The Largest Volcano in Washington Is Waking Up After Thousands of Years

Bright Side

Deep beneath Washington State, something ancient is stirring. After thousands of years of silence, the region’s largest volcano is showing signs of life again — subtle tremors, rising heat, and shifts scientists can’t ignore. In this video, we’re diving into what’s waking it up, how experts detected the changes, and what could happen if the magma system continues to grow restless. For decades, this massive giant slept quietly under forests and snow. Now it’s whispering, and researchers are rushing to understand what comes next. If this awakening continues, the Pacific Northwest may be facing a chapter it hasn’t seen in millennia.  Animation is created by Bright Side.  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/   Check our Bright Side podcast on Spotify and leave a positive review! https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD34jRLrMrJux4VxV  Subscribe to Bright Side: https://goo.gl/rQTJZz  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Our Social Media:  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brightplanet/  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brightside.official  TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.official?lang=en   Stock materials (photos, footages and other):  https://www.depositphotos.com  https://www.shutterstock.com  https://www.eastnews.ru  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me  ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  This video is made for entertainment purposes. We do not make any warranties about the completeness, safety and reliability. Any action you take upon the information in this video is strictly at your own risk, and we will not be liable for any damages or losses. It is the viewer's responsibility to use judgement, care and precaution if you plan to replicate.

Transcript

00:00These ominous rumbling sounds, the ground shaking under your feet, wait a minute, that's my tummy!

00:07Or it might be Washington State's Mount Adams waking up!

00:11It's the largest volcano in the state by both area and volume,

00:15and it's recently started to show signs of life after staying silent for thousands of years.

00:21Scientists have noticed an alarming uptick in seismic activity around the mountain.

00:25And since the last eruption here happened between 3,800 and 7,600 years ago,

00:31humanity was still in the Stone Age at that time.

00:34This sudden chattiness has scientists, let's say, curious.

00:38The U.S. Geological Survey has hurriedly installed temporary seismic stations around Mount Adams

00:43to keep an eye on the situation.

00:46At the same time, they reassure the public there's no need to panic.

00:50Mount Adams doesn't reach the height of the better-known Mount Rainier.

00:54And still, it covers a massive area, making it Washington's largest active volcano.

01:00Interestingly, records show that before September of this year,

01:04Mount Adams had experienced an average of just one small earthquake every 2-3 years since 1982.

01:11And then, the Cascades Volcano Observatory and the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network

01:16detected a staggering 6 earthquakes in just one month, September.

01:20These quakes were all rather tiny, with magnitudes ranging between 0.9 and 2 on the Richter scale.

01:28It means they were so weak you wouldn't feel them at the surface.

01:31Plus, satellite imagery confirmed there was no ground deformation in the area.

01:37Now, at the moment, the USGS keeps Mount Adams' alert level at green or normal.

01:42So, we shouldn't worry about the ground opening and swallowing towns and cities.

01:47But the most recent seismic blips have encouraged the agency to install additional equipment

01:52for more precise monitoring.

01:54Such an expanded network will help scientists notice even the smallest earthquakes,

01:59which will help them understand what's happening under Mount Adams.

02:03This extra equipment might also shed light on whether this recent activity

02:07is a signal of future eruptions or just a random anomaly.

02:12If Mount Adams eventually erupted, it would likely produce slow-moving lava flows

02:17rather than explosive eruptions like Mount St. Helens.

02:21After all, past eruptions have only led to lava flows that travel just a few miles from the volcano.

02:27So, that's not what we'd need to worry about.

02:30A much more dangerous thing would be lahars.

02:32These are mud flows that can happen when volcanic ash, rock, and melted ice mix during eruptions.

02:38Lahars have occurred near Mount Adams without even eruptions.

02:42Rock, weakened by hydrothermal processes at the volcano's summit,

02:46suddenly broke loose, creating fast-moving, destructive mud flows.

02:51Exactly for this reason, the USGS categorizes Mount Adams as a high-threat volcano.

02:57While it doesn't erupt frequently, it still poses serious risks to nearby settlements.

03:04Another volcano we should carefully watch is Kattla in Iceland.

03:08It's one of the country's most powerful and dangerous volcanoes.

03:12It last erupted over a century ago in 1918.

03:15But if it erupts again, it could be 10 times as powerful as another Icelandic volcano,

03:22whose name I can't pronounce.

03:23See?

03:24That one erupted in 2010, completely disrupting air travel all over Europe.

