A geyser hiding under Yellowstone National Park recently re-awakened. But do not worry: this does not mean that the supervolcano under the park will erupt soon, a new study finds.
In March 2018, after an afternoon nap of 3.5 years, Steamboat Geyser suddenly erupted, spewing steam, mud, sand, and rocks into the air. The previously dormant geyser erupted 32 times in 2018, a record 48 times in 2018 and another 48 times in 2020 (its previous record of 29 eruptions was set in 1964), US Geological Survey reported Monday (January 4).
Some scientists feared that the geyser’s dramatic eruptions were a harbinger of volcanic activity at Yellowstone. But it appears that the frequent eruptions of Steamboat do not predict a volcanic eruption, according to the new study published online on January 4 in the magazine. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Related: Rainbow Basin: Photos of Yellowstone’s colorful prismatic hot spring
Yellowstone’s supervolcano has not had a major eruption in 70,000 years, but scientists are constantly looking for tips on when the next ‘big’ could happen. So-called hydrothermal explosions, or geyser eruptions, which can be fatal, are also difficult to predict; in December 2019, 22 people died in an unexpected death hydrothermal explosion on White Island, New Zealand.
“Hydrothermal vents – basically hot water that explodes because it comes in contact with hot rock – are one of the biggest dangers in Yellowstone,” studied senior author Michael Manga, a professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the University of California, Berkeley. said in a statement. “The reason they are problematic is that they are difficult to predict; it is not clear if there are forerunners that enable you to give warning.”
While Steamboat Geyser has resurfaced, its sudden activity does not coincide with the subterranean magma motion often seen before a volcanic eruption.
This is not to say that the geology surrounding Steamboat Geyser has not changed. Before Steamboat woke up again, the ground around the geyser rose, seismic activity in the region has increased somewhat and the area has started to release a little more heat into the atmosphere than before, Manga and his colleagues found. But other dormant geysers in the immediate vicinity, known as the Norris Geyser Basin, did not start again, and the groundwater temperature that drives the Steamboat eruptions did not increase.
Except for the first eruption in 2018, none of the Steamboat eruptions occurred after periods of high seismic activity, the researchers found.
‘We find no evidence that there is a large [volcanic] eruption is coming, “Manga said. They also could not determine why Steamboat woke up, calling the reason for its reactivation” ambiguous “in the study.
Long and frequent eruptions
During their investigation, the team also discovered why Steamboat’s incentives are so high, making it the world’s highest active geyser. By comparing the columns of 11 geysers in Chile, Iceland, the United States, and Russia with the estimated depths of the water reservoir for each geyser, the team learned that deeper reservoirs lead to larger burst jets. In the case of Steamboat, a reservoir that sits about 25 feet underground has the highest column of 115 feet.
Meanwhile, two geysers in Chile, with reservoirs 6.5 feet and 16 feet (2 and 5 m) underground, caused eruptions of only 1 meter high.
“Steamboat is longer because water is stored deeper than with other geysers, and therefore more energy is available to propel the eruptions,” the researchers wrote in the study.
The team also determined that changes in rainfall and snowmelt are largely responsible for the volatility in Steamboat eruptions. In the spring and early summer, melting snow and rain penetrated the underground reservoir, causing surface water pressure to rise, the researchers said. Similarly, during the winter, less water enters the underground reservoir, leading to reduced water pressure and longer periods between eruptions.
The water in the reservoir goes deep underground, so the water that erupts in a geyser eruption is decades or even centuries old, Manga said.
Originally published on Live Science.