Yellowstone Volcano Eruption Map: This is the Instant Death Zone If the Supervolcano Will Erupt

Yellowstone is known as a site that sits on top of a dormant volcano, which experts believe to be a supervolcano that is waiting to erupt. Located northwest of the state of Wyoming in the western United States, the Yellowstone National Park is also home to many geysers and hot springs than any other place on Earth, according to national park officials. US seismic authorities estimate that Yellowstone's most recent volcanic activity was approximately 70,000 years ago.

Since its discovery more than a century ago, the Yellowstone supervolcano has been a subject of both 'fictional and scientific inquiry' regarding a future post-apocalyptic world should the said dormant volcano erupt. However, this scenario inclines more on the side of reality since there is strong evidence that the Yellowstone volcano can reportedly cause immediate fatalities in its surrounding areas, as well as global ramifications.

Yellowstone Volcano Eruption Map

The Yellowstone supervolcano, as mentioned earlier, can cause widespread deaths and destruction that has never been seen in modern history. Due to the threat posed by Yellowstone, a consortium of nine US state and federal agencies called the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO), an arm of the US Geological Survey (USGS), is constantly monitoring its hydrothermal, volcanic, and seismic activity.

In a 2014 study published in the journal Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, USGS researchers provided a Yellowstone volcano eruption map that shows the potential areas and regions affected by the supervolcano's ash fall distribution should a Yellowstone supereruption occurs in the future. The map also includes an "instant death zone" or "kill zone," which are areas closer to the Yellowstone Caldera.

Also Read: Yellowstone Eruption 630,000 Years Ago Opens New Geological Mysteries

Yellowstone Volcanic Eruption Simulation

To create a simulation, the researchers used volcanic ash transport and dispersion model to estimate the distribution of ashfall during a modern-day Plinian supereruption of the Yellowstone volcano. Based on the study's results, such eruption could spew ash that reaches thousands of miles across the US, where animals and plants could die, as well as decimate buildings and other infrastructures.

The USGS study also shows that the ashfall impact originating from the Yellowstone Plateau could reach parts of the southwestern, southern, central, midwestern, and northern parts of the country.

Has Yellowstone Ever Erupted?

Available data shows that the 70,000-year-old most recent volcanic activity from the Yellowstone supervolcano consisted of rhyolitic lava flows, according to the USGS. Meanwhile, Yellowstone's last official volcanic eruption occurred approximately 640,000 years ago.

Beyond the said timeline, scientists also estimate that the Yellowstone volcano erupted 1.3 million and 2.1 million years ago. This means that there is no one alive today who witnessed Yellowstone and other supervolcanoes in the world erupt. The previous eruptions at Yellowstone also do not clearly indicate that its dormant supervolcano erupts every 600,000 years.

Described by many as the "sleeping giant," scientists predict that the most likely activities that will occur at Yellowstone include volcanic earthquakes, lava flows, or hydrothermal explosions, with a major volcanic eruption to be unlikely, according to the YVO.