- 4 hours ago
Scientists around the world are sounding the alarm as new data reveals an unprecedented surge in volcanic activity. Multiple major volcanoes appear to be entering critical phases at the same time — a rare and dangerous pattern that could trigger a chain of massive eruptions. As experts scramble to analyze what’s coming, many fear the planet may be on the brink of a global geological upheaval.
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00:01Frankenstein, unreasonably cold weather, and tons of lava.
00:04What do these things have in common?
00:06They all trace their origins back to Mount Tambora.
00:09This volcano in Indonesia had such a massive impact
00:13that the aftermath could be felt in Switzerland even a year later.
00:17And these spots are thousands of miles apart.
00:20Soon, we might be facing something similar again.
00:24Stick around, because I'm about to reveal the exact spot
00:27where the next eruption is expected to happen in 2025.
00:33Back in 1815, Mount Tambora erupted with unprecedented force,
00:38sending a colossal cloud of fine particles into the atmosphere.
00:42This cloud reflected sunlight, leading to global cooling,
00:46and even the year without a summer in 1816.
00:51Temperatures plummeted, crops failed,
00:53and families worldwide faced food shortages,
00:56compounded by various health issues.
00:59Fun fact!
01:00Frankenstein appeared because of abnormally cold weather in the summer of 1816.
01:06The author got stuck indoors in Switzerland and wrote this story to pass the time.
01:11But that is the only positive aftermath.
01:14In England and Ireland, people struggled to find food.
01:17The crops were too bad that year,
01:19and this year without summer cost them lives,
01:23all because of the eruption in Indonesia.
01:26While many other volcanoes have erupted since then,
01:30none have had consequences as dramatic as Tambora.
01:34However, climate professor Marcus Stoffel from the University of Geneva
01:38believes potential serious eruptions aren't just a matter of luck,
01:43it's only a matter of time.
01:44So it's up to us.
01:46We can sit back and wait for the inevitable,
01:49or we can start preparing today.
01:51This future eruption will happen in a world that's vastly different from the one in 1815.
01:58Not only is our planet more densely populated now,
02:01but we've also experienced irreversible changes that affect our daily lives.
02:07Now, if you think volcanoes are always the bad guys,
02:11think again.
02:12They've actually played a crucial role in shaping our planet.
02:15They help with land formation,
02:17atmospheric development,
02:18and climate modulation.
02:21Just look at Yellowstone, for example.
02:23When thick lava oozed to the surface,
02:26it spread across the landscape and transformed the area forever.
02:30When volcanoes blow their tops,
02:32they release a mix of lava,
02:34ash,
02:34and gases,
02:36including carbon dioxide.
02:38But don't worry.
02:39Compared to the emissions from fossil fuels,
02:41the amount from volcanoes is pretty tiny.
02:44What scientists are really keeping an eye on
02:47is sulfur dioxide,
02:48because it can have a big impact on our climate.
02:53When a major volcanic eruption happens,
02:56it can send sulfur dioxide soaring into the stratosphere,
03:00which is about 7 miles up in the atmosphere.
03:02Once there, it transforms into tiny aerosol particles that scatter sunlight,
03:08helping to cool the planet.
03:10This cooling effect isn't immediate, though.
03:13Those particles can hang around for a couple of years
03:16and even circulate all around the globe.
03:19Nowadays, we've got special equipment to monitor sulfur dioxide emissions from space.
03:26Take Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines.
03:28During its eruption in 1991,
03:31it released around 15 million tons of sulfur dioxide.
03:35Now, while that's a lot,
03:37it wasn't quite as massive as the eruption of Tambora.
03:41Still, Pinatubo managed to lower global temperatures by about 0.5 degrees Celsius for several years.
03:48Tambora, on the other hand,
03:49dropped average global temperatures by about 1 degree Fahrenheit.
03:53I know what you might be thinking.
03:55That's not much.
03:56But trust me, it makes a difference.
03:59If the planet warms up by just 1 degrees Fahrenheit,
04:02it could really mess with sea levels.
04:04Experts think we might see a rise of up to 8 inches by the end of this century.
