Supervolcano Anxiety

The very mention of the Yellowstone Supervolcano sparks an instant anxiety attack for my wife, Sheri. The plethora of National Geographic Channel programs and the handful of obligatory disaster movies have created a hyper-awareness of a potential eruption of the Yellowstone Caldera. Living at the edge of the caldera and watching supervolcano speculation is like being a surfer and enduring Shark Week.

Recent news reports did nothing to diminish our household’s anxiety level. First there was the Russian geopolitical analyst Konstantin Sivkov who was interviewed in late March by the Russian VPK News. He suggested that a Russian nuclear warhead targeted at the Yellowstone Caldera would trigger an eruption of the supervolcano and destroy the United States quickly. Mr. Sivkov may be an idiot but he has friends with nukes and that is a bit unsettling.

The second source of our anxiety was last week’s University of Utah study that found there is a magma chamber underneath the known Yellowstone Caldera magma chamber that is four and a half times larger. There is apparently enough hot rock in the lower chamber to fill the entire Grand Canyon eleven times over. We are sitting on nearly five times more magma than scientists thought and crazy Russians are contemplating nuking Yellowstone Park to destroy the United States! Just the news we needed to lower our stress levels. Thanks for sharing.

Fortunately most residents are too busy living to give this news much thought. Businesses are gearing up for the tourist season. Part-time residents are about to open their cabins for the summer and residents are already beginning their summer projects in preparation for the coming winter.  

In Island Park our concerns range from avoiding moose that are crossing the highway in the evening, avoiding grizzlies while hiking or harvesting enough firewood to last through the winter. These seem to be much simpler tasks than avoiding the accidents and crime that are prevalent in large population centers.  I’ll stay in the mountains and take my chances with the supervolcano.

The Yellowstone Volcano is About to Erupt …… NOT!

Recently several postings were circulating on the internet regarding an impending eruption of the Yellowstone super volcano. Sheri was contacted on Facebook by concerned friends from as far away as Florida. Indicators cited as predictors of this cataclysm was the recent 4.8 earthquake in the park and a video that showed bison fleeing Yellowstone to avoid the impending devastation.

While the earthquake was stronger than recent quakes, it was one of thousands that occur in Yellowstone area every year.  The University of Utah has an extensive web of seismic monitoring stations throughout the park.  If volcanic activity was building to an eruption, indicators would be noted and reported immediately.

Regarding the fleeing bison herds, the video cited was filmed by Leo Leckie, a sales associate of the nonprofit Yellowstone Assn., an educational partner of Yellowstone National Park. It was taken on March 14, 2014 and shows a herd of bison running into the park from Mammoth Hot Springs after the snows receded, according to Mr. Leckie.

I am not sure why the need to interpret the normal activities of nature as indicators of calamity. There is always fascination with the cataclysmic. Some feel compelled to congregate on a remote hill waiting for Armageddon. Others decry the eating of meat or the use of fossil fuels in the need to reduce global warming. There is recognition in the foretelling a calamity.  The larger the calamity, the more attention and money is available. With the passage of time, one group is left on a hill top and the other is stuck with solar panels, wind turbines, clown cars and soy burgers. The earth continues on its own path. The prophets of doom may proclaim that their calendars were off, but their crusade is too important to abandon.

Those who find the need to obsess over such calamities should attend a showing of the movie “Noah” and leave the rest of us alone. We are too busy living to get sidetracked with delusions!

Nature is Both Beautiful and Ominous!

Watching the news reports of the destruction left behind from recent the Oklahoma tornadoes evoked a solemn prayer for those experiencing the loss of life and property. A feeling of shared loss is rooted in the knowledge that at any time it could happen to my family and me.  The destruction reminded me that nature is always in motion and we are but spectators. These cataclysmic events have always occurred. The difference is that now people live in their path and are affected in increasing numbers.

You don’t have to go far in Island Park to see evidence of the ominous power that the earth generates. The entire area is covered by the remnants of volcanic activity. Drive down the road towards Coffee Pot and you will see fifteen foot boulders standing in the forest like solitary monuments to the volcano that expelled them.  The gritty soil that is present throughout the area is eroded lava. Drive up to the top of Black Mountain and see the immense boulders of black volcanic glass left behind on a landscape once covered by molten rock.

Sheri winces every time she hears the area described as the world’s largest active volcanic caldera and she avoids any of those “Yellowstone’s volcano erupts and everyone dies!” movies. This area may not have the earthquakes and mudslides of southern California, the tornadoes of the mid-west or the violent storms of the east coast but we do live under the threat of fire and volcanic activity.

The earth is alive and in a constant state of change. Some changes are subtle and others are dramatic. Some changes we are able to witness from a safe distance and others we have a front row seat. Let us show our gratitude for our safety by being compassionate to those who are struggling.