Caldera Chronicles

Ever wonder what makes the Norris Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park so special? It turns out that the basin not only boasts the hottest...

Over the past several days, an earthquake swarm has been ongoing at Yellowstone. Before you read any more, keep in mind that swarms like this account...

If you've been paying attention to monitoring data from Yellowstone or reading the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) monthly updates, you might...

We all know what it is like to experience strain. The pressures of everyday life can leave you feeling contorted and stretched. It turns out...

If you've visited Yellowstone, you've probably noticed that some thermal areas have a distinctive smell. This is due to the gas that discharges from...

The Yellowstone region is one of the most seismically active areas in the United States, experiencing around 1,500 – 2,500 located earthquakes per...

Have you ever wondered how Yellowstone Caldera was discovered, and how it was recognized as being the result of a massive volcanic eruption? In fact...

To most people, the idea of a volcano "observatory" conjures image of a building that looks out at an active volcano, staffed by scientists who keep...

Welcome to the inaugural issue of "Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles," a new weekly column of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO). Each Monday on...

When earthquake swarms happen at Yellowstone, we receive a lot of questions about whether the volcano is headed toward eruption. The swarm in June...

Most models of geyser eruptions start with a simple assumption: eruptions occur as liquid water boils to steam. While that is largely true, if the...

USGS scientists often determine the age of volcanic rocks with dating techniques that involve radioactive decay of elements like uranium and argon.

How do we know what's beneath Yellowstone, and how can we image the shallow magma?

The topic of Yellowstone supereruptions (ones producing greater than one thousand cubic kilometers of volcanic debris) generates much interest, but...

Yellowstone is located in a region of the United States where both volcanic and tectonic processes occur. Yellowstone is also at the edge of the Basin...

Several years ago, using sensitive new monitoring equipment located in shallow boreholes, scientific staff from UNAVCO, a member institution of the...

In Fall of 2012, Deborah Bergfeld (USGS) and colleagues published a paper in the journal Chemical Geology on an unusual acid-altered region along the...

We all know Yellowstone is hot… but how hot? And how can we detect park- or basin-wide changes in geothermal areas (regions that let off Earth's...

USGS scientist Phil Dawson and colleagues have applied a novel research approach to voice recognition software. In their January 2012 paper, published...

Over the past three years we've witnessed two large earthquake swarms at Yellowstone (2010 and 2009). Recent history tells us that these earthquake...