04:09This could wipe out a lot of farmland and coastal habitats,
04:13which would be a huge blow to many communities.
04:16So maybe a volcano eruption that can cool off the planet
04:19is like a natural mechanism helping us out?
04:23Not exactly.
04:24While it does cool the planet off,
04:26don't get tricked into thinking it's the kind of coolness our planet needs.
04:30Such temperature shifts can severely mess up with the crops,
04:34like they did in 1816.
04:36There's also evidence that major eruptions can disrupt rainfall patterns,
04:40leading to drier conditions in monsoon regions across Africa and Asia.
04:45You see, the summer monsoon relies on the temperature difference between land and ocean,
04:51which can be altered by volcanic activity.
04:55Interestingly, a warmer climate may enhance the cooling effects of volcanic eruptions.
05:01Experts explain that the formation and movement of aerosol particles depend on climate conditions.
05:07As global temperatures rise,
05:09faster air circulation can lead to smaller aerosol particles,
05:13which are more effective at scattering sunlight,
05:16and thereby intensifying the cooling effect.
05:19Oceans also contribute to this dynamic.
05:22A warming ocean surface creates a stratified layer,
05:26hindering the mixing of warm and cold water,
05:28which could mean that volcanic eruptions primarily cool the upper ocean layer
05:33and the atmosphere above it, according to Stoffel.
05:36Moreover, climate change may influence volcanic systems directly.
05:42The melting of ice can trigger more eruptions by reducing the pressure that allows magma to ascend more easily.
05:49Additionally, increased rainfall associated with climate change can seep into the ground
05:54and interact with magma, potentially sparking eruptions.
05:58While the prospect of a cooling period due to a volcanic eruption might seem beneficial amid climate change,
06:06scientists warn that the effects could be dire.
06:09The immediate consequences could be severe,
06:13particularly for the estimated 800 million individuals residing near active volcanoes.
06:20A major eruption could devastate entire cities.
06:23For example, Campi Flegre, located near Naples, Italy,
06:28is showing signs of increased activity and threatens the lives of about 1 million people.
06:34Now, if you're from Oregon, beware.
06:37As experts say, this state might experience volcano eruptions.
06:40Are you scared?
06:42Don't be.
06:43It's actually not as scary as it seems.
06:45Let me explain why.
06:47There are more than 80 volcanoes in Oregon,
06:50but we're not interested in a single one of them
06:52because it's an underwater volcano that is likely to erupt in 2025.
06:58Axial Seamount is the most active volcano in the Pacific Northwest,
07:02yet it remains largely unknown to the public due to its location approximately 300 miles offshore
07:09and nearly a mile beneath the ocean's surface.
07:13While its upcoming eruption is expected to pose no threat of a tsunami
07:17or significant land-based earthquakes because of its depth and distance from the Cascadia Fault,
07:23the data gathered from studying its eruptions
07:26can enhance our monitoring of potentially more hazardous volcanoes.
07:30Let's call it a friendly eruption, shall we?
07:34In reality, predicting eruptions is a complex endeavor.
07:39We often encounter alarming headlines such as
07:42Yellowstone is about to erupt.
07:44Should we take these claims seriously?
07:47Not really.
07:49Yes, Yellowstone sits atop an active supervolcano
07:52that has experienced three major explosive eruptions in the past 2.1 million years.
07:58The last eruption occurred approximately 70,000 years ago,
08:02with the most significant explosion taking place around 631,000 years ago,
08:08forming the massive Yellowstone caldera.
08:11Naturally, many people are curious about whether Yellowstone will erupt again
08:15and when that might happen.
08:18Fortunately, scientists are employing new techniques to delve into these questions.
08:23A recent study suggests that Yellowstone is unlikely to experience another major eruption anytime soon.
08:30The reason is that the magma beneath the park is divided into a network of separate chambers.
08:36While there is a substantial amount of magma present,
08:39it's not sufficiently interconnected to support an eruption.
08:43Previous studies proposed that the existence of a massive layer of magma beneath Yellowstone,
08:48but these latest findings changed that notion.