03:30An eruption of Kattla could release large amounts of sulfur dioxide,

03:34which could form sulfate aerosols in the atmosphere.

03:37Such aerosols reflect sunlight, which could even cause temporary global cooling.

03:42This phenomenon often followed catastrophic volcanic eruptions in the past.

03:47Although eruptions are common in Iceland,

03:50Kattla's ash cloud would likely shoot higher into the sky

03:53and cover larger areas of Europe than that other one did.

03:57It would ground flights and negatively affect economies.

04:01If Kattla erupted, it would also harm agriculture, water supplies, and air quality.

04:07In 2014, scientists noted that a large eruption could even cause a tsunami

04:11that might travel along Iceland's south coast and out to sea.

04:15But the potential impact of such a tsunami is still unclear.

04:20Kattla tends to erupt on a regular schedule every 40 to 80 years,

04:24which means that another eruption is statistically very likely soon.

04:29That's why Kattla remains under close scientific observation.

04:32The Canary Islands' Cumbra Vieja erupted recently in 2021,

04:40reminding people of its destructive potential.

04:42The lava flow from this eruption was devastating.

04:46It covered whole neighborhoods and flowed into the ocean,

04:49destroying more than 3,000 homes.

04:52Thousands of people had to be evacuated.

04:54But the craziest thing?

04:56Even though the damage was significant,

04:58scientists believe it could have been far worse.

05:00A massive eruption of Cumbra Vieja could have caused the volcano's entire western flank

05:06to collapse into the Atlantic Ocean, triggering a mega-tsunami.

05:11This hypothetical tsunami could have potentially created waves

05:14hundreds or even thousands of feet high.

05:17They could have flooded coastlines around the Atlantic Basin,

05:20including parts of the U.S. and Europe.

05:23Luckily, recent studies claim that a collapse of that scale is unlikely.

05:27But even though the chance of a mega-tsunami is low,

05:31scientists still think it's wise to prepare for possible eruptions

05:35because there's a chance of extensive damage.

05:38The lava flows that occur at this volcano tend to be extensive and dangerous

05:42to both human life and the infrastructure on the island.

05:46If you decide to travel to Ecuador, you should be wary of Cotopaxi,

05:53one of the most active volcanoes in this country.

05:56It's been rumbling with minor eruptions since 2022.

06:00While these eruptions have been relatively small,

06:03Cotopaxi has a great potential for a major eruption.

06:06And it has scientists on high alert.

06:08If Cotopaxi erupted on a large scale,

06:12it could produce a massive ash cloud over 12 miles high,

06:16threatening the lives of around 200,000 people in the neighboring area.

06:20A serious danger is Cotopaxi's snow-capped summit.

06:24It would melt super rapidly in a major eruption.

06:28It could lead to destructive floods and landslides

06:30that would flow down the mountain and potentially reach populated areas.

06:34This combination of volcanic activity and glacial floods

06:38makes Cotopaxi a high-risk volcano.

06:42A powerful eruption could occur soon,

06:44or it could be years or even decades away.

06:47But monitoring efforts are in place to catch any warning signs.

06:53The next volcano we should watch out for is already infamous,

06:57Mount Vesuvius.

06:59Its catastrophic eruption in 79 CE

07:02destroyed the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

07:06Its last eruption occurred in 1944.

07:09But Vesuvius remains highly active

07:11and poses a great risk to nearby Naples,

07:15one of Italy's largest cities.

07:17A large eruption would threaten over 3 million people.

07:20Many of them live in the vicinity

07:22or even directly on the slopes of the volcano.

07:25If Vesuvius erupted,

07:26it would be an explosive event

07:28with ash, rocks, and volcanic gas

07:31ejected at extremely high speeds.

07:34And even though such a destructive event

07:36isn't expected for a few hundred years,

07:39Vesuvius remains one of the world's

07:41most closely watched volcanoes.

07:43After all,

07:44it has a real potential to cause catastrophic damage

07:47in a densely populated area.

07:51Then, we have Popocatépetl,

07:54often called El Popo.

07:55It's one of North America's tallest active volcanoes,

07:59which lies about 40 miles from Mexico City.

08:02Exactly this proximity to a metropolitan area

08:05with a population of 22 million people

08:08makes Popocatépetl especially hazardous.

08:11A large eruption could send a massive ash cloud

08:14over Mexico City,

08:15causing widespread disruptions.

