Mount St. Helens Alert Status Increased 600
DarkHand writes "Mount St. Helens has become even more unstable in the last few hours. The U.S. Geological Surveys Cascades Volcano Observatory has increased the volcanic alert around the volcano to level 2 and released a press release: 'Over night, seismic activity at Mount St. Helens has accelerated significantly, which increases our level of concern that current unrest could culminate in an eruption. We are increasing the alert level to the second of three levels [...]. Earthquakes are occurring at about four per minute. The largest events are approaching Magnitude 2.5 and they are becoming more frequent. All are still at shallow levels in and below the lava dome that grew in the crater between 1980 and 1986. This suggests that the ongoing intense earthquake activity has weakened the dome, increasing the likelihood of explosions or perhaps the extrusion of lava from the dome.' The most recent readings at the SEP seismograph stationed on the lava dome itself are totally saturated. The ground is now literally constantly rumbling."
How severe? (Score:4, Interesting)
-S
A wonderful place to visit (Score:5, Interesting)
While driving up the windy mountin road to get to the park, our van turned a bend, and suddenly I saw before me a swath of devistation so utterly complete that I knew only some tremendous force could have removed all the trees and other signs of life.
I asked the "vetrans" of the group if we had reached the blast zone already. They responded: "Nope, that's just a clearcut. The blast zone now has much more wildlife."
Ah well. I was just there to look at the rocks anyway.
Related to California Quake a few days ago? (Score:5, Interesting)
Can anyone who knows more about Earth Science help me out here?
Some people (Score:4, Interesting)
Our family lived in Northern Idaho, and my father likes to recount how the hardware store was full of people buying masks and resperators and whatnot. He tells of how the supermarket was jam-packed with people stockpiling for the apocalypse.
He was getting a little nervous, but on his drive home he saw our neighbor (we lived out in the country), a farmer named Mr.Coon, just trolling about on his tractor under the bloody sun and darkened sky;doing his daily work, acting like it was just another day.
My father was then able to relax a bit.
Someone take pictures of the near area before (Score:4, Interesting)
-m
Re:Someone take pictures of the near area before (Score:3, Interesting)
So hopefully this potential eruption will be better covered and less harmful.
Media coverage... (Score:1, Interesting)
You think Mt. St. Helens was big... (Score:5, Interesting)
Mt. Rainier even more potential than St. Helens? (Score:3, Interesting)
Does the activity at St. Helens make Mt. Rainier and more or less likely to also erupt?
Re:Related to California Quake a few days ago? (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Someone take pictures of the near area before (Score:5, Interesting)
Here is a fairly large panoramic we took that day. You can see Johnston Ridge Observatory on the far right. The trail actually takes you across the ridges on the left and then drops you down in to the flats at the base of the mountain:
http://home.pacifier.com/~richmond/Helens.jpg [pacifier.com]
Lahars (Score:5, Interesting)
I read something similar to this once: To get an idea of a lahar, imagine a 30 ft wall of mud, boiling in temperature with the consistency of wet cement traveling at speeds up to 60 mph or so. If you go driving through the river valleys of Washington State (Carbon Rv, Puyallup Rv) that are fed by the Rainier glaciers, you'll see Lahar evacuation route signs everywhere. Not only that, but I believe recent evacuation simulations have been abysmal. Scary stuff.
Ahh, may have found the article [tribnet.com] that I read.
Re:memo to self (Score:3, Interesting)
Any other boys from Longview area (Score:5, Interesting)
Ash was so fine (there was several inches on the street) that it would ruin your engine. So everyone put women's pantyhose over their air cleaners to keep the dirt out. Also the local timber company bought out the auto parts stores of all the extra air cleaners to keep their trucks moving.
people kept emergency supplies in their car trunks for years after that. probably until 86 or 87
Also, their were some great slogans on bumper stickers and t-shirts that we'll revive if necessary.
"Mt St. Helen's lost her ash in 1980, I saved mine."
Plus the song about harry truman was popular.
wow, amazing what you can remember...
Re:Mt. Rainier even more potential than St. Helens (Score:4, Interesting)
Although both Mt Rainier, Mt St Helens, and all the other dormant and volcanoes in Washington and Oregon are due to the same subduction zone; an eruption at Mt St Helens will not influence Rainier in any way.
The USGS is currently predicting a high likelihood of Rainier experiencing a small eruption in the next 50 years. This will melt Rainier's icecap and produce lahar flows (heavy, fast mud flows - these will take out bridges and buildings). The outskirts of Seattle are built on the deposits of old lahars from Rainier...
Early this year, a warning system (a bit like the tsunami system in the Pacific) has been put in place between Rainier and Seattle. This should give warning of lahars as they start. This could give enough warning to get people out of valley bottoms, etc - but how much of the populace knows what a lahar is and what the danger is???
Incidentally, a couple of days ago, I plotted the ongoing Mt St Helens earthquake swarm on some earthquake hazard maps and put the results here [mp2kmag.com].
