4.8 earthquake rocks US Yellowstone National Park

AnarchistoOfTheNorth
The birds are singing, the grass is green and Yellowstone is gonna kill us all.
Another fine day in America

A 4.8 magnitude quake rocked Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming near the border with Montana, the US Geological Survey said. There were several aftershocks with a magnitude over 3.
The earthquake occurred 37 kilometers northeast of West Yellowstone, Montana at 6:34 am local time (1234 GMT) Sunday.
The quake was centered almost in the middle of Yellowstone National Park, near the Norris Geyser Basin, said Peter Cervelli, a spokesman for the USGS Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, NBC News reported.
He added that any damage from the temblor would likely be minor, noting there are not many visitors in the park at the moment.
There were no immediate reports of damage.
According to USGS there were four aftershocks recorded with a magnitude from 3.1 to 3.3. The USGS said that more are expected.
The secondary shockwaves are usually less violent than the main quake but can be strong enough to do additional damage to weakened structures, the USGS said.

I'm starting to feel as if Mother Earth has finally had enough of our s***.
Well, back to the weather bunker! *tin foil hat mode = ON*

Source

edit on 3-30-2014 by AnarchistoOfTheNorth because: (no reason given)

I knew it! With all the earthquakes in CA last week and now this! Something is brewing and I can feel it! I have family, in CA, CO, and in AZ! I know they would be hit if this thing blew! My concern is would it affect Maine? Would we feel it or be out if the loop? Does anyone think that what is going on in Europe and now all of the earthquakes are connected? Thoughts? Maybe this is why I haven't been able to sleep or concentrate lately?

"The quake on Sunday was the most powerful to hit the park since 1985. In the fall of 1985 in the northwest rim of the caldera during a three-month period of increased earthquake activity over 3000 events of magnitude 0 to 4.9 were recorded by seismologists. " taken from the aforementioned source.
This is not that normal - but just have to wait it out or if she blows - time to crack open the beer and wine.
As for fear mongering - well I appreciate the info - ty

esteay812
reply to post by Wrabbit2000

 

I just checked out that Wind Map, because I thought it looked cool.

It's probably nothing, but I found it somewhat interesting that Yellowstone seemed to be the exact center of the wind in virtually the entire US, east of the Appalachians.

Thinking of it in context with geologic activity, it's kinda creepy.

It is a little odd, isn't it? It's probably just a quirk of the patterns, but it was something to share since we had a cam view from the ground at the same time, eh?

For what it's worth, it looked much stranger when Sandy was hitting New York. The whole eastern half of the United States and west Atlantic had currents in a virtual vortex right over a spot in Pennsylvania. I wonder if the people below these points of overlap even notice anything different? I've never heard of it in reverse, anyway. Where people saw something weird, THEN someone looked to find a convergence, so maybe it's all in the upper levels and out of sight?

Still, it is interest just how many wacky ways the wind blows and across large areas of the same land mass.

iamhobo
Yellowstone is not an area like Vanuatu or Chile, with massive earthquakes caused by huge plate tectonics. Those locations compared to Yellowstone are completely different geophysically. Yellowstone sits on a massive caldera (volcano) coupled with smaller faults.

A 4.8 is noteworthy because it isn't being caused solely by plate tectonics --- it's getting back up from a supervolcano.

True, however 4.8 is not a large earthquake, and there have been much larger earthquakes in yellowstone in the not too distant past that did not equate to the eruption of a super volcano.

Is this noteworthy? Sure. But I don't agree with the OP's comments in his first post. It's fear mongering and silly.

Drezden
This is normal, It's a very seismically active area, stop fear mongering, this isn't a sign of catastrophe.

Mehhh...not all that common. A quake in this area of this magnitude has not happened in 30 years.

Yellowstone National Park was struck on Sunday by a magnitude 4.8 earthquake, the biggest recorded there since February 1980

reply to post by liliththedestroyer


I'm with ya.

California's seismic activity has been ramping up, 4.5's and such. I also saw on the news this morning that Oklahoma has had 11 quakes over the weekend.

Okalahoma's Earthquake Swarm amidst California and Yellowstone quakes- March 31 2014

Drezden
This is normal, It's a very seismically active area, stop fear mongering, this isn't a sign of catastrophe.

From what I just read, this is the biggest one there in 35-36 years. So that is normal?
Firepiston

I've been surprised how muted the public reaction to this has been. The USGS statement basically acknowledges the quake was caused by uplift at Norris- I thought that would get a big reaction in the media- Drudge headline, etc. It actually deserved a bigger reaction than it got. I believe this to be the most significant event at Yellowstone since the 1959 quake.

