and to help explain the activity to the staff of Yellowstone National Park, to me, and to Hank Heasler, who was also new in his role as the Park Geologist. This notable event threw me "in the deep end," and prepared me for the many earthquake swarms, uplift episodes, and thermal changes that followed over the next decade and a half.
In addition to Bob, I and my colleagues had the good fortune to be mentored by the generation of geologists who did the key research on Yellowstone's geologic past. Bob Christiansen of the USGS spent his summers in the 1960s and 1970s traipsing hill and dale to map out scores of lava flows and ash flow tuffs. He worked with colleagues using K-Ar dating techniques to reveal the age relations of these many events. Chris, as he's known, recognized that there were three massive explosive eruptions at Yellowstone that formed three separate calderas. He published the authoritative geologic map of Yellowstone, and served as the first Scientist-in-Charge of YVO in 2001 until he retired a year later. His contemporaries included the USGS's Ken Pierce, who deciphered much of the glacial history at Yellowstone and with Lisa Morgan traced the older volcanic systems of the Snake River Plain that preceded Yellowstone. Don White and his USGS protégées, Bob Fournier and Patrick Muffler, undertook the ambitious scientific drilling program in Yellowstone's thermal areas, mapping out the temperature and pressure gradients in the subsurface, and collecting core samples of the hydrothermal minerals that we still use as the basis for research projects today. Fournier continued his work at Yellowstone for decades, becoming one of the world's preeminent geochemists. Muffler wrote the first paper on Yellowstone's notorious hydrothermal explosion craters, which represent one of the more common hazards in the park. And of course Bob Smith of the University of Utah, is responsible for a wide swath of geophysical research ranging from Yellowstone earthquakes, to the depth and size of the subsurface magma reservoir, to heat flow and hydrothermal activity beneath Yellowstone Lake. I was incredibly fortunate to be able to learn from all these legends of Yellowstone, and to work with them to further our knowledge of the geologic history, current dynamic behavior, and potential for future activity.
The stage was set by the work of these USGS and academic researchers, as well as by fantastic park geologists such as George Marler, Wayne Hamilton and Rick Hutchinson. Though geologists were well acquainted with the Yellowstone story by the mid 1980s, it was another fifteen years before the public got wind of this amazing story. A 1999 BBC documentary, Supervolcano, interviewed Christiansen, Smith, and others, and captured the imagination of the public. In 2005, BBC and Discovery Channel combined efforts to create a docudrama of the same name. Over the following five years, a series of documentaries thoroughly saturated the market for Yellowstone Volcano, and set the stage for a decade of hyperbole and misinformation with the growth of the internet. One irony of this expansion of the Yellowstone geologic story, is that the work of the pioneering scientists has been lost from the public's mind. Most recent news stories present a simplified, and misunderstood summary of Yellowstone, without any mention of how we got our present knowledge. And the less people know about Yellowstone, or earth science, the more they tend to question the expertise of those who know it best.
Nevertheless, working at Yellowstone has been a tremendous pleasure, and we can take great pride in our accomplishments. Since 2002, we developed a monitoring plan, a hazards assessment, two successive response plans, an exercise to test our response plan, and numerous information statements and web articles to explain ongoing activity such as earthquake swarms and ground uplift. We installed borehole strainmeters and associated downhole seismometers thanks to the Plate Boundary Observatory. We spent almost $1M to expand the seismic and other networks through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. We installed miniature, radio-relayed temperature sensors at the Norris Geyser Basin. We expanded the observatory in 2013 to include eight partners, including the geological surveys of the three states that encompass Yellowstone. And we built a website and social media presence that provides detailed explanations of our work and current research efforts. And in our spare time, YVO researchers published well over 50 new research papers in the past 15 years that extend our understanding of the volcanic and hydrothermal system at Yellowstone.
In closing, I want to thank my colleagues for their generosity and friendship over an exceptional fifteen years. Most notable is Peter Cervelli, who has acted as Deputy Scientist-in-Charge for the past five years, but there are many, many others. Together, we've explored the volcano, discovered new phenomena, challenged each other's ideas, and reveled in our good fortune to be able to work at such an amazing place.
July 13, 2017
Seismic networks locate earthquakes by comparing the arrival times of seismic waves emanating from the earthquake location, or hypocenter. Very small earthquakes (less than a Magnitude 1) cannot be detected on distant seismometers and sometimes even well-located earthquakes may have horizontal and depth uncertainties of more than 0.5 km.
In order to more fully study a 2010 earthquake swarm on the Madison Plateau, in the northwest part of the Yellowstone Caldera, USGS seismologist David Shelly used a specific timeframe of seismic data and mathematical algorithms to detect and relocate tiny earthquakes. Shelly and his colleagues were able to recognize 8710 events, including many small events with magnitude as low as -1. By including these events, Shelly and his colleagues were able to understand more about the relative location of all the earthquakes and how the earthquakes migrated along the crustal fault during the 2010 swarm. The research was published in 2013 in the Journal of Geophysical Research, co-authored with colleagues form the University of Utah. Read more in the web article Taking a closer look at a Yellowstone earthquake swarm.
June 19, 2017
Beginning June 2017, YVO has a new site for its webcam, located near Lake Village, just north of Yellowstone Lake. The previous mobile webcam will be placed in storage and ready for deployment as needed to observe interesting geological phenomena around the park. The first YVO mobile camera was installed in 2010 on Lake Butte, where it provided a striking view of Yellowstone Lake through a grove of fire-charred tree trunks (the site was frequented by wildlife). In 2012, the system was moved to Biscuit Basin, where it remained until now. Visit our webcam page to see the view.
