More than 1200 tiny quakes hit Yellowstone Park

update 2-2-10 12 more today biggest one a 3.1


update as of 2-1-10 they are still occurring.

There have been 8 so far today. Here is the website
http://www.seis.utah.edu/req2webdir/recenteqs/Maps/Yellowstone.html



More than 1,200 tiny quakes hit Yellowstone Park, but jitters are few

CHEYENNE, Wyo. - Yellowstone National Park is shaking again, but jitters seem few so far.

Over eight days, more than 1,270 mostly tiny earthquakes have struck between Old Faithful and West Yellowstone. The strongest dozen or so have ranged between magnitudes 3.0 and 3.8.

That's strong enough to feel - barely. The vast majority have been too weak to be felt even nearby.

Likewise, online chatter about an imminent volcanic eruption in Yellowstone hasn't really picked up compared with the attention that a similar quake swarm drew just over a year ago.

"Perhaps we have done a better job in the past year or so helping the public understand that earthquake swarms are not unusual in Yellowstone," park spokesman Al Nash said Monday.

The largest quakes in the current swarm have included two of magnitude 3.1 and one of magnitude 3.0 late Sunday and early Monday, according to the University of Utah, which helps monitor seismic activity in Yellowstone.

Those who've felt some of the recent quakes include Tim Townsend, a law enforcement ranger at Old Faithful. Most haven't been alarming, he said, although one last week "had me running to cover, for sure."

One of the world's largest volcanoes slumbers at the core of Yellowstone.

The volcano last had a caldera-forming eruption 640,000 years ago and last spewed lava 70,000 years ago. Geologists say Yellowstone could erupt again, although the probability of an eruption within anyone's lifetime is extremely low.

That hasn't discouraged speculation. One Web site during last year's swarm carried a "Yellowstone Warning" urging everyone to flee the Yellowstone area, saying there was a risk of poisonous volcanic gases venting from the earth.

Others have tied the Yellowstone volcano to the end of the world in 2012, as some people fancifully interpret the ancient Mayan calendar to predict.

Relatively mundane fault slippage is believed to be causing the latest quakes, said Jamie Farrell, a researcher at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.

Not that the swarm isn't interesting to geologists - quite the opposite.

"It gives us an opportunity to maybe get a better idea of what the processes are that are causing the earthquakes we're seeing," Farrell said. "Hopefully, each time we get one of these, we can get maybe a little better idea of what's going on down there."

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• 1200
• earth
• quakes
• in
• yellowstone
• super
• volcano
• caldera

[hondain]

my question, in addition to my last comment is,

do you think these quakes could trigger the volcano into eruption? or , do you think the quakes could be from the volcano getting ready to erupt soon?

[drevenkaine]

All I got to say is we better all pray to our maker that this isn't going to blow up. If it does it will be the worst event in modern history. And not many living within a 1000 miles of it are going to have a good day. Then it would only get worse as the ash and rubble cover a great deal of our atmosphere which would undoubtedly cause the Moon to appear red and acid rain maybe.

[insurancetech]

Yes there is a "super volcano" in yellow stone, and there are alway earthquakes there. That is the most geological active area besides California. And yes it will erupt. When? who knows. The "experts" dont even know. No it does NOT have anything to do with any thing else. They have been monitoring and tracking this since the 50's and this information can be verified.

[frankensteinmoneymac]

@Runinfox Well how intuitive could you have been if you "got spooked" and talked your parents out of going to YS in 64?!?! ....you missed out on a natural wonder because of youre 'intuitiveness' LOL! Too bad you never used your amazing intuitive abilities to further science.....instead you only have claims to having been first to know the "Truth" of black holes and YS!! Truths you can "Prove" through hypnotism and polygraph!!! LOL!!!! Do U even know how pathetic that all sounds?!?!?!?

[Athaeus]

The things orbiting our sun right now? You mean the planets? Because I'm fairly confident the miniquakes in Yellowstone has something to do with planet earth.

[Runinfox]

Check rammsteingein about the Dr. and DTM. He's predicting the same.

[Runinfox]

I knew YS was a super Volcano in "64". Was`going there with parents and got spooked-talked them into Not going after visiting West coast. When did Scientists find out-Later I think.

Some of Us are intuitive. Painted the Universe at an Art class in "61" with a black hole-had to explain to teacher what it was. She denied my Truth. Thats OK-polygraph and Hypnotism can Prove My TRUTH. What does it Matter.

YS IS going to be more active and may pop Off-but not massive???

[SenTeX2012]

I hope that it does not happen, but sometimes the truth is worse than fiction .. it will happen. Then fly away when all of the volcano, I'll fly, only to save my mistress!

[hondain]

yeah they do hit there all the time, but the amount that has hit just in this past month to date, usually occurs over the whole year. that is what makes this event something of interest.

[hondain]

im not sure what could be causing this, but i dont think its an act of god unless its tied in with the sixth seal. we need to keep monitoring these events and see if they get stronger and if our volcano's become active. if this happens i have my money on a huge celestial body making its presence known of an incoming flyby in the near future.