Volcano Science Center
Find U.S. Volcano
The Volcano Science Center is the primary center serving the mission of the USGS Volcano Hazards Program — to enhance public safety and minimize social and economic disruption from volcanic unrest and eruption. The center is home to the five US volcano observatories with offices in Anchorage, Alaska; Menlo Park and Mountain View, California; Vancouver, Washington; and Hilo, Hawaii.
News
CVO dismantles Mount St. Helens’ VALT seismic station after 18 years in service.
CVO dismantles Mount St. Helens’ VALT seismic station after 18 years in service.
Yellowstone GPS stations help to monitor solar storms that cause widespread auroras
Yellowstone GPS stations help to monitor solar storms that cause widespread auroras
Volcano Watch — More shaking on Kīlauea’s south flank. Did you feel it?
Volcano Watch — More shaking on Kīlauea’s south flank. Did you feel it?
Publications
Characterising, quantifying, and accessing eruption source parameters of explosive volcanic eruptions for operational simulation of tephra dispersion: A current view and future perspectives
Eruption source parameters (ESPs) are crucial for characterising volcanic eruptions and are essential inputs to numerical models used for hazard assessment. Key ESPs of explosive volcanic eruptions include plume height, mass eruption rate, eruption duration, and grain-size distribution. Some of these ESPs can be directly observed during an eruption, but others are difficult to measure in real-time
Yellowstone Volcano Observatory 2023 annual report
The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) monitors volcanic and hydrothermal activity associated with the Yellowstone magmatic system, carries out research into magmatic processes occurring beneath Yellowstone caldera, and issues timely warnings and guidance related to potential future geologic hazards. YVO is a collaborative consortium that includes the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Yellowstone
Origins and nature of large explosive eruptions in the lower East Rift Zone of Kīlauea volcano, Hawaii: Insights from ash characterization and geochemistry
Several powerful explosive eruptions have taken place in the populated lower East Rift Zone of Kīlauea within the past ∼750 years. These have created distinctive landforms, including a tephra rim enclosing Puʻulena Crater immediately south of the Puna Geothermal Venture power station, a tuff cone at Kapoho Crater near the eastern cape of the Island of Hawaiʻi, and a set of littoral cones, the Sand
Science
Mining and mineralization of the Clear Lake region
The Geysers-Clear Lake area has been one of the most productive in the United States for mercury, and gold was mined in the late 1800s. Many of the deposits are directly associated with outcrops of early Clear Lake volcanic rocks.
Geology and History of Black Rock Desert Volcanic Field
Black Rock Desert volcanic field is the northernmost volcanic field in a belt of young volcanic fields beginning in the northern Grand Canyon of Arizona and continuing in a north-trending line through Utah. Part of the eastern Basin and Range Province, the Black Rock Desert volcanic field covers nearly 7,000 km2 (2,700 mi) and is 145 km (90 mi) long.
Gas monitoring at Clear Lake Volcanic Field
The USGS periodically analyzes volcanic gases and hot springs at Clear Lake volcanic field during ground-based campaigns.