May 10, 2017
Natural geysers are rare on Earth; there are fewer than 1,000 worldwide, and about half of them are in Yellowstone National Park. Geysers, whose eruptions range from small bubbling pools, to roaring jets of water and steam that can reach a few hundred meters high, fascinate all who have the good fortune of witnessing one.
In a newly published paper in the "Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences", U. S. Geological Survey hydrologist, Shaul Hurwitz and his coauthor, geology professor Michael Manga at the University of California, Berkeley, synthesize the current state of knowledge about geysers. The authors review past research, and point the way to answering future questions.
Because many of the processes associated with geyser eruptions are similar to those operating in volcanoes, understanding the mechanics of geysers and how they operate can lead to better understanding and predictions of volcanic eruptions.
Read the full paper, The Fascinating and Complex Dynamics of Geyser Eruptions online.November 04, 2016
Beginning November 7, and lasting two to four weeks, two exciting studies will take place while Yellowstone National Park is in between its summer and winter seasons. They are aimed at learning more about the shallow water system that fuels the famous hot springs, geysers, and other thermal features at Yellowstone. The first is a helicopter-borne electromagnetic study of geothermal areas near the Firehole River, along the Norris-Mammoth corridor, and at the north end of Yellowstone Lake. The second is a seismic study focusing on the area near Old Faithful. The need for these studies are a result of published recommendations from a 2013 scientific committee that formed with the goal to understand ways to reduce human impacts on the park's geothermal features and protect existing park infrastructure from encroachment of hot ground.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), University of Wyoming, and Aarhus University, Denmark, will collaborate to study the groundwater system that feeds the iconic hydrothermal features of Yellowstone National Park. Airborne geophysical electromagnetic (EM) surveys are one of the unique tools that experts can use to examine and map subsurface location, size, shape, salinity and temperature of groundwater. The survey will map important properties of soils and subsurface rocks in order to learn more about Yellowstone's groundwater resources. Because it involves low-level helicopter flights that may disturb park visitors, the research was allowed after roads officially close, and before it opens for winter use.
The University of Utah, in collaboration with the University of Texas El Paso and the National Park Service, will place closely spaced quart-jar-sized, portable seismometers around the Upper Geyser Basin, focusing on the immediate area around Old Faithful Geyser. This is a continuation of a project started in November 2015 when a more general array was deployed for two weeks. The principal objectives of these deployments are to create an image of the shallow seismic velocity structure of the Upper Geyser Basin. The results will help the park service plan for engineering projects relating to developed structures in the area. In addition, data will help scientists better understand the underground fluid flow pathways and hydrothermal properties between geysers and hot springs of the Upper Geyser Basin, including Old Faithful. Importantly, the dense grid of seismometers deployed on the cone of Old Faithful will help us learn more about how the geyser acts before, during, and after eruptions.
To learn more about these surveys, download our November 2016 FAQ.August 23, 2016
Over the past few years, we've recorded interviews with a number of the scientists who did critical work revealing Yellowstone's volcanic past and present. Our latest installment includes two interviews with Dr. Ken Pierce, a glaciologist and geomorphologist who works today as an emeritus scientists with the USGS in Bozeman, MT. Pierce has written scores of important articles on the geology of Yellowstone, and these two videos give you a flavor of the man and his career.
Glaciation in the Greater Yellowstone AreaDetecting "heavy breathing" (subtle inflation and deflation) of Yellowstone Caldera
June 08, 2016
Interested in supereruptions? This May 2016 talk by USGS scientist Larry Mastin summarizes how we model ash transport after volcanic eruptions, which was applied to some of the big eruptions in Yellowstone's past. The work follows on to Larry's 2014 publication that was summarized as a series of FAQs on our website. The lecture discusses Yellowstone and it's history, but it also discusses the broader study of ash plumes in the atmosphere and how researchers are keen to develop methods to estimate how and where ash will fall after big eruptions.
Our website multimedia section hosts a variety of earlier lectures on Yellowstone (about 15 hours worth!).March 16, 2016
Most models of geyser eruptions start with a simple assumption: eruptions occur as liquid water boils to steam. While that is largely true, if the water includes dissolved carbon dioxide, geyser eruptions can occur at temperatures lower than boiling. USGS scientist Shaul Hurwitz and colleagues published a paper discussing this phenomenon. Read the summary of their research on our website and the full article in the March 2016 issue of the journal Geology.
January 13, 2016
How old are Yellowstone's geysers? New research by YVO scientists uses carbon-dating techniques on bits of organic matter trapped in the silica sinter that forms on the margins of hot springs. Even with very small samples, it's possible to determine how long these thermal features have been active and perhaps when they formed. Read a summary of the study with a visual explanation of the methods on our website. The full article is available in a January 2016 issue of the Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research.
August 10, 2015
Robert B. Smith (Bob), a professor of geophysics and scientist at the University of Utah, has been collaborating with USGS scientists on Yellowstone geologic topics since the 1960's. In this interview with the USGS, Bob explains that he likes to work on Yellowstone because, "you are seeing processes that are active today...it's real time geology, and that's what makes it exciting for me. We can look at the processes developed from studying Yellowstone, and then apply those processes to other places in the earth where there are volcanoes and big faults or earthquakes." He is right, Yellowstone is a natural laboratory for volcanologic research, and he explains more about his work there and with the USGS in this newly released interview. You can watch three additional interviews with legendary Yellowstone scientists on our multimedia webpage.
May 08, 2015
We can't help but notice the comments in social media, and even the ticklers and headlines in the newspapers and blogs. Sometimes, people spread misinformation even when they think they know the facts. This new article dispels five of the most common misunderstandings about Yellowstone.
April 23, 2015
Researchers at the University of Utah and their colleagues at the University of New Mexico and Caltech released a paper in the journal Science on their latest imaging of the crust beneath Yellowstone using seismic techniques. This is the first study to verify what has been long suspected..that magma exists beneath Yellowstone volcano throughout the extent of the Earth's crust, which is 43-km- (27-mi-) thick beneath Yellowstone. Read a summary of the study including further discussion of the implications. The original article can be found on the Science website.
