Yellowstone National Park is a tranquil wilderness, boasting soaring mountains, verdant forests and idyllic lakes. But peak beneath the surface and a totally different picture emerges. For the Yellowstone Caldera is the largest volcanic system in North America, packed with enough potential power to wipe the entire continent off the map.
The Yellowstone volcano has apocalyptically erupted three previous times, with the most recent occurring 640,000 years ago.
Research suggests explosive volcanism from Yellowstone is more frequent than previously thought
Volcanologists believe enough time has since elapsed for subterranean pressure to have begun to build up again.
And should an earthquake take place in the area, a catastrophic chain reaction could occur with a fortnight.
And to make matters worse, researchers have now identified a weak spot beneath Yellowstone which could be the potential epicentre for a volcanic apocalypse.
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Yellowstone supervolcano: The area could potentially wipe North America off the map (Image: Getty)
Yellowstone volcano: Yellowstone has apocalyptically erupted three previous times (Image: Getty)
Washington State University researcher now believe the largest Yellowstone eruption was in fact two different eruptions at least 6,000 years apart.
The volcanic eruptions are thought to created the two million year-old Huckleberry Ridge.
The researchers’ results describe a volcanic system potentially far more dangerous than even doom-mongers had feared.
Yellowstone is a more active volcano than previously thought and this research will help recalculate the chances of another deadly eruption.
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Before the scientist divided the eruption into two, it was considered one of the largest eruptions known to science.
Ben Ellis, co-author and post-doctoral researcher at Washington State University’s School of the Environment, said: “The Yellowstone volcano’s previous behaviour is the best guide of what it will do in the future.
“This research suggests explosive volcanism from Yellowstone is more frequent than previously thought.”
The new ages for each Huckleberry Ridge eruption reduce the volume of the first event to 2,200 cubic kilometres, roughly 12 percent less than previously thought.
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Yellowstone supervolcano: The Caldera is the largest volcanic system in North America (Image: Getty)
Yellowstone volcano: The volcanic system potentially far more dangerous than feared (Image: Getty)
And it is now known a second, smaller eruption took place 6,000 years later.
That first eruption still deserves to be called “super,” as it is one of the largest known to have occurred on Earth.
Skies stretching the entire continent were blackened with thick, chocking debris.
To put this into context, the epic 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption produced 1 cubic kilometre of ash.
And the even larger Mount Mazama 6,850 years ago produced 116 cubic kilometres of ash.
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The researchers used high-precision argon isotope dating to create highly-precise conclusions.
The radioactive decay rate from the Yellowstone rock samples served as a “rock clock” for dating samples and has a precision of 0.2 percent.
Darren Mark, co-author of the seminal study managed to further refine the technique by 1.2 percent.
And although this sounds like a minimal difference, it actually has a profound effect in geologic time.
“Improved precision for greater temporal resolution is not just about adding another decimal place to a number, says Dr Mark.
“It’s far more exciting. It’s like getting a sharper lens on a camera. It allows us to see the world more clearly.”
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