Richard (yes I was a seismologist 10 years ago)Re:Related to California Quake a few days ago? (Score:4, Interesting)
Seems an earthquake 1000s of miles away "jarred the pipes" powering the geysers in yellowstone.
I don't suppose its out of the realm of possibility that St. Helens is related to the earthquake in CA.
Re:You think Mt. St. Helens was big... (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Lahars (Score:3, Interesting)
Collapse of the Kolka Glacier [nasa.gov]
Mount St. Helens VolcanoCam (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Dante II (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Be afraid if the volcanoes ever stop (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:memo to self (Score:3, Interesting)
I was there... (Score:5, Interesting)
I was going to college in Moscow, Idaho when it blew, and believe me, it was impressive, even that far away from the eruption.
Throughout the day a tolkeinesque black cloud grew larger and larger on the western horizon, until it streched all of the way north to south. As it came over it became darker than night, the sky was just black. Then is started to "snow" volcanic ash. Instead of coming down in flakes, it came down as a fine powder, but looking out the window, it looked like snow against the street lights. This was about 3:00 in the afternoon.
It didn't get light again before nightfall. The next morning, it was as if it had snowed, except it was very finely powdered ash, and it didn't go away like snow, it just compacted and then blew around as dust when the wind blew.
It was a very memorable experience, more impressive even than a total solar eclipse (but that's another story)...
Re:Scary, yet cool. (Score:3, Interesting)
Luke 21:9
"But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end [is] not by and by.
Luke 21:10 Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:
Luke 21:11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.
Luke 21:12 But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute [you], delivering [you] up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake."
For those that believe, this is just all part of God's perfect plan.
Re:Portland Oregon threatened in last eruption (Score:5, Interesting)
It's unlikely that even the most massive eruption from Mt. St. Helens could have threatened the plant. The incredible first lateral blast only travelled 25km and IIRC the pyroclastic flows only extended about 20km. Ashfall would not have been a problem for the plant, and the quakes associated with vulcanism are (Hollywood aside) fairly small.
In the event, they had a pretty good idea that Mount St. Helens was going to erupt through its side. The area that bulged was called Goat's Roack and was actually the result of an earlier eruption through the side of the cone.
What no one had predicted was that the whole side of the mountain would slide off [usgs.gov]. Instantly a huge section of the magma below the mountain depressurised - like a champagne cork blowing off. And that did the damage.
What we have now is young magma pushing up under the mountain. We'll probably see a series of small eruptions as the dome is built, extended and then blown apart. We could have centuries of this sort of activity ahead of us.
The eruption was too bad because Mt. St. Helens was a perfect cone before the eruption. It looked like Mt. Fuji in Japan. Now it looks like a million-seat football stadium: a big hole with a circular ridge around half of it.
You're not thinking long-term - the cone of Mt. St. Helens was only a few tens of thousands of years old, it will rebuild itself in the next few millennia. In the meantime, sit back and watch the mountain heal itself.
Best wishes,
Mike.
Re:To quote Counter-Strike: (Score:2, Interesting)
So far the Vulcanologist at the University of Washington had said it's cool, and they know a bit more about that sort of thing than I do.
I didn't live here the first time it blew up. I had just turned 5 and living in Florida. All I remember about that time was that it was hot, and someone stole my bike.
Re:Lahars (Score:3, Interesting)
It's a 3 now, not a 2 (Score:1, Interesting)
The real danger is a large earthquake or Mt. Hood deciding that being 16,000 years overdue for an eruption is long enough and getting in on the action. The South Sister in Central Oregon has a gigantic bulge at its base, they said that it would go within 10 years, it's been nearly 20. Timberline Ski Resort has been trying to find a buyer lately, if the cost goes down to below $100 we are taking an out of state trip:)
Moral of the story, have a 72 hour kit, you never know what services will be knocked out in an earthquake or something like this.
Re:Any other boys from Longview area (Score:2, Interesting)
Our family owned some beachfront property on the Toutle River, which is on the Mt. St. Hellens watershed. The mud choked up the river for years, and it was probably 1995 before the beach began to look like it did before the mountain blew.
The ash and mud would make a jelly-like quicksand on the banks of the river with a thick, flexable layer on the top. You could walk (run, bounce, jump) on the top withoug breaking through until enough water worked into the top layer, then you would break through and sink up to your thighs. Neat stuff, we played in it for years.
Re:Portland Oregon threatened in last eruption (Score:4, Interesting)
Just to be a pedantic idiot, I have to point out that 747s first flew commercially in 1969. The towers were finished in 1972 for Tower One and 1973 for Tower Two.
The planes that hit were smaller than 747s. The collapse was not caused by the impact of the airliners. The towers collapsed becuase the secondary fires from the collision buckled the steel because the insullation was ripped off in the initial collisions. It was the secondary effects of the collisions that caused the collapse.
The above is of course splitting hairs, but let's give the architects/engineers some slack. After all, I'm sure that they never designed the towers to survive an intentional collision with an airliner.