October 21, 2014
YVO staff contributed to a new USGS video entitled: "An Illustrated Guide to Reading a Seismogram." This off-beat video provides a short, introductory lesson on how the seismic plots are generated and the potential sources for "signals" on a seismogram.
If you're looking for additional insight on Yellowstone geology, three video interviews were added in September. USGS Video Producer Steve Wessells conducted interviews with some of the key USGS scientists who unlocked the secrets to Yellowstone's volcanic and geothermal history. Bob Christiansen, Patrick Muffler and Bob Fournier reminisce about their early careers working at Yellowstone in the 1960s and 1970s.
August 27, 2014
The likelihood of a volcanic supereruption from Yellowstone, or any other location on Earth, remains very low in any given year, yet the U.S. Geological Survey is frequently asked about the likely thickness and distribution of ash deposits if Yellowstone were to erupt. This prompted USGS scientists to use a new computer model called Ash3D to simulate the distribution of volcanic ash from a hypothetical large explosive eruption at Yellowstone. A research paper explaining the results was published in Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems on August 27, 2014, and we have developed some FAQ to help explain the background to this study.
The researchers discovered that during very large volcanic eruptions, ash transport is dominated by a rapidly expanding umbrella cloud that results in significant distribution of ash upwind from the volcanic vent. "In essence, the eruption makes its own winds that can overcome the prevailing westerlies that normally dominate weather patterns in the United States," explained USGS geologist Larry Mastin, first author on the manuscript and co-developer of the computer model. "This helps explain the distribution from large Yellowstone eruptions of the past, where considerable amounts of ash reached the west coast." The authors also note that a fraction of an inch or less of ash is likely to be deposited at distances further than 1500 miles, such as on the east and west coasts of the United States. To learn more, please read our Frequently Asked Questions about the model and its application to Yellowstone.
August 08, 2014
Though we love doing research at YVO, we prefer it when the research is on topics geological rather than the origin of false rumors. Nevertheless, we have received enough concerned emails and phone calls that we've spent some time tracking down a few of the statements made on various "alternative Internet news sources."
1) First, everyone should know that geological activity, including earthquakes and ground uplift/subsidence is well within historical norms and seismicity is actually a bit low at present.
2) Concern over road closures is much overblown. There's been one road closure of a small side road – just over three miles long – that was closed for two days. As one can imagine, it is not easy to maintain roads that pass over thermal areas where ground temperatures can approach those of boiling water. Roads at Yellowstone often need repair because of damage by thermal features as well as extreme cold winter conditions.
3) The park has not been evacuated. This one is pretty easy to verify by everyone. If the Old Faithful webcam shows people, or if news articles are coming out about a hobbyist's remote control helicopter crashing into a hot spring, Yellowstone is certainly open for business.
4) No volcanologists have stated that Yellowstone is likely to erupt this week, this month or this year. In one recent article, a name was attributed to a "senior volcanologist", but that person does not appear to exist, and a geologist with that name assures us that he did not supply any quotes regarding Yellowstone.
5) Finally, we note that those who've kept track of Yellowstone over the past decade or so, have seen a constant stream of "predictions" regarding imminent eruptions at Yellowstone. Many have had specific dates in mind, none had a scientific basis, and none have come true.
We will continue to provide updates on geological activity at Yellowstone, and educational materials to help understand the science around Yellowstone monitoring.
Virtually everything known about Yellowstone's spectacular volcanic past comes from the scientists who work at this observatory, at all our eight member agencies. We're the ones who mapped the deposits, figured out the ages of the eruptions, measured the gases, located the earthquakes, and tracked the ground movement. A few of us have been doing it for over forty years. We will continue to help you understand what's happening at Yellowstone now, and what's likely to happen in the future.
June 25, 2014
How do we know what's beneath Yellowstone, and how can we image the shallow magma? Seismologists at the University of Utah (a YVO member agency) and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology undertook a study to image the Yellowstone magma reservoir through a technique called seismic tomography. Using improved methods and data from thousands of earthquakes; they discovered that the magma reservoir is much larger than inferred in previous studies. Read our website article to find out how the study was conducted and what they discovered. The complete results from this new approach are published in the Journal Geophysical Research Letters.
April 02, 2014
Recent weeks have seen a flurry of news, real and imagined, about the Yellowstone volcanic system. Below is a brief FAQ about several topics that have appeared in recent news reports.
Has earthquake activity at Yellowstone increased dramatically over the last month?
With the latest swarms, earthquakes are elevated, but are not unusual for Yellowstone. Below is a bar chart that shows the last 20 years of earthquakes in the north-central part of the park. The previous uptick in earthquakes in this part of the park was during the previous period of uplift in this region.
Is the recent episode of ground deformation worrisome?
No. Current rates of ground deformation are well within historical norms. Please see our February 18, 2014 Information Statement, for more information about ground deformation at Yellowstone.
Are animals leaving Yellowstone National Park?
According to the park, any animal migrations are typical for this time of year. Most of the recent videos on the internet that show running bison were filmed weeks (at least) before Sunday's earthquake. Park spokesman Al Nash discusses this and other topics in a YouTube video.
Do helium emissions at Yellowstone signal an impending eruption?
No. YVO Scientist-in-Charge Jacob Lowenstern and colleagues recently published research on helium (He) emissions at Yellowstone in the journal Nature. The new research looked at apparent changes in the helium output of the Yellowstone area during its two-million-year volcanic history, compared with the previous two billion years of comparative stability. The research has nothing to do with current activity at Yellowstone, and has no implications about volcanic hazards. For a humorous and informative take on the new research, read the Los Angeles Times article, "It's up, up and away for ancient trapped helium at Yellowstone," or watch the Slate.com video "Ancient Helium Is Escaping by the Ton from Yellowstone."