08:17Ash could clog the city's drainage systems,

08:20contaminate water supplies,

08:21and even cause power outages

08:23by short-circuiting electrical systems.

08:26Plus, Lahars could rush down the volcano,

08:29reaching nearby towns.

08:31Popocatépetl has been showing

08:33near-constant seismic activity

08:35since the early 2000s,

08:37and smaller eruptions are pretty common here.

08:40In early 2024,

08:41there were 13 recorded minor eruptions,

08:44which alarmed nearby towns.

08:46At the same time,

08:47volcanologists consider such eruptions

08:49normal for Popocatépetl.

08:53While talking about super-dangerous volcanoes,

08:56we can't skip Yellowstone National Park.

08:59It houses one of the world's largest super-volcanoes.

09:03Its last massive eruption

09:04occurred about 640,000 years ago.

09:07But if this monster were to erupt today,

09:10the impact would be much more devastating

09:12for the entire planet.

09:14States closest to Yellowstone,

09:16including Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming,

09:19would be most affected,

09:20likely experiencing disastrous pyroclastic flows.

09:24These flows,

09:25which are made of a dangerous mix

09:27of lava, ash, and gases,

09:29can obliterate everything in their path.

09:32Large parts of the country

09:33would also be blanketed in volcanic ash,

09:36over 3 feet in some areas.

09:38On a global scale,

09:39an eruption at Yellowstone

09:41would send tons of ash and gases

09:43into the stratosphere,

09:45potentially blocking sunlight

09:46and causing global temperatures

09:48to drop for a few years.

09:50This would disrupt agriculture,

09:52collapse transportation systems,

09:54and create food shortages

09:55on a massive scale.

09:57Still, even though there's a popular myth

09:59that Yellowstone is overdue for an eruption,

10:03geologists clarify that this isn't true.

10:06Volcanoes don't follow precise timetables,

10:08and the activity at Yellowstone

10:10doesn't indicate an imminent eruption.

10:13So, yeah, that's good news.

10:18Wow! Earth's surface is shaking.

10:20Long cracks split the ground open.

10:22Lava rivers are rapidly flowing down the slopes.

10:26Deafening noise is filling the air.

10:28Rocks and other debris are flying high up.

10:30Clouds of volcanic gas and ash cover the sky.

10:34Now, this is not a plot

10:35of a blockbuster disaster movie.

10:37It's what happens when supervolcanoes decide to erupt.

10:41But this is likely not the scenario

10:43that will take place

10:44when the world's largest volcano,

10:46Mauna Loa,

10:47decides to finish its long, long nap.

10:50In 2021,

10:51scientists were sure it would happen soon.

10:54But, so far, nothing.

10:56The volcano's seismicity keeps increasing

10:58and then going back to normal.

11:00But you never know

11:02when this giant will finally come back to life.

11:04That's why experts have been monitoring

11:06geological activity

11:08on Hawaii's largest island

11:10for quite some time.

11:11The Big Island of Hawaii

11:13is made up of five volcanoes,

11:15including the most active on the planet,

11:17Kilauea,

11:18and the largest,

11:19Mauna Loa.

11:20This gigantic thing

11:22makes up almost half the landmass

11:23of the island.

11:24And what Lava Kilauea

11:26emits in one day,

11:28Mauna Loa could spew out

11:29within 20 minutes.

11:31That's what it did in 1984.

11:33While Mauna Loa's smaller sibling

11:35has been throwing tantrums for a while,

11:38the giant has been slumbering

11:40ever since its last eruption.

11:42But very recently,

11:43the Hawaii Volcano Observatory

11:45has recorded more than 200 mini-earthquakes

11:48below Mauna Loa.

11:49It likely means

11:50an increased flow of magma down there.

11:53Good morning!

11:54The volcano might be waking up.

11:56Or not.

11:57If Mauna Loa did suddenly erupt,

12:00lava flows could reach the ocean

12:02and the most populated

12:03and touristy places,

12:05like Captain Cook,

12:06very, very quickly,

12:07in a matter of hours.

12:08In 1984,

12:10the last time

12:11the volcano erupted,

12:12lava got as far

12:13as the outskirts of Hilo

12:15on the other side of the island.

12:17That's where a campus

12:18of the University of Hawaii

12:19is found.

12:20Luckily,

12:20people had a few weeks' warning

12:22to get ready for the disaster.

12:24These days,

12:25locals have special go-bags

12:27ready with the most important stuff,

12:29including documents and money.

