Yellowstone, with its renowned hot springs and spectacular geysers, is one of the most celebrated national parks in the US, attracting millions of visitors annually. The park’s breathtaking sights are due to the magma located miles beneath the surface, part of one of the world’s largest active volcanic systems. However, the exact nature of this magma storage and its potential for eruption has remained a mystery. Scientists have now utilised advanced techniques to answer the pressing questions: when will Yellowstone erupt and what will be the consequences? According to research published in the journal Nature on Wednesday, a volcanic eruption at Yellowstone National Park is unlikely due to the structure of the underlying magma formations, and the focus of volcanic activity will be shifting northeast. Lead author Ninfa Bennington, a research geophysicist at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory, told The Washington Post: “Nowhere in Yellowstone do we have regions that are capable of eruption.”

She explained that while there is a significant amount of magma, it is not sufficiently connected. Despite the large volume of magma, the region will remain volcanically active as the magma is stored in separate reservoirs, making it too dispersed to trigger a volcanic eruption within our lifetimes, she added. Beneath Yellowstone Park, two distinct types of magma exist. The first is basaltic magma, which is responsible for most volcanic activity on Earth. Due to its lower resistance to flow, it erupts more readily. However, under Yellowstone, this type of magma is dense and deeply embedded in the Earth’s crust, making an eruption unlikely. The second type, rhyolitic magma, is thicker and has a higher resistance to flow. In Yellowstone, the basaltic magma heats the surrounding rock, aiding in the creation of rhyolitic magma in the upper crust of the Earth. However, a volcanic eruption caused by this formation is still unlikely as it requires significant pressure build-up to trigger an eruption of rhyolitic magma. Such a massive upheaval is vastly different from the regular activity that attracts tourists to the park.

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