For additional information, see the April 1, 2014 Monthly Activity Update.
February 28, 2014
Recent weeks have seen a flurry of news, real and imagined, about the Yellowstone volcanic system. We present here a brief FAQ about several topics that have appeared in recent news reports.
Has earthquake activity at Yellowstone increased dramatically over the last month?
No. Earthquake activity is normal. When earthquakes occur, they appear on the University of Utah's Yellowstone Earthquake Map, or on the YVO monitoring page. Also see our February 5, 2014 Information Statement about the misinterpretation of noise from a broken seismometer.
Is the recent episode of ground deformation worrisome?
No. Current rates of ground deformation are well within historical norms. Please see our February 18, 2014 Information Statement, for more information about ground deformation at Yellowstone
Do helium emissions at Yellowstone signal an impending eruption?
No. YVO Scientist-in-Charge Jacob Lowenstern and colleagues recently published research on helium (He) emissions at Yellowstone in the journal Nature. The new research looked at apparent changes in the helium output of the Yellowstone area during its two-million-year volcanic history, compared with the previous two billion years of comparative stability. The research has nothing to do with current activity at Yellowstone, and has no implications about volcanic hazards. For a humorous and informative take on the new research, watch this video, or read this news article.
December 19, 2013
Scientists from the University of Utah – a YVO partner agency – recently presented new research at the Fall meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco that suggests that the size of the magma body beneath Yellowstone is significantly larger than had been thought. Previous similar studies had underestimated the size of the magma body because of insufficient instrumentation. Over the past decade, improvements to the Yellowstone monitoring network has increased the number and quality of the instruments deployed. This new research takes advantage of these upgrades, which will continue to pay dividends for years to come.
The UU researchers, in collaboration with a scientist from the Swiss Seismological Service in Zurich, used a method called seismic tomography to create an improved image of the magmatic system beneath Yellowstone. One should not think of Yellowstone's magma reservoir as a big cavern full of churning lava. Rather, the reservoir is distributed throughout a porous, sponge-like body of otherwise solid rock, with the amount of liquid rock (melt) varying from place to place. Because seismic waves slow down when traveling through liquids, seismic tomography can be used to map out these variations. The new research shows that while the magma reservoir is bigger than we thought, the proportion of melt to solid rock (estimated at <10-15%) is similar to previous reports and appears to remain way too low for a giant eruption.
Although fascinating, the new findings do not imply increased geologic hazards at Yellowstone, and certainly do not increase the chances of a "supereruption" in the near future. Contrary to some media reports, Yellowstone is not "overdue" for a supereruption. Indeed, it is quite possible that such an eruption will never again occur from the Yellowstone region. Scientist agree that smaller eruptions are likely in the future, but the probability of ANY sort of eruption at Yellowstone still remains very low over the next 10 to 100 years.
YVO scientists from organizations around the country continually monitor geologic conditions at Yellowstone. At present those conditions are normal and there is no heightened concern for public safety. Should conditions change, an established alert system will quickly notify public officials, the general public, and the media. YVO posts regular updates about activity at Yellowstone, which can be found on the activity update webpage. We encourage you to explore our website for additional information on geologic hazards and current activity at Yellowstone.
June 06, 2013
In a study published in 2013, University of Utah seismologists studied patterns of earthquakes at Yellowstone, grouping events according to similarity of their ground motion records. They found that some earthquakes appear to repeat over time, while others are unique. This research indicates that repeating earthquakes are dominantly tectonic in origin, whereas the more unique earthquakes may be induced by intrusion of molten rock or hot pressurized ground (hydrothermal) water along pre-existing fractures. Read more in our online web article or, for greater detail, read the full research manuscript.
March 20, 2013
USGS postdoctoral fellow Karen Luttrell, together with colleagues from UNAVCO and elsewhere, recently published an article in Geophysical Research Letters (GRL) revealing how the presence of magma beneath the ground at Yellowstone allows the deformation signal from a standing wave (seiche - pronounced "say-sh") in Yellowstone Lake to travel further than it would in the earth's crust under normal (magma-free) conditions. Highly sensitive instruments picked up the seiche signal up to 30 km (19 mi) from Yellowstone Lake when the signal would typically only be observed within a few kilometers. The authors estimate that magma is present starting at 3—6 km (2—4 mi) beneath the ground surface, and that the magma is mostly crystallized but is still partly molten. Read our web article to learn more, or download the full research paper at the GRL website.
February 19, 2013
Within Yellowstone National Park, there are areas where the ground is altered and bleached to various shades of white and gray. Typically, these are thermal areas – locations where heated gases rise through and escape from the earth. However, some sites with altered ground show no signs of heat release and are assumed to be locations of pre-historic heating. New research by YVO gas chemists shows that one of these non-thermal acid-altered sites releases a surprisingly large amount of cold gas, and evidence from their study links these cold gases to warmer temperatures below. Read the YVO web article or the full research paper in Chemical Geology.
January 14, 2013
Beginning in 2013, YVO officially welcomes several groups that have been important informal partners to the observatory for many years. Along with the USGS, Yellowstone National Park, and the University of Utah, YVO now includes the three state geological surveys of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho, UNAVCO, Inc., and the University of Wyoming. The seismic network will continue to be operated by the University of Utah. More information about the YVO Consortium is available on the About YVO page.
November 05, 2012
The YVO webcam is offline temporarily. We hope to get it up and running soon. Please be aware that the camera runs via a solar panel and cellular modem. Unlike most similar cameras, it does not have connection to either AC power or the internet. In the interim, here's a nice image from the camera taken the last week that the camera was operational.