08:51To gain a clearer understanding of the subterranean dynamics,
08:55researchers utilized a technique called magnetotelurex,
08:59which employs Earth's natural electromagnetic fields rather than seismic waves.
09:05Since magma is a good conductor of electricity,
09:08this method is particularly effective for mapping molten rock
09:11and comprehending underground activity in volcanically active regions.
09:16By using magnetotelurex,
09:19scientists created a detailed map of the magma under Yellowstone,
09:23enabling them to make more informed predictions about future eruptions.
09:28But what will happen if an eruption similar to Mount Tambora occurs?
09:32By and large, there will be huge climate chaos.
09:36Yeah, the best scientists are looking for the solution should it really happen,
09:40but they don't have it yet.
09:42So technically, we're not ready for the second Mount Tambora.
09:46But for now, we're pretty much safe.
09:48No major eruptions are predicted.
09:51Whew!
09:52Oh boy, scientists predict a volcanic eruption
09:55that is likely to be one of the most destructive in the history of our species.
10:00There's a 1 in 6 chance of it happening in this century,
10:03and it could seriously change the climate even more
10:06and put millions of lives in danger.
10:08Back in January 2022,
10:11the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Haapai volcano erupted in the South Pacific Ocean,
10:16creating a huge explosion.
10:17It sent tsunamis all the way to Japan, North America, and South America.
10:22Tonga itself was hit hard,
10:24with damage costing nearly 20% of the country's entire economy.
10:29Now, researchers at the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen
10:32have studied ice samples from Greenland and Antarctica,
10:36and their findings are worrying.
10:38Predicting potential global volcanic disaster.
10:41They say there's a real chance of a much bigger eruption,
10:44a whopping 10 to 100 times larger than Tonga's.
10:48In the past, eruptions this size used to change the climate
10:51and even cause civilizations to collapse.
10:54Despite future volcanic eruption risks,
10:57experts say the world isn't prepared at all.
11:00Michael Cassidy, a volcanologist from the University of Birmingham,
11:04warns that no sufficient effort is made
11:06to handle a disaster like this.
11:08He says that NASA and other space agencies
11:11spend billions on asteroid defense.
11:13At the same time,
11:14a volcanic supereruption is way more likely than an asteroid impact.
11:19And right now,
11:20there's no global plan for dealing with a massive eruption,
11:23even though it's likely to be far more destructive.
11:27The last magnitude 7 eruption happened in 1815 at Mount Tambora in Indonesia.
11:34Then, thousands of people lost their lives in just a few days.
11:38The disaster also disrupted weather and caused food shortages worldwide,
11:43affecting millions.
11:43That eruption was the biggest in recorded history.
11:47It blasted a massive cloud of particles into the sky.
11:51Those particles blocked sunlight,
11:53cooled the planet,
11:54and caused worldwide chaos.
11:56The year after the eruption became known as
11:58the year without a summer.
12:00Temperatures plummeted,
12:02crops failed,
12:03famine spread,
12:04and a cholera pandemic broke out,
12:06leading to tens of thousands of lost lives.
12:09A shocking fact,
12:10the eruption may have even inspired Mary Shelley to write Frankenstein,
12:15while stuck indoors during the unusually cold summer of 1816 in Switzerland.
12:21Now, since then,
12:22many volcanoes have erupted,
12:24but none have matched Tambora's scale.
12:27Now, over 200 years later,
12:29scientists warn that there's a new supervolcano threat.
12:32Another massive eruption could be on the way,
12:35and the world might not be ready for it.
12:37So, while scientists seriously discuss the likelihood of the next volcanic eruption,
12:42experts are calling for urgent action to prepare before it's too late.
12:47So, the thing is,
12:48a massive volcanic eruption today could be even more devastating than the year without a summer.
12:54Unlike back then,
12:56we're already dealing with all kinds of weather changes and a more fragile global system,
13:00which could make the effects even worse.
13:03Dr. Michael Rampino,
13:04a geological scientist,
13:06warns that the world is more unstable now,
13:09and it means that a modern-day mega-eruption could have even more severe consequences.
