NPR: A Q&A with the man who took Yellowstone’s measure. Magma’s down there, LOTS of it.
On All Things Considered host Guy Raz yesterday got an entirely lucid science report just by asking a few sensible questions, and sat back to record the answers (twice I tried to type his name by memory and wrote Ray Guy each time! He’s an American football punter, you know). The topic is Yellowstone, the magma reservoir beneath it, and the plume that feeds it. The latter two, his professor tells him, are considerably larger than had been thought. The press release below says that this means eruptions may also therefore be larger than had been thought. One wonders about that – wouldn’t forecasts rely mainly on the geologic evidence for the size of past ones, hundreds of thousands to millions of years ago?
The report was in the Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, and results also were presented earlier this month at the American Geophysical Union meeting. A few other outlets picked the story up:
- Jackson Hole News & Guide (Dec 9) Cory Hatch: Park’s giant magma plume eating up mountains ;
- Salt Lake Tribune – Brian Maffly: Yellowstone’s underground “plumbing’ comes into view ;
- National Geographic – Richard Lovett: Under Yellowstone, Magma Pocket 20% Larger Than Thought; Includes a fine video animation of the data, rotating, and another eye-popping interactive graphic.
Grist for the Mill: University of Utah Press Release ;
- Charlie Petit