June 15, 2012
The YVO webcam has been moved from its old location at Lake Butte to a new vista above Biscuit Basin, at the north end of Upper Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park. The new camera offers a view of an area that has historically hosted a variety of rock-hurling hydrothermal (steam) eruptions. With this vantage point, it is possible that the camera will capture a similar event in the future.
June 08, 2012
We all know Yellowstone is hot… but how hot? And how can we detect park- or basin-wide changes in geothermal areas (regions that let off Earth's internal heat) that may take place over months, or years? USGS geologist Greg Vaughan and other YVO colleagues recently studied Yellowstone's thermal areas by looking at satellite-based remote sensing data from two NASA satellites. Using satellites that orbit around Earth to measure heat released from Yellowstone's hottest regions produced results that are similar ground-based measurements. Therefore, these space-based remote sensing methods can save time and assist in determining changes in thermal areas that may be too remote to access on foot. Vaughan and others published their findings in the July 2012 issue of the Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research. For more information, read the web article Taking the Temperature of Yellowstone from Space.
May 25, 2012
The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory webcam has been relocated and will be operational in early Summer. An update will be posted describing the new location once the camera is up and running. Thank you for your patience while we make these improvements!
May 11, 2012
Welcome to the newly redesigned Yellowstone Volcano Observatory website! The new layout includes improvements to our multimedia display, monitoring data, and hazards information.
New Features:
- Monitoring data is displayed as an interactive map
- Webcam images are located in Multimedia and on the monitoring map
- Hazards information is more detailed
- Frequently Asked Questions are organized by category
- Image Galleries are added for easy image browsing
April 17, 2012
A new geology information internet map service for the Yellowstone Plateau area is now available online. This useful tool was created by the Wyoming State Geological Survey (WSGS), with funding from the USGS through an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act cooperative agreement. The internet map service and accompanying geological data server can be used by scientists, land managers and anyone wishing to learn more about the geology of Yellowstone. Based around the 2001 Geological Map of the Yellowstone Plateau Area by Robert Christiansen (USGS) the ARC GIS service delivers geologic maps, topographic bases, and information on trails, roads, thermal areas, and a variety of other features. It also lists monitoring infrastructure and can take the user to the relevant real-time seismic or deformation data. Data related to the map is available via the Wyoming State Geological Survey website.
Here are some questions you can answer with the Yellowstone IMS:
- What geological units will my hike pass through?
- How many earthquakes have occurred at Yellowstone so far this year?
- Was the latest earthquake located near the caldera boundary?
- Where are thermal areas found in the Central Plateau?
- Where does high resolution topographic data (LiDAR) exist at Yellowstone?
- What is the closest seismometer to my hotel/home/campsite?
March 26, 2012
USGS geologist Dan Dzurisin and coauthors recently completed a long-term compilation of geodetic data from Yellowstone, summarizing data campaigns to constrain uplift and subsidence cycles in the Yellowstone Caldera with techniques including leveling surveys, GPS stations and InSAR. Dzurisin and colleagues discuss various models to explain the remarkable dynamism of the caldera with its frequent alternating cycles of movement. They conclude that uplift and subsidence are controlled by a complex interplay of deep input of basaltic magma, degassing and crystallization of the overlying rhyolite, and fluid transport out of the caldera toward the north. The entire report is available online, which includes a web-based archive of geodetic benchmarks used for the GPS and leveling studies.
January 10, 2012
USGS scientist Phil Dawson and colleagues have applied a novel research approach to voice recognition software. In their January 2012 paper, published in Geophysical Research Letters, they utilize this software to discover that background seismic activity in geyser basins can be intimately linked to daily cycles of heating and cooling. For more information read the web article in the Yellowstone volcano earthquake monitoring section.
October 01, 2011
A collaborative study by USGS and other scientists uses tree growth rings to determine whether geothermal gas output increased after the 1978 earthquake swarm at Yellowstone. By measuring the amount of a specific isotope of carbon (carbon-14) in the rings, the researchers calculated that gas discharge more than doubled at the time of the swarm. The team hopes to use techniques like this to better understand the earthquake record at Yellowstone. For more information, please read the article in the Yellowstone volcano earthquake monitoring section of this website. The full article is published in Geology.
February 13, 2011
Recent telemetry problems, from ice and snow buildup on data transmission antennas, have caused intermittent malfunctions of the University of Utah's automated earthquake location system. The malfunctions result in false earthquake reports, which upon review, are then manually deleted from the earthquake catalog. The snow and ice buildup interferes with the continuous streaming of seismic data causing occasional signal dropouts. The dropouts cause spikes to appear in the data streams, which the automated system misinterprets as the abrupt appearance of a high amplitude seismic wave from an earthquake. Windy conditions, common this time of year, exacerbate the problem by contributing additional noise and thereby reducing the overall signal quality of the seismic data streams. In most cases, seismologists at the University of Utah can overcome these problems and still identify and locate earthquakes correctly. Seismic activity at Yellowstone remains at background levels.
By checking the webicorder displays one can easily discern whether an actual earthquake has occurred. Please see this tutorial for how to interpret the webicorders.
More information about errors in the real-time earthquake system that lead to erroneous reports can be found here: Earthquake Hazards Program Errata for Real-time Earthquakes page.
January 04, 2011
Scientists from the University of Utah, a YVO partner, recently published two articles in Geophysical Research Letters. The first article, written by Jamie Farrell and colleagues, summarizes research on the Yellowstone Lake swarm of late 2008 and early 2009. The other article, written by Wu-Lung Chang and colleagues, discusses the temporal properties of the accelerated caldera uplift between 2004 and 2010. Read our short web article to learn more.