13:14But this time,
13:15greenhouse gases from fossil fuels
13:17may make the aftermath of such an eruption even colder instead of warmer.
13:22So, we're talking about volcanic activity endangering humanity.
13:26Dr. Thomas Aubrey,
13:28a volcanologist,
13:30found that in a hotter,
13:31more turbulent atmosphere,
13:33the sulfur dioxide gas released by a volcanic eruption
13:36would spread faster and farther than in the past.
13:39This gas forms sulfate aerosols,
13:42which reflect sunlight and cause global cooling.
13:45Because these tiny particles would be more evenly distributed,
13:48they'd have a stronger cooling effect than in 1815.
13:52Another atmospheric scientist at Cambridge explains that the size of these airborne particles matters.
13:58It affects how they absorb sunlight.
14:00And in a future warmer climate,
14:03an eruption could make the surface cooling stronger by 15%.
14:07At the same time,
14:09there are still many unknowns.
14:11Scientists from the University of Geneva
14:13say that we're only beginning to understand the full impacts of such an event.
14:17It's also difficult to precisely estimate future volcanic eruption risks,
14:22since we have very little data on older eruptions.
14:25So, to understand past volcanic activity,
14:29researchers analyze ice cores from Greenland and Antarctica,
14:32as well as ancient tree rings.
14:34Those act as historical records of weather changes.
14:37These measurements suggest that several eruptions in the past few thousand years
14:42temporarily cooled the planet by about 2 to 2.5 degrees Fahrenheit.
14:48One of the most catastrophic examples is the 1257 Somalus eruption in Indonesia,
14:54which was so powerful that it likely triggered the Little Ice Age.
14:58It was a period of global cooling that lasted for hundreds of years.
15:02More recently, the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption in the Philippines
15:06slightly cooled Earth for a few years.
15:09Because this eruption happened in the satellite era,
15:12scientists were able to measure exactly how much sulfur dioxide was released
15:16and how it affected the atmosphere.
15:19But, even with modern tools like satellites and seismic instruments,
15:23scientists still have difficult times forecasting the next big volcanic eruption.
15:28Luckily, even though we can't predict the exact timing,
15:32we can study worst-case scenarios to help authorities prepare.
15:36This includes creating evacuation plans and stockpiling food
15:40in case of global crop failures caused by volcanic cooling.
15:44The changes in weather patterns might make volcanoes more active.
15:48Melting glaciers can reduce pressure on underground magma,
15:52which will increase the chances of an eruption.
15:54Plus, more extreme rainfall, which is becoming more and more common,
15:58can seep into volcanic cracks and cause powerful steam-driven explosions.
16:03It can affect both active and dormant volcanoes.
16:07Because of these risks, researchers are now mapping volcanoes
16:10that are the most vulnerable to climate change.
16:13Their studies show that the highest supervolcano threat
16:16comes from such areas as Iceland, Chile, and Indonesia.
16:20Those are places where glaciers are melting quickly,
16:23or rainfall is increasing dramatically.
16:25A 2022 study found that 716 volcanoes worldwide
16:30that's about 58% of all known active above-ground volcanoes
16:35could be triggered by extreme rainfall,
16:37increasing the likelihood of another mini-ice age.
16:41Now let's get back to that Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai eruption
16:45that occurred on January 15, 2022.
16:48Scientists have confirmed that it created the highest plume ever recorded.
16:52The volcano, located underwater in the South Pacific,
16:57sent an ash cloud 187,000 feet high.
17:00That's higher than any previously recorded eruption.
17:03What makes this eruption even more remarkable
17:06is that it was the first to ever reach the mesosphere.
17:09It's the third layer of Earth's atmosphere.
17:12The mesosphere begins at about 160,000 feet above Earth,
17:16where meteors start burning up and creating shooting stars.
17:20To measure the plume's height,
17:22researchers from the University of Oxford and RAL Space
17:25used data from three geostationary weather satellites.
17:29Before this, the record for the highest volcanic plume
17:32was held by Mount Pinatubo's 1991 eruption in the Philippines,
17:36which reached 131,000 feet high.