12:31Such precautions

12:32can come in handy

12:33in case of an emergency evacuation.

12:36Even though most Mauna Loa eruptions

12:38have so far

12:39only affected the summit area,

12:41several of them

12:41sent lava

12:42all the way down to the ocean.

12:44And you never know

12:45how powerful

12:46the next eruption will be.

12:48Now,

12:49what is the highest mountain on Earth?

12:50Mount Everest, you say?

12:52Well, it depends.

12:54From seafloor to the summit,

12:55Mauna Loa

12:56is a thousand feet taller

12:58than the famous Himalayan peak.

13:00The volcano is so big,

13:01it makes the Pacific plate

13:03it's sitting on

13:04literally slump

13:05under its wake.

13:06Scientists say

13:07that when this monster

13:08of a volcano erupts,

13:10the volume of lava

13:11coming out per unit

13:12will be life-threatening.

13:14Over its recorded history,

13:16Mauna Loa

13:16has been erupting regularly,

13:18almost every six years.

13:20And even though

13:20the last eruption

13:21of the volcano

13:22occurred about 40 years ago,

13:25scientists are certain

13:25it'll happen again.

13:28Now,

13:28remember the scene

13:29I showed you

13:30at the beginning?

13:31Well,

13:31you can relax.

13:32It's not likely

13:33to happen with Mauna Loa.

13:35The thing is,

13:36big island volcanoes,

13:37including Mauna Loa,

13:39aren't very volatile.

13:40That's because

13:41they're shield volcanoes.

13:43These volcanoes

13:43got such a name

13:44because they aren't

13:45really very high

13:46and resemble

13:47a warrior's shield

13:48placed flat on the ground.

13:50Shield volcanoes

13:51get formed

13:52by very fluid lava.

13:54It travels farther

13:55and forms much thinner flows.

13:57Then lava erupted

13:58from a stratovolcano,

13:59which is conically shaped

14:01and tall,

14:02like the infamous

14:03Krakatoa in Indonesia.

14:05So if,

14:06or should I say when,

14:07Mauna Loa erupts,

14:08there probably won't be

14:10ash clouds

14:10and tons of debris.

14:12The most dangerous thing

14:13will be lava.

14:14Since Mauna Loa

14:15is a shield volcano,

14:17its lava is extremely

14:18fluid and voluminous,

14:20which allows it

14:20to flow far and fast.

14:23Using theoretical

14:24vent maps,

14:25experts from

14:26the Hawaii Volcano Observatory

14:28have made charts

14:29of possible lava flows.

14:31They're kind of worried

14:32about earthquakes

14:33clustering at high rates.

14:35It likely means

14:36that lava is on the move

14:37under the surface.

14:39500 to 600 earthquakes

14:41per day

14:41are a serious reason

14:43to be on high alert.

14:44On the other hand,

14:46it doesn't necessarily

14:47mean a disaster

14:48or inevitable eruption.

14:50Around a decade ago,

14:52several earthquakes

14:53that happened

14:53at the same time

14:54signaled that something

14:55was happening

14:56under Mauna Loa.

14:58But an eruption

14:59didn't occur.

15:00Instead,

15:01half the volcano

15:02shifted a bit

15:02to the south.

15:04This way,

15:04it probably gave

15:05more room to magma

15:06so that it had

15:07enough space

15:08to stay beneath

15:09the surface.

15:10Now,

15:11let's get back

15:11to the catastrophic

15:12eruption we saw

15:13at the beginning

15:14of the video.

15:15That's what often

15:15happens when

15:16a supervolcano erupts.

15:18Those are volcanoes

15:19that have at least

15:20once had an eruption

15:21with a volcanic

15:22explosivity index

15:24of 8,

15:25which is the largest

15:25recorded number

15:26on the index.

15:28Supervolcanoes

15:29are often extremely large

15:30with no cone at all.

15:32That's because

15:33they're typically

15:33the remains

15:34of gigantic magma

15:35chambers

15:36that once flared up,

15:37leaving behind

15:38a caldera.

15:39They're usually found

15:40over hot spots.

15:42Supervolcanoes

15:43can produce

15:43supereruptions,

15:45and when they do,

15:46they blow

15:46more than 240 cubic miles

15:49of ash,

15:50molten rock,

15:50and hot gases

15:51up into the air.

15:53In other words,

15:54four supereruptions

15:55could fill

15:56the Grand Canyon

15:57to the brim.