January 01, 2011
An article published by National Geographic on January 19, 2011 highlighted the current research results of scientists from YVO partner University of Utah (UU) and the National Central University of Taiwan. The National Geographic piece has led to several subsequent articles about Yellowstone, some of which misrepresent the research, current geological activity, and the potential for future eruptions. Geological activity over the past five years includes widespread ground uplift and two notable earthquake swarms. Though scientifically interesting, such events are common in large caldera systems like Yellowstone, and are not indicative of an imminent eruption. Moreover, the research described ground uplift that stopped about a year ago. For more information, please read the articles describing the University of Utah research via the Geophysical Research Letters website or download it as a pdf.
October 01, 2010
Beginning October 1, 2010, the University of Utah Seismograph Stations has reduced the threshold from M 2.5 to M 1.5 for automated plotting of earthquakes for the Yellowstone region. For more information please see the UUSS announcement. See today's earthquake map.
June 01, 2010
A report, "Protocols for Geologic Hazards Response by the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory," has just been published. The document summarizes the protocols and tools that the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) will now use during earthquakes, hydrothermal explosions, or other geological activity that could lead to a volcanic eruption. This USGS circular was written by an inter-organizational group of scientists, land managers, and emergency responders that met in November 2008 in Bozeman, Montana.
June 01, 2010
YVO has finished installing a series of radio-equipped temperature sensors to document changes in water flow and heat discharge in the Norris Geyser Basin. Daily, weekly, and monthly temperature plots are now available from our new monitoring page, "Taking the Temperature of the Norris Geyser Basin."
May 01, 2010
Yellowstone National Park geologists Cheryl Jaworowski and Henry Heasler published a paper with two university colleagues to illustrate how FLIR and LiDAR can be used to characterize hydrothermal activity at Yellowstone National Park. Please see the New technologies help characterize hydrothermal activity at Yellowstone article for more information.
May 01, 2010
YVO has installed mobile webcam that can be moved to various places of interest in Yellowstone National Park. The initial view is toward Steamboat Point, Mary Bay and the north shore of Yellowstone Lake. This area of Yellowstone Lake is known for its history of hydrothermal activity and steam explosions. Please see the webcam page for new images each hour and more information.
April 01, 2010
Recent earthquakes on the west side of Yellowstone caldera are considered part of the intense January/February 2010 earthquake swarm of ~2,350 earthquakes. Earthquakes in this area continue to occur at a very reduced rate since the January main swarm sequence. A slight increase in earthquake occurrence has occurred in April 2010 with more than 30 earthquakes recorded in the area of the earlier swarm. The largest of these events was a magnitude 3.3 on April 3, 2010 but none of the March-April events have been reported felt. The rate of earthquake occurrence in this swarm is not unusual for Yellowstone where more than 80 independent swarms have been identified in the past 25 years. See the web article for more information.
January 19, 2010
The University of Utah reports that a notable swarm of small earthquakes has occurred throughout the evening of January 17 and morning of January 18, 2010, in Yellowstone National Park. The swarm is located about 10 miles northwest of Old Faithful, Wyoming and 9 miles southeast of West Yellowstone, MT. Please see the University of Utah Seismograph Stations for more information.
December 01, 2009
The Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research recently (20 November 2009) published a special volume on the track of the Yellowstone Hot Spot. The journal was co-edited by USGS scientist Lisa Morgan and includes papers by YVO Coordinating Scientist Bob Smith and other colleagues. USGS scientist Lisa Morgan also co-wrote a special paper titled Hydrothermal Processes above the Yellowstone Magma Chamber: Large Hydrothermal Systems and Large Hydrothermal Explosions that can be purchased through the Geological Society of America website.
August 13, 2009
We are pleased to announce that YVO will receive $950,000 in USGS recovery American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds. The funds will be used to upgrade seismic and other monitoring systems within Yellowstone National Park and to create new software tools, alarming capabilities and display systems for our partners and collaborating state agencies. For more information, please see the Recovery Funding for Yellowstone and Other Volcano Observatories to Improve Monitoring and Public Safety press release.
December 29, 2008
The University of Utah Seismograph Stations reports that a notable swarm of earthquakes has been underway since December 26 beneath Yellowstone Lake in Yellowstone National Park, three to six miles south-southeast of Fishing Bridge, Wyoming. This energetic sequence of events was most intense on December 27, when the largest number of events of magnitude 3 and larger occurred. More information is included in our web article on this topic.
December 27, 2008
The University of Utah Seismograph Stations reports that a swarm of small earthquakes of magnitude 3.5 and smaller is occurring beneath Yellowstone Lake in Yellowstone National Park, five to nine miles south-southeast of Fishing Bridge, Wyoming. The swarm began the afternoon of Dec. 26, and has continued and intensified through the 27th. The two largest earthquakes in this swarm have been shocks of magnitude 3.5 and 3.4 which occurred at 1:17 and 1:26 pm MST, respectively, Dec. 27. Many smaller earthquakes have also occurred, including three events this morning of magnitude 2.5 to 2.8 and a magnitude 3.2 event at 3:30 pm MST. Some of the earthquakes in the swarm have been reported felt by people in the Yellowstone Lake area. Swarms of this nature are relatively common in this part of Yellowstone Park.
June 09, 2008
New research suggests that how often Old Faithful and other Yellowstone geysers erupt may depend on annual rainfall patterns. USGS scientist Shaul Hurwitz along with colleagues at Stanford and Yellowstone National Park have discovered that changes of water supply to a geyser's underground plumbing may have a large influence on eruption intervals; that is, the time between eruptions. For example, geysers appear to lengthen and shorten their intervals on cycles that mimic annual dry and wet periods. The study results were published in the article, Climate-induced variations of geyser periodicity in Yellowstone National Park, USA, in the June issue of the journal Geology.