17:39Interestingly, this kind of measurement was only possible
17:42thanks to modern satellite technology,
17:44and a decade ago, no one would have been able to do this.
17:49Another volcano we should mention,
17:51in relation to a potential global volcanic disaster,
17:54is located on Iceland's Räkenes Peninsula.
17:57Its latest eruption happened in November of 2024,
18:01leading to evacuations in nearby areas.
18:04The eruption began just after 11 p.m. with little warning.
18:08The volcano released orange lava from a nearly two-mile-long fissure.
18:12Authorities ordered evacuations for about 50 homes and guests
18:16staying at the Blue Lagoon Spa Resort,
18:18a popular tourist destination southwest of Reykjavik.
18:22While air travel was not affected,
18:24officials still warned of potentially dangerous gas emissions
18:27spreading across parts of the peninsula,
18:30including the nearby town of Grindavik.
18:32Grindavik, home to 3,800 residents,
18:35has repeatedly witnessed volcanic activity,
18:37and past eruptions even damaged its infrastructure
18:41and forced evacuations.
18:43For example, in August 2024,
18:45a two-and-a-half-mile-long crack
18:48opened at the Sundthun-Kangigar crater near Grindavik.
18:51It led authorities declaring a state of emergency
18:54as lava flowed in multiple directions.
18:57Fortunately, Iceland's meteorological office
18:59reported that the latest eruption
19:01was significantly smaller than the one in August.
19:04Geophysics experts conducted aerial surveys,
19:07and figured out that the situation appeared less intense
19:10than the previous eruptions.
19:11These days, Grindavik is not at risk.
19:14But the possibility of further developments
19:16cannot be ruled out.
19:18Scientists predict more volcanic eruptions.
19:24It was April 2025
19:25when geologists went back to Yellowstone's Norris Geyser Basin
19:30for the first time this year.
19:31And while doing their usual check,
19:34they realized that something was different this time.
19:37Where there used to be just a boring patch of ground,
19:41now there was a giant hole,
19:43about 13 feet wide,
19:45filled with weird, milky, light blue water.
19:48Everyone was terrified.
19:50Was it the sign that the Yellowstone supervolcano
19:53was ready to erupt?
19:55If so, it would be a worldwide disaster,
19:58the kind that destroys cities.
20:00According to the U.S. Geological Survey,
20:03if such an eruption occurred,
20:05the after-effects would be felt all over the world.
20:09To start,
20:10the areas immediately surrounding Yellowstone
20:12would experience pyroclastic flows.
20:15That's the lava that erupts out of a volcano,
20:19including a high-density mix of volcanic gas,
20:22ash, pumice,
20:23and hot lava blocks.
20:25Those flows would destroy everything they touch.
20:28And an eruption of Yellowstone
20:30would send them into Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana.
20:34Areas further away from Yellowstone
20:37would escape the flows.
20:38But they would experience falling ash.
20:41It would come down heavily
20:42in the states closest to the epicenter.
20:45The ash would be especially dangerous
20:47for anyone breathing it in.
20:49The weight of the ash
20:50would also pose a serious threat.
20:53It would smother crops
20:54and collapse buildings as it piles up.
20:57Tragic consequences would be countless,
21:00but we'll talk about them later,
21:02because soon after the discovery,
21:04the weird pit surprised even experts.
21:07Geologists found rocks scattered everywhere.
21:10Some were about a foot across,
21:12and all of them were dusted with gray mud.
21:15This mud matched the walls of the new spring.
21:18It was like the place had simply exploded,
21:21but nobody had actually seen it happen.
21:24The team checked old satellite images
21:26to figure out when it appeared.
21:29In December 2024,
21:31the ground was totally normal.
21:33By January 6, 2025,
21:36a little dip had formed.
21:37And by February 13,
21:40that water-filled hole was finally there.
21:43But the weird thing
21:44was that the sensors
21:45that usually pick up major hydrothermal explosions
21:48didn't detect anything.
21:51There was no giant blast or warning signs.
21:54Later, it turned out
21:55that this puzzling opening in the ground
21:57hadn't just popped up in one huge explosion.
