So Could We Tap Into This Baby? Yellowstone Supervolcano Grows in Stature

Yellowstone Magma Pocket

Big. Really, really big. Not billions of cubic miles big, though.

This story going around Facebook has a serious error that seems to obscure an important core of truth.

The supervolcano that lies beneath Yellowstone National Park is 2.5 times larger than previously thought, it was revealed at an American Geophysical Union meeting.

Scientists knew the supervolcano was big, and set out to find out just how big, in order to assess the threat level. What they discovered, they said, was “astounding.”

Between 125 and 185 billion cubic miles of magma is pooled under the surface, representing an existential threat to America, as well as the rest of the world. One scientist estimates an eruption would be 2,000 times the size of Mount St. Helens.

185 billion cubic miles?  As in a cube that’s 5700 miles on each side?  I don’t think so!  But if you presume that what was meant was 185 billion cubic meters, which would translate to about 44.4 cubic miles of lava — or a cube (if you really wanted to stuff it all into a large box) of about 3.5 miles per side, then it makes a lot more sense.  Although, as it stretches more than 55 miles below the surface, it might be better analogized to a 55-mile long cylinder of with a one-mile long diameter of hot magma.  (MUCH easier to imagine, isn’t it?)  Or just use the image above, gleaned from this page.

So with that out of the way, let’s go to the underlying story:

“We know there’s been these really large volcanic eruptions in the past and what we’re seeing now matches that,” [Dr. James Farrell of the University of Utah] said. “We see that there is indeed a large magma reservoir and that there is the potential for large volcanic eruptions in the future, although that would be in the far future.”

A recent scientific study indicates that the underground volcano is nearly 2.5 times bigger than originally thought, stretching more than 55 miles beneath the surface.

The last eruption from the Yellowstone super volcano took place 640,000 years ago. Researchers told BBCNews that ash was sent across North America following the eruption.

“These are really big volcanic eruptions and it would definitely be a global event. It would not only affect the U.S. but it would affect the world,” Farrell stated. “All this material that is shot up in the atmosphere would eventually circle the earth and would affect the climate throughout the world.”

So, obviously, the question is: how do we make money off of this?  Um, by that I mean: is it possible to use this even larger-than-expected source of energy as a source of geothermal power — ideally before it kills us all?  I would think that defusing this source of doom and using it to live a fossil-free life might be something on which we could get 80% or so of the country to agree (although maybe closer to 50% in Orange County.)

Your thoughts?  Could we slant drill to Yellowstone from OC and drink their hot milkshake?  (Answer: no.)


About Greg Diamond

Somewhat verbose attorney, semi-disabled and semi-retired, residing in northwest Brea. Occasionally ran for office against jerks who otherwise would have gonr unopposed. Got 45% of the vote against Bob Huff for State Senate in 2012; Josh Newman then won the seat in 2016. In 2014 became the first attorney to challenge OCDA Tony Rackauckas since 2002; Todd Spitzer then won that seat in 2018. Every time he's run against some rotten incumbent, the *next* person to challenge them wins! He's OK with that. Corrupt party hacks hate him. He's OK with that too. He does advise some local campaigns informally and (so far) without compensation. (If that last bit changes, he will declare the interest.) His daughter is a professional campaign treasurer. He doesn't usually know whom she and her firm represent. Whether they do so never influences his endorsements or coverage. (He does have his own strong opinions.) But when he does check campaign finance forms, he is often happily surprised to learn that good candidates he respects often DO hire her firm. (Maybe bad ones are scared off by his relationship with her, but they needn't be.)