Geysers are rare hot springs that periodically erupt bursts of steam and hot water. Yellowstone National Park has more than half of the world's geysers. Old Faithful has remained faithful for at least the past 135 years, showering appreciative tourists every 50 to 95 minutes (most recently an annual average of 91 minutes). To view Old Faithful in real-time, see the National Park Service Old Faithful Webcam.
March 25, 2008
The University of Utah Seismograph Stations reports that a light earthquake of magnitude 4.1 occurred at 05:59 AM on March 25, 2008 (MDT) in Yellowstone National Park. The epicenter of the shock was located 29.8 km (18.6 mi) NE of Fishing Bridge, WY. Two earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or greater have occurred within 25 km of the epicenter of this event since 1962. The largest of these events was a magnitude 3.5 on July 20, 1992, 6.4 km (4.0 mi) NE of Fishing Bridge, WY. No earthquakes of magnitude 4.5 or greater have occurred within 50 km of the epicenter of this event since 1962. This event has been reported felt in Pahaska Tepee, outside the east entrance to Yellowstone National Park and in southwest Montana as well as in western Wyoming.
March 05, 2008
The February issue of Elements Magazine, features a number of articles on supervolcanoes, discussing their origins, growth and eruptions. YVO Scientist-in-Charge Jake Lowenstern and his USGS colleague Shaul Hurwitz have contributed an article entitled: "Monitoring a Supervolcano in Repose: Heat and Volatile Flux at the Yellowstone Caldera. The table of contents for the February issue of Elements can be downloaded here, though you or your library will need a subscription to download the other articles.
February 08, 2008
In the 1960's, USGS researchers drilled research wells to learn about the Yellowstone geothermal system. One of those wells, the Y8 at Biscuit Basin, started leaking in 1992, and was immediately capped and plugged by the USGS, the National Park Service, and a local drilling company. Because of its historic and scientific interest, a video of the operation was recently reformatted and published as USGS Open-File Report 2008-1014, which can be downloaded in a variety of formats. The video can also be streamed to your computer without downloading. Enjoy!
November 09, 2007
The November 9, 2007 issue of Science Magazine features an article, Accelerated uplift and magmatic intrusion of the Yellowstone Caldera, 2004 to 2006, by YVO scientists from the University of Utah and USGS. Using GPS and another satellite-based technique (InSAR), the authors find that parts of the Yellowstone Caldera rose as much as 7 cm (~3") per year from 2004 to 2006. The uplift is most noticeable at the White Lake GPS station, as has been discussed in our monthly YVO updates over the past year. Chang and his colleagues credit the relatively rapid uplift to magma entering the region beneath the Yellowstone Caldera. During this period of uplift, there have been relatively few earthquakes at Yellowstone. Heat and gas flow from the geysers and hot springs also remain unchanged. Calderas such as Yellowstone can display this sort of geologic behavior, even for centuries or millennia, without erupting. Read more about the uplift in our article Recent ups and downs of the Yellowstone Caldera. Also see the University of Utah press release.
November 09, 2007
USGS scientists and their collaborators recently published a compendium of research papers about Yellowstone National Park. USGS Professional Paper 1717 is entitled: Integrated Geoscience Studies in the Greater Yellowstone Area - Volcanic, Tectonic, and Hydrothermal Processes in the Yellowstone Geoecosystem. The sixteen chapters include studies of geology, geochemistry and geophysics, including several with a focus on Yellowstone Lake. A separate map entitled: Bathymetry and Geology of the Floor of Yellowstone Lake, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana, was also recently published.
March 30, 2007
Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) released a Preliminary Assessment of Volcanic and Hydrothermal Hazards in Yellowstone National Park and Vicinity. The assessment, four years in the making, is authored by Robert Christiansen, a leading expert on the Yellowstone volcanic system, along with eight colleagues. The preliminary assessment has been published as an Open-File Report. Over the next 2 years, the assessment will be enlarged to include a seismic hazards analysis and other additional enhancements. At that point, the hazards assessment will be released as a more formal USGS Scientific Investigations Report that will replace this preliminary report.
March 08, 2007
University of Utah graduate student Christine Puskas, along with YVO coordinating scientist Bob Smith and others, recently published a long-term study of crustal movements associated with the Yellowstone hotspot. This technical article summarizes 17 years of Global Positioning System (GPS) data acquired to understand how the Yellowstone volcano and the Snake River Plain volcanic field interacts with the nearby Teton and Hebgen Lake faults and the tectonic system of the Western U.S. The original paper, published in the Journal of Geophysical Research, can be downloaded here. The research is described for a general audience in a press release by the University of Utah.
March 08, 2007
The Fall 2006 issue of Yellowstone Science includes two articles on the Norris Geyser Basin. The first article, by Yellowstone National Park geologist Cheryl Jaworowski and co-authors, relates how natural fractures are a crucial control on the distribution and behavior of thermal features at Norris. The second article, by Geological Society of America intern David Shean, uses historical aerial photographs as a tool to detect changes in thermal activity at Norris. Both articles can be downloaded off the Yellowstone Science website.
February 05, 2007
In September 2005, USGS/YVO Postdoctoral Fellow Brita Graham Wall used a radio-controlled camera, attached to a helium-filled balloon to take photos from the sky above the Norris Geyser Basin. Some of the photos are truly spectacular, and we hope you enjoy them. Please see the images in the article Way Above Norris.
November 06, 2006
Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) has developed a monitoring plan for the period 2006-2015 to increase our ability to provide timely information during seismic, volcanic, and hydrothermal crises and to anticipate hazardous events before they occur. Upgrades to the monitoring network will provide high-quality data for scientific study and interpretation of one of the largest active volcanic systems in the world. Equipment additions and upgrades will bring the seismic network up to modern standards and add stations in areas that lack adequate station coverage. Borehole strainmeters and tiltmeters will be added to measure crustal movements and stream gages and gas-measuring instruments will allow YVO to compare geophysical phenomena, such as earthquakes and ground motions, to hydrothermal events, such as anomalous water and gas discharge. Please see the Volcano and Earthquake Monitoring Plan for the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, 2006-2015 for more information.