22:01Instead, it formed
22:03from a bunch of smaller bursts over time.
22:05Little explosions first threw out rocks,
22:08then mud,
22:09and eventually created the pit.
22:11With time,
22:13it filled with silica-rich water.
22:15That was a huge relief for everyone.
22:18Yellowstone sits on a supervolcano,
22:21and its big explosions
22:22are a nightmare scenario.
22:24Luckily, this time,
22:26it was just a slow-building,
22:28small-scale explosion.
22:30It was dramatic, sure,
22:31but totally manageable.
22:33You see,
22:34Yellowstone National Park
22:35is full of geysers,
22:37hot springs,
22:38and all kinds of natural landscapes.
22:40But under the surface,
22:42things get incredibly intense.
22:45All because of the supervolcano.
22:48Now, supervolcanoes
22:49are often extremely large.
22:51They often have no cone at all,
22:54since they're typically
22:55the remains of gigantic magma chambers.
22:58Once, those chambers flared up,
23:01leaving behind a caldera.
23:02They're usually located over hot spots.
23:05It's no surprise
23:06that supervolcanoes
23:07can produce supereruptions.
23:10And when they do it,
23:11they blow more than 240 cubic miles
23:14of ash, molten rock,
23:16and hot gases up into the air.
23:18In other words,
23:20four supereruptions
23:21could fill the Grand Canyon
23:23to the brim.
23:25Supervolcanoes form
23:26when huge volumes
23:27of scorching hot magma
23:29escape from deep underground.
23:31This magma rises close to the surface,
23:34but can't break through Earth's crust.
23:36So, a pressurized pool
23:38of bubbling magma
23:39gathers at a depth
23:41of only several miles.
23:43The pressure keeps growing
23:44because more and more magma
23:46is trying to get to the surface.
23:48And then,
23:48bang,
23:49a supereruption occurs.
23:52Now, back in 2015,
23:54researchers at the University of Utah
23:56mapped out the main magma chamber
23:58of the Yellowstone supervolcano
24:00and were shocked by its size.
24:02And then,
24:03they found another one below it.
24:06Together,
24:07these underground magma pools
24:09could hold enough molten rock
24:11to fill the Grand Canyon
24:1211 times.
24:14All that magma
24:15pushes up on the ground above,
24:17which is why Yellowstone
24:18rises about an inch or two
24:20every year.
24:21That slow lift
24:23might not sound like much,
24:25but combine it with the fact
24:26that Yellowstone
24:27is still an active volcano
24:29and has a volcanic explosivity index
24:32of 8,
24:33and it's enough to make you wonder
24:35what could happen
24:36if things went south.
24:38And yes,
24:40Yellowstone has indeed
24:41been a bit jumpy
24:42in recent years.
24:44In March 2023,
24:46there were 354 earthquakes
24:48in the area.
24:49Most were tiny,
24:50but the biggest
24:51hit a magnitude 3.7,
24:53part of a swarm of 106 quakes.
24:56Now,
24:57before you freak out,
24:58experts from the
24:59Yellowstone Volcano Observatory
25:01say there's no need to panic.
25:03No eruption is coming
25:05anytime soon.
25:07Volcanoes don't stick
25:08to a schedule.
25:09Just because Yellowstone
25:10hasn't erupted
25:11in a long time
25:12doesn't mean
25:13it's about to blow.
25:15The park is stable,
25:16for now.
25:17But scientists are keeping
25:19a close eye
25:20on everything underground.
25:21The quakes,
25:23the rising ground,
25:24and even temperature changes,
25:26just to be safe.
25:28The superhot plume of magma,
25:30a hotspot under Yellowstone,
25:32has been churning
25:33for 17 million years.
25:35The Earth's crust
25:37slowly moved over it,
25:39making the hotspot
25:40leave a trail of volcanoes
25:41stretching more than 450 miles
25:44along the Snake River plain.
25:46Most of those ancient ones
25:48are now buried
25:49under layers of lava
25:50and sediment.
25:51In just the past
25:532.1 million years,
25:55Yellowstone has unleashed
25:56three cataclysmic eruptions.
