Rock Rises from St. Helens Crater

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
66,405
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Been watching this...Pretty cool stuff going on. I was in Washington when Mt St. Helens went off the first time (1980) What a mess that was! There's also a mountain in Oregon that has a growing bulge in it as well...
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Vulcanism is alive and well in the Cascades...
 

fluxquantum

Platinum Member
Oct 27, 2000
2,398
1
71
Originally posted by: BoomerD
Been watching this...Pretty cool stuff going on. I was in Washington when Mt St. Helens went off the first time (1980) What a mess that was! There's also a mountain in Oregon that has a growing bulge in it as well...
Text
Vulcanism is alive and well in the Cascades...

i, too, was there when it blew. i was around 7 years old then. the ash came down in my home town of pullman near WSU.
 

GoPackGo

Diamond Member
Oct 10, 2003
6,521
598
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They say it grows about 4 feet a day...thats 1500ft a year if it keeps going...wont take long to be back to the size it was.
 

Lemon law

Lifer
Nov 6, 2005
20,984
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Ther important thing to understand about the the volcanos in the cascades, is that they tend to be very explosive and very different than the benign volcanos in our 50'th state.

Not that much is understiid about the dangers they pose or how to predict the possible future events.
Even though the last Mt St Helens was a small compared to something like MT. Penatuba, the next Cascade vocano could be really huge.
 

daniel49

Diamond Member
Jan 8, 2005
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Originally posted by: GoPackGo
They say it grows about 4 feet a day...thats 1500ft a year if it keeps going...wont take long to be back to the size it was.

Nor to blow it off again:)
I'm not that far north of it....I see webcam is showing mountain now.
 

DrPizza

Administrator Elite Member Goat Whisperer
Mar 5, 2001
49,601
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www.slatebrookfarm.com
Hmmm... I ought to save up to have the money available for a quick trip... it'd be awesome to be about 30 miles away when it blows its top.
 

Lemon law

Lifer
Nov 6, 2005
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Even 30 miles away is not always safe from pyroclastic flows. Get caught in one of those and you roast & or get suffocated with poisious gasses--and they move with incredable velocity and get funneled by the terrain. All that is within the ability of a Cascade range really big blow up.
 

lozina

Lifer
Sep 10, 2001
11,711
8
81
Holy crap thats amazing

I wonder how smooth that surface is... Looks like would be fun to slide down it !

How soon before some psycho rock climber takes the challenge? :D
 

NTB

Diamond Member
Mar 26, 2001
5,179
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Neat pictures :) I wasn't even around when Mt. St. Helens blew - was born about 3 months later.

When all is said and done though, I think we're in good shape, as long as the volcanon under Yellowstone doesn't doesn't go off :Q

Nate
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
66,405
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Originally posted by: NTB
Neat pictures :) I wasn't even around when Mt. St. Helens blew - was born about 3 months later.

When all is said and done though, I think we're in good shape, as long as the volcanon under Yellowstone doesn't doesn't go off :Q

Nate

No kidding. That would be devastating...to the US, and the world. You watch the USGS website, and there are always little earthquakes in the Yellowstone region...often more than in the earthquake prone Bay area.
http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/yvo/2006/uplift.html
 

Future Shock

Senior member
Aug 28, 2005
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Originally posted by: BoomerD
Originally posted by: NTB
Neat pictures :) I wasn't even around when Mt. St. Helens blew - was born about 3 months later.

When all is said and done though, I think we're in good shape, as long as the volcanon under Yellowstone doesn't doesn't go off :Q

Nate

No kidding. That would be devastating...to the US, and the world. You watch the USGS website, and there are always little earthquakes in the Yellowstone region...often more than in the earthquake prone Bay area.
http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/yvo/2006/uplift.html

If you want to know more about the Yellowstone volcano, I HIGHLY suggest reading the chapter on it in Jared Diamond's book Collapse. I don't have my copy close by, but I seem to remember that a Yellowstone eruption would make the word "devastating" look like the understatement of all time - something about quite possibly ending life as we know it. To give you an idea on how big a deal it is, consider this: for years geologists knew there must be volcanic activity near Yellowstone to cause the hot springs and venting, but they could never locate the actual volcanic pipe within Yellowstone. One day the awful truth dawned on them - the reason they couldn't find the pipe was that the ENTIRETY of Yellowstone was actually in the crater - that the actual pipe itself is so massive that the crater encompasses the entire park to the surrounding mountains.