Maybe it's just a hardcore group of junkies who really play close attention to this stuff. Jake Lowenstern should start his own private 1-900 number where, for $2.99 a minute, he will tell Yellowstone junkies what's REALLY happening in the park.

The good thing about a quake and aftershocks is that it releases the pressure. This means that the so-called "imminent" explosion of Yellowstone which will, according to some theorists, destroy half the North American continent is still a long way off. We should only begin to worry if quakes like this one occur repeatedly over the span of the next few days and weeks.

I'm thinking back to the movie 2012...

Remember in the beginning how the passerby's noticed the multiple sinkholes and cracks?

Just was seeing if there is a possible connection...land does appear to show some unstableness lately:

Sinkholes in various places
Massive landslide in Washington
Cali quakes
Oklahoma quakes
Yellowstone activity and quakes

The birds are singing, the grass is green and Yellowstone is gonna kill us all. - See more at: www.abovetopsecret.com...

reply to post by AnarchistoOfTheNorth


That might not be a bad thing.

reply to post by QueenofSpades


I don't think we're looking at something exactly like 2012. But it wouldn't surprise me to see a very large and widespread seismic event in the world's future with all the attendant issues.

Drezden

iamhobo
Yellowstone is not an area like Vanuatu or Chile, with massive earthquakes caused by huge plate tectonics. Those locations compared to Yellowstone are completely different geophysically. Yellowstone sits on a massive caldera (volcano) coupled with smaller faults.

A 4.8 is noteworthy because it isn't being caused solely by plate tectonics --- it's getting back up from a supervolcano.

True, however 4.8 is not a large earthquake, and there have been much larger earthquakes in yellowstone in the not too distant past that did not equate to the eruption of a super volcano.

Is this noteworthy? Sure. But I don't agree with the OP's comments in his first post. It's fear mongering and silly.

You may not think its noteworthy, but I think otherwise.
Any earthquake below 5 with an aftershock of 3.3 is not something to sit around and call a normal event.
Nor is it fear mongering, like you are so insistent with.
Not to mention this but...

The quake on Sunday was the most powerful to hit the park since 1985.

I was just reading an article that came out today about what the USGS geologists are saying is happening in the Yellowstone caldera. They are saying the underground magma chamber is gradually filling with molten rock in recent years.

And as many of you know, they have found the Yellowstone caldera to be 2 1/2 times as large as they once thought.

dovdov
The good thing about a quake and aftershocks is that it releases the pressure.

That's a myth.

Thomas Jordan, director of the Southern California Earthquake Center says experts are studying the recent earthquakes very closely. “We can’t predict earthquakes,” he said, “but you know, I’d say we’re a little bit nervous.” Like Jones, Jordan does not want to see a major quake hit the Puente Hills fault. “It would be very damaging to central Los Angeles,” he said, “An earthquake engineer once told me this could be the earthquake from Hell.” Jordan also says it’s a myth that big quakes — like Friday’s 5.1 in La Habra — release the stress on faults. “They don’t relieve the pressures that cause earthquakes very much and more frequently, they’re actually associated with bigger earthquakes,” Jordan said.

CBS LA

rigel434
I've been surprised how muted the public reaction to this has been. The USGS statement basically acknowledges the quake was caused by uplift at Norris- I thought that would get a big reaction in the media- Drudge headline, etc. It actually deserved a bigger reaction than it got. I believe this to be the most significant event at Yellowstone since the 1959 quake.

Maybe it's just a hardcore group of junkies who really play close attention to this stuff. Jake Lowenstern should start his own private 1-900 number where, for $2.99 a minute, he will tell Yellowstone junkies what's REALLY happening in the park.

They've already put a statement out? I thought this would take a couple more days. Can you provide a link? I'll also check out their site again as I may have missed it this morning - was rushing so quite possible.

Here's the official report:

earthquake.usgs.gov...

reply to post by dovdov


uh, that's not really true. often quakes are the signal of a BUILD UP of pressure, not release of it. Especially for volcanoes. this is well known.

reply to post by rigel434


I read it. It doesn't say whether it was magmatic or tectonic, and I don't think they will share those details with the general public since most don't know what that means anyway. It seems reasonable that it was magmatic in that magma is breaking through rock.

yellowstone park seismos

Swarm appears to be picking up once again... always happens right before i have to go to bed.. ugh