15:58Supervolcanoes

15:59get formed

16:00when gigantic volumes

16:01of scorching hot magma

16:02are trying to escape

16:04from deep underground.

16:05This magma

16:06rises close

16:07to the surface,

16:08but can't break

16:08through Earth's crust.

16:10That's why

16:10a huge pressurized

16:12pool of bubbling magma

16:13gathers at a depth

16:15of only several miles.

16:17The pressure

16:17keeps growing

16:18because more magma

16:19is trying to get

16:20to the surface

16:20until, bam,

16:22a supereruption occurs.

16:24The most recent

16:26supereruption

16:26happened in New Zealand.

16:28Well,

16:28when I say recent,

16:30I mean around

16:3026,500 years ago.

16:33Nah,

16:33I wasn't around then.

16:35That's when

16:35a supervolcano

16:36beneath the surface

16:37of Lake Taubo

16:38spewed into the air

16:39more than 300 cubic miles

16:41of ash and pumice.

16:43Imagine 500,000

16:45great pyramids

16:46of Giza

16:46flying up

16:47at the same time.

16:49That's how incredibly

16:50powerful that eruption was.

16:52But the most exciting

16:53and confusing thing

16:54about the eruption

16:55was that the Taubo volcano

16:57simply didn't go off

16:59like many others.

17:00At first,

17:01everything was going

17:02as usual.

17:03More than 200 square miles

17:04of magma

17:05had built up

17:06under the surface

17:06and the pressure

17:07was getting higher

17:08and higher.

17:09But after the rock

17:10cracked

17:11and the first part

17:12of lava

17:12rushed out of the crater,

17:14something went wrong

17:15and the supervolcano

17:16took a break.

17:18Only several months later,

17:19the disastrous eruption

17:21shook the ground

17:22and thousands of tons

17:23of lava,

17:24rocks,

17:25and ash

17:25flew high

17:26into the atmosphere.

17:27But the age

17:28of supervolcanoes

17:30isn't over.

17:31The most infamous

17:31of them all

17:32is probably the one

17:34in Yellowstone National Park.

17:36This giant

17:37handles at least

17:37three mega-powerful eruptions,

17:40and who knows

17:41how many smaller ones.

17:42If this monster

17:43erupted anywhere

17:44as strongly

17:45as it did

17:452.1 million years ago,

17:47it would spit out

17:48more than 588 cubic miles

17:51of red-hot material.

17:53You can probably

17:53picture it more vividly

17:55if I tell you

17:55that this volume

17:56is comparable

17:57to 65 million

17:59capital rotundas

18:00in Washington, D.C.

18:02piled together.

18:03Wow.

18:04Anyway,

18:05scientists are sure

18:05that Yellowstone

18:06doesn't present

18:07any danger these days.

18:09For an eruption

18:10to happen,

18:11magma inside

18:12must be at least

18:1250% molten.

18:14With the Yellowstone caldera,

18:16this number

18:16is just 5-15%.

18:18But of course,

18:20Yellowstone

18:20isn't the only

18:21supervolcano

18:22on our planet.

18:23There's also

18:24New Zealand's

18:25Taubo

18:25you already know about,

18:26Japan's

18:27Eri Cauldre,

18:28California's

18:29Long Valley,

18:30Indonesia's Toba,

18:31any of them

18:32can one day

18:33produce a supereruption.

18:35There are also

18:36several so-called

18:37supervolcanoes

18:38that haven't lived up

18:40to this name yet

18:41because they've never

18:42produced anything

18:43like a supereruption.

18:44For example,

18:45in 1883,

18:47Indonesian volcano

18:48Krakatoa

18:49went off.

18:50The power of the eruption

18:51tore the volcano's

18:52walls open.

18:53And cold seawater

18:55rushed into

18:56its molten insides.

18:57The difference

18:58in temperature

18:58made the volcano

18:59blow up

19:00with a deafening boom.

19:02It was clearly heard

19:032,000 miles away

19:04in Australia.

19:06It earned the blast

19:07the title

19:07of the loudest sound

19:09in history.

19:10But even though

19:11the consequences

19:11of this event

19:12were truly catastrophic,

19:14it still turned out

19:15not powerful enough

19:16to be called

19:17a supereruption.

19:18That's it for today.

19:20So hey,

19:21if you pacified

19:22your curiosity,

19:23then give the video

19:23a like

19:24and share it

19:24with your friends.

19:25Or if you want more,

19:26just click on these videos

19:28and stay on the bright side.

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