October 03, 2006
Images from the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory photogallery are now available as a kml file! To check out the images in their geographic locations, download the kml file and click on it to open it in Google Earth. If you do not already have a copy of Google Earth, visit http://earth.google.com/ to download a copy. Thanks to John Bailey of the Alaska Volcano Observatory Arctic Region Supercomputing Center for creating the file.
July 24, 2006
YVO coordinating scientists Jacob Lowenstern and Robert Smith together with Long Valley Scientist-in-Charge David Hill recently published an article, Monitoring super-volcanoes: geophysical and geochemical signals at Yellowstone and other large caldera systems", that summarizes current knowledge about monitoring geological unrest at large calderas such as Yellowstone. The article is part of a group of papers that formed a Discussion Meeting on Extreme Natural Hazards organized through the Royal Society in October 2005. For more information about other papers from the meeting, please see the Phil. Trans. R. Soc. A Web site.
July 03, 2006
The American Museum of Natural History joined Yellowstone Volcano Observatory scientists in the field in September 2005 and have posted a video, articles, and two interactive slide shows about the geology of the area. The video, Yellowstone: Monitoring the Fire Below includes interviews with Jake Lowenstern, YVO's Scientist-in-Charge, Hank Heasler, YVO Coordinating Scientist and Yellowstone Park Geologist, and USGS geologist Lisa Morgan. The articles, Yellowstone National Park is a Volcano and Signs of Restlessness expand on the information in the video whereas the article, Volcanic Witness: An Interview with Bob Smith provides information from Bob Smith's, YVO's Coordinating Scientist from the University of Utah, four decades of work on Yellowstone. For more information and to view the video, please see American Museum of Natural History Science Bulletins, Yellowstone: Monitoring the Fire Below.
April 06, 2006
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is adopting a common system nationwide for characterizing the level of unrest and eruptive activity at volcanoes. YVO is the first volcano observatory to implement the new standard alert-level system. Our Monthly Updates, Status Reports, and Information Releases will now include both an alert level and an aviation color code. Yellowstone is currently at the alert level, NORMAL (Typical background activity of a volcano in a non-eruptive state), and Aviation Color Code GREEN (Volcano is in normal, non-eruptive state.). For more information, please see the article on the Volcano Hazards Website "USGS to Adopt a Common Alert-Level System to Inform Public of Volcanic Activity at U.S. Volcanoes".
February 28, 2006
In March 2006, the journal Nature published a paper by YVO scientist Charles Wicks and colleagues about a period of uplift in the northern part of the Yellowstone caldera. For more information about the recent findings, please see Satellite Technologies Detect Uplift in the Yellowstone Caldera.
January 05, 2006
A website devoted to Yellowstone geologic data was launched by YVO coordinating scientist Bob Smith and University of Utah graduate student Jamie Farrell, with support from the National Science Foundation's GEON program. The site provides a variety of maps, figures and GIS (geographic information system) datasets of interest to both scientists and the general public.
June 13, 2005
The June 2005 issue of Geotimes magazine includes an article by YVO Scientist-in-Charge Jake Lowenstern. The article, Truth, fiction and everything in between at Yellowstone, presents Lowenstern's views on public and media interest in Yellowstone and its volcanic potential.
May 09, 2005
On April 29, 2005, The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) released the first ever comprehensive and systematic review of all 169 volcanoes in the United States. The report, An Assessment of Volcanic Threat and Monitoring Capabilities in the United States: Framework for a National Volcano Early Warning System, establishes a framework for a National Volcano Early Warning System (NVEWS), "which calls for a 24-hour seven-day-a-week Volcano Watch Office and enhanced instrumentation and monitoring at targeted volcanoes". Each of the 169 volcanoes were divided into five threat groups: Very High, High, Moderate, Low, and Very Low. The USGS press release on NVEWS summarizes the 37 volcanoes in the Very High threat group and mentions an additional 21 under-monitored volcanoes. Yellowstone is one of the 21 under-monitored volcanoes in the High threat group. This does not mean that the geologic conditions at Yellowstone have changed. The activity at Yellowstone remains consistent with historical levels.
March 11, 2005
Yellowstone has experienced several giant volcanic eruptions in the past few million years, as well as many smaller eruptions and steam explosions. To improve our understanding of the volcanic, seismic, and hydrothermal hazards, scientists study and monitor activity at Yellowstone. Check out our new fact sheet that describes Yellowstone's past and potential future activity.
October 15, 2004
In April 2004 there was an increase in earthquake activity, called a swarm, at Yellowstone National Park that drew interest from scientists and the public. Swarms can occur on volcanoes or in tectonically active areas. There have been many swarms recorded over the past 40 years at Yellowstone. For more information see the Earthquake Swarms at Yellowstone article.
June 28, 2004
Over the past ten years scientists have been applying new satellite-based surveying techniques to monitor changes in the land surface elevation within Yellowstone Caldera. These new measurements add to monitoring data collected over the past 25 years and help increase our understanding of the slow up and down ground movements of the Yellowstone caldera above the subterranean magma and hydrothermal systems. For more information see the Tracking Changes in Yellowstone's Restless Volcanic System fact sheet.
November 01, 2003
There were were notable changes in thermal activity at Norris Geyser Basin in 2003. These changes resulted in the closure of the Back Basin Trail and temporarydeployment of a monitoring network by YVO. Learn more.
Page modified: 2016-01-05 16:51:27