25:58So massive,
25:59they managed to reshape
26:01the land.
26:02Each explosion sent
26:03pyroclastic flows,
26:05rivers of searing
26:06hot rock, ash,
26:07and pumice
26:08racing outward
26:09for miles.
26:10The debris
26:11piled up in layers
26:12hundreds of feet thick,
26:14some forming
26:15solid lava-like rock.
26:17When those eruptions
26:18emptied the underground
26:19magma chambers,
26:21the roof collapsed,
26:22forming the massive
26:23calderas we see today.
26:25Even after those
26:27mega-eruptions,
26:28Yellowstone didn't stop.
26:30Between 180,000
26:32and 70,000 years ago,
26:34enormous
26:35rhyolite lava flows,
26:37sometimes over
26:38144 cubic miles,
26:40poured out.
26:41Some flows
26:42followed north-south
26:43vent lines.
26:44The West Yellowstone
26:46flow erupted
26:47around 110,000 years ago.
26:49The Nez Peres Creek
26:51flow followed
26:52160,000 years ago.
26:54If you stand
26:55at Madison Junction
26:56on the caldera's
26:58northwest rim,
26:59you can see it,
27:00a cliff that formed
27:02when the Lava Creek
27:03tough eruption
27:03collapsed the land
27:05640,000 years ago.
27:07And inside the caldera,
27:09you'll see the
27:10hardened lava flows
27:12snaking across the floor.
27:14Figuring out
27:15when a supervolcano
27:16might blow
27:17is like being able
27:18to read nature's
27:19warning signals.
27:21Thousands of years
27:22before a massive eruption,
27:24the heat underground
27:25starts building
27:26and the magma chambers
27:27become like
27:28ticking pressure cookers.
27:30Little signs
27:31start showing up.
27:32Gas bubbles escape
27:33as the pressure shifts
27:35and earthquakes
27:36shake the ground.
27:37The land above
27:38slowly rises.
27:40Cracks appear.
27:41Hot springs and geysers
27:43start acting up,
27:44heating even more
27:45than usual.
27:46Now, what would happen
27:47if Yellowstone erupted?
27:49Remember those
27:50pyroclastic flows
27:52we talked about before?
27:53They can contain
27:54two parts.
27:55The lower flow
27:57of the hot lava
27:57that moves at ground level
27:59and a cloud of ash
28:01that follows
28:01above the lava level.
28:03So, the two of them
28:04would devastate
28:05huge areas.
28:07The ash would even
28:08reach Europe
28:08within 3-4 days
28:10of the eruption.
28:11But it wouldn't be
28:12so bad there.
28:13After that,
28:14it would only take
28:16around 2-3 weeks
28:17before cooler temperatures
28:19set in around the globe,
28:20all thanks to
28:21the sulfur gas
28:22that would get
28:23to the upper atmosphere
28:24after the eruption.
28:26Scientists predict
28:27that global temperatures
28:28would drop
28:29by up to
28:3010-12 degrees.
28:31These consequences
28:33could last
28:33for 6-10 years,
28:35putting an end
28:36to monsoons
28:37which could cause
28:38widespread famine
28:39in Asia.
28:40Scared?
28:41Well, don't be.
28:43The good news
28:44is that scientists
28:45don't believe
28:46that the sleeping giant
28:47under Yellowstone National Park
28:49will wake up
28:50in our lifetime.
28:52Experts say
28:53the next Yellowstone eruption
28:54won't likely happen
28:55for hundreds of thousands
28:57of years.
28:57And even then,
28:59it may not be
29:00that bad
29:01because scientists
29:02have discovered
29:03that the magma
29:04lurking within Yellowstone
29:05is actually split up
29:07amongst
29:07four different chambers.
29:09Not only that,
29:11but some of the reservoirs
29:12of magma
29:13are likely to cool down
29:15and solidify,
29:16lessening the chances
29:17of an eruption.
29:19So,
29:19while an eruption
29:20does sound like
29:21it would change
29:22the landscape
29:22of the world,
29:23it's very unlikely
29:25to happen
29:26anytime soon.
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