If it blows - we goes.

Future Shock
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
66,405
14,799
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Originally posted by: Future Shock
Originally posted by: BoomerD
Originally posted by: NTB
Neat pictures :) I wasn't even around when Mt. St. Helens blew - was born about 3 months later.

When all is said and done though, I think we're in good shape, as long as the volcanon under Yellowstone doesn't doesn't go off :Q

Nate

No kidding. That would be devastating...to the US, and the world. You watch the USGS website, and there are always little earthquakes in the Yellowstone region...often more than in the earthquake prone Bay area.
http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/yvo/2006/uplift.html">http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/yvo/2006/uplift.html</a>


If you want to know more about the Yellowstone volcano, I HIGHLY suggest reading the chapter on it in Jared Diamond's book Collapse. I don't have my copy close by, but I seem to remember that a Yellowstone eruption would make the word "devastating" look like the understatement of all time - something about quite possibly ending life as we know it. To give you an idea on how big a deal it is, consider this: for years geologists knew there must be volcanic activity near Yellowstone to cause the hot springs and venting, but they could never locate the actual volcanic pipe within Yellowstone. One day the awful truth dawned on them - the reason they couldn't find the pipe was that the ENTIRETY of Yellowstone was actually in the crater - that the actual pipe itself is so massive that the crater encompasses the entire park to the surrounding mountains.

If it blows - we goes.

Future Shock

I watched the movie/docudrama "Super Volcano" a while back, and while it shows this, it really doesn't cover the scope in it's entirity. It has the potential to be a planet-killer, in the effects on the atmosphere and climate.
http://www.livescience.com/forcesofnature/ap_050408_supervolcano.html
http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/supervolcano/supervolcano.html

and for more science behind the movie:
http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2005/1164/2005-1164.pdf
 

Alistar7

Lifer
May 13, 2002
11,978
0
0
Originally posted by: Future Shock
Originally posted by: BoomerD
Originally posted by: NTB
Neat pictures :) I wasn't even around when Mt. St. Helens blew - was born about 3 months later.

When all is said and done though, I think we're in good shape, as long as the volcanon under Yellowstone doesn't doesn't go off :Q

Nate

No kidding. That would be devastating...to the US, and the world. You watch the USGS website, and there are always little earthquakes in the Yellowstone region...often more than in the earthquake prone Bay area.
http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/yvo/2006/uplift.html

If you want to know more about the Yellowstone volcano, I HIGHLY suggest reading the chapter on it in Jared Diamond's book Collapse. I don't have my copy close by, but I seem to remember that a Yellowstone eruption would make the word "devastating" look like the understatement of all time - something about quite possibly ending life as we know it. To give you an idea on how big a deal it is, consider this: for years geologists knew there must be volcanic activity near Yellowstone to cause the hot springs and venting, but they could never locate the actual volcanic pipe within Yellowstone. One day the awful truth dawned on them - the reason they couldn't find the pipe was that the ENTIRETY of Yellowstone was actually in the crater - that the actual pipe itself is so massive that the crater encompasses the entire park to the surrounding mountains.

If it blows - we goes.

Future Shock

Talk about not being able to see the forest because of the trees. Knowing the volcanic potential of Yellowstone is one of those facts you wish you never knew lol. I watched that special on TV about it, the global devastation is unfathomable.
 

Alistar7

Lifer
May 13, 2002
11,978
0
0
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...6svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN

If another large caldera-forming eruption were to occur at Yellowstone, its effects would be worldwide. Thick ash deposits would bury vast areas of the United States, and injection of huge volumes of volcanic gases into the atmosphere could drastically affect global climate. Fortunately, the Yellowstone volcanic system shows no signs that it is headed toward such an eruption. The probability of a large caldera-forming eruption within the next few thousand years is exceedingly low.

Eruptions of the Yellowstone volcanic system have included the two largest volcanic eruptions in North America in the past few million years; the third largest was at Long Valley in California and produced the Bishop ash bed. The biggest of the Yellowstone eruptions occurred 2.1 million years ago, depositing the Huckleberry Ridge ash bed. These eruptions left behind huge volcanic depressions called ?calderas? and spread volcanic ash over large parts of North America (see map).

http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2005/3024/images/fs2005-3024_fig_12.jpg
 

Alistar7

Lifer
May 13, 2002
11,978
0
0
Scientists have revealed that Yellowstone Park has been on a regular eruption cycle of 600,000 years. The last eruption was 640,000 years ago?so the next is overdue. The next eruption could be 2,500 times the size of the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption. Volcanologists have been tracking the movement of magma under the park and have calculated that in parts of Yellowstone the ground has risen over seventy centimeters this century.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...6svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN
 

jrenz

Banned
Jan 11, 2006
1,788
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Originally posted by: Alistar7
Scientists have revealed that Yellowstone Park has been on a regular eruption cycle of 600,000 years. The last eruption was 640,000 years ago?so the next is overdue. The next eruption could be 2,500 times the size of the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption. Volcanologists have been tracking the movement of magma under the park and have calculated that in parts of Yellowstone the ground has risen over seventy centimeters this century.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...6svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN

I recall seeing that 600,000 figure, but I also recall that it only takes into account 2 eruptions or some other relatively small figure... so the 600,000 may not be entirely accurate.

Even so, when you think about it, the human race is still just a fraction of a blip on that timeline, so the odds of it going anytime reasonably soon, though possible, are very slim.
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
66,405
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We've been kicking around the idea of moving to Cody, Wyoming, but if that ever does go off, we'd be living right outside of ground zero...:roll:
HOWEVER, since the odds of it seem to be in our favor...MAYBE...we'll see what the next coupld of years bring...
 

Lemon law

Lifer
Nov 6, 2005
20,984
3
0
Since the subject of super volcanos have now come up, it gets rather interesting about their relative rarity. But human geneticists had long known that the human species should have more genetic diversity than we do---its almost like the entire human race are all desended from just a small handfull off ancestors about 64,000 years ago.

Which guess what--is almost the same age as the last super volcano going off in Togo.

So don't worry if some Cascade range volcano goes off and eats Seattle& Portland--it probaly won't kill us all.

So BoomerD--by all means move to Cody---its highly unlikely--but remotely possible that you can receive that free--and very deep burial----and make sure some greedy funeral director does not get a dime from your surviving family members.
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
66,405
14,799
146
Originally posted by: Lemon law
Since the subject of super volcanos have now come up, it gets rather interesting about their relative rarity. But human geneticists had long known that the human species should have more genetic diversity than we do---its almost like the entire human race are all desended from just a small handfull off ancestors about 64,000 years ago.

Which guess what--is almost the same age as the last super volcano going off in Togo.

So don't worry if some Cascade range volcano goes off and eats Seattle& Portland--it probaly won't kill us all.

So BoomerD--by all means move to Cody---its highly unlikely--but remotely possible that you can receive that free--and very deep burial----and make sure some greedy funeral director does not get a dime from your surviving family members.

;) Kind of my thoughts too, now all I gotta do is convince the Mrs. of that...
 

GoPackGo

Diamond Member
Oct 10, 2003
6,521
598
126
Originally posted by: Alistar7
Scientists have revealed that Yellowstone Park has been on a regular eruption cycle of 600,000 years. The last eruption was 640,000 years ago?so the next is overdue. The next eruption could be 2,500 times the size of the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption. Volcanologists have been tracking the movement of magma under the park and have calculated that in parts of Yellowstone the ground has risen over seventy centimeters this century.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=...6svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN

pretty tiny in comparison to how Mt St. Helens is growing ;)
 
Feb 16, 2005
14,080
5,453
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Absolutely the coolest thing I have seen in a very, very long time. The power of nature is unfathomable. 5 ft a day?!?! I thought mountains moved about 5 ft every 10,000 years. Truly spectacular. I'd get out and see it if I wasn't 3000 miles east of it. :(