Tiny quakes reported at Mount St. Helens

[RoaCh of DisCord]

Tiny quakes reported at Mount St. Helens​

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

LONGVIEW, Wash. -- Hundreds of earthquakes too small to be detected by humans have been reported at Mount St. Helens, but they are probably not a prelude to an eruption, a state seismologist said Friday.

The earthquakes began Thursday and showed no sign of letting up Friday afternoon, Tony Qamar said.

"We're having a swarm of very small quakes - hundreds and hundreds - right under the dome inside the crater," Qamar said.

The quakes could increase the likelihood of small rock slides from the 876-foot lava dome within the mountain's crater, according to Bill Steele, coordinator of the seismology lab at the University of Washington in Seattle.

A similar swarm of quakes in November 2001 and another in the summer of 1998 did not result in eruptions.

The earthquakes may be due to increased pressure beneath the surface of the crater caused by heavy autumn rains, Steele said. Scientists will use data from the Cascade Volcano Observatory, including gas samples collected by aircraft, to pin down the source of the quake swarm.

Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980, killing 57 people and spewing ash over much of the Northwest. The last dome-building eruption, in which magma reached the surface and added to the pile of lava on the crater floor, was in 1986.​

...........

Kind of freaky. They are so quick to say it probably won't erupt...in which it probably won't...but it still kind of makes you wonder. They don't seem so positive... Anywho...this hasn't happened for quite awhile...and it seems to be causing quite a bit of attention. I thought I'd share!1

BTW I live in the Seattle area.

 

[I_Robbie]

Shit, I live in seattle, I hope i dont die in a firey death...

 

[Darkmatter]

Hmm, RyanXWing lives close to there too I believe. You both better not die, or I'll cry and be a emotional kid.

 

[I_Robbie]

bluecheesekilla does too... mabey we can build a fort

 

[Jason]

Damn that would suck. I have to admit though, if a volcano errupted it would be hella cool. It would suck harshly for those affected by it though. I've just never been around for a volcanic erruption that I'm aware of.

You know..shit that would suck horribly, like what happens in "The Day After Tomorrow" would be ****ing awesome in the same way. When 9/11 happened it was kind of exhilirating..heh..

I think I'm turned on by catastrophe. Is that wierd?

 

[Master.America]

My family saw St. Helens explode. My grandma's got a blown-up framed picture of it above her fireplace. It's eerie looking. I wouldn't think there would be anything to worry about; I'd bet whatever is causing those little quakes is just something going on beneath the earth's surface that we don't have the technology to figure out anyway.

And I'm the same way, viz. I've always been somewhat disappointed that this area never gets extreme weather. We get a windstorm around this time every year. It gives me a rush, but it does nothing more than screw up all our almond orchards.

 

[BlueCheeseKilla]

Hmm, RyanXWing lives close to there too I believe. You both better not die, or I'll cry and be a emotional kid.

im too emo to cry...and if mount st. helens erupted big enough to **** up seattle, i'd be too dead to cry!

 

[_Ace]

Oh nice, I hope that volcano is a gate to hell so stuff goes out of it and kills you all, then I go to the US, steal all your shit and come back to Spain without dying (sounds like a plan)

 

[I_Robbie]

im too emo to cry...and if mount st. helens erupted big enough to **** up seattle, i'd be too dead to cry!

so you dont want to help? I cant build this fort by myself you know!

 

[Sir liqu1d_g0at]

Remember, duck and cover and you'll be fine

 

[I_Robbie]

no! if thare is lava comeing at you you NEED to have a fort or you could be badly burned!

 

[RuneyPoo]

Ah, we would get all the ash if it did erupt, I live in NY... Anyways, lets hope it doesn't erupt, because those scientists love to lie about dangerous things that may happen... So let's hope...

 

[RoaCh of DisCord]

Ack...I knew something was up...

Scientists issue notice of volcanic unrest in Mount St. Helens crater

By MELANTHIA MITCHELL
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

SEATTLE -- Seismologists believe there's an increased likelihood of a hazardous event at Mount St. Helens due to recent changes in the mountain's seismic activity, and on Sunday the U.S. Geological Survey issued a notice of volcanic unrest.

"The key issue is a small explosion without warning. That would be the major event that we're worried about right now," said Willie Scott, a geologist with the USGS office in Vancouver.

Initially, hundreds of tiny earthquakes that began Thursday morning had slowly declined through Saturday. By Sunday, however, the swarm had changed to include more than 10 larger earthquakes of magnitude 2.0 to 2.8, the most in a 24-hour period since the last dome-building eruption in October 1986, Scott said.

The quakes have occurred at depths less than one mile below the lava dome within the mountain's crater. Some of the earthquakes suggest the involvement of pressurized fluids, such as water or steam, and perhaps magma.

In the event of an explosion, Scott said the concern would be focused on the area within the crater and the flanks of the volcano. It's possible that a five-mile area primarily north of the volcano could receive flows of mud and rock debris.

That portion of the mountain blew out during the May 18, 1980, eruption that left 57 people dead, devastating hundreds of square miles around the peak and spewing ash over much of the Northwest.

"We haven't had a swarm of earthquakes at Mount St. Helens since 2001," state seismologist Tony Qamar said. "Clearly something new is happening."

Qamar said if an eruption did occur it would possibly involve ash and steam, called phreatic eruptions.

The cause and outcome of the swarm were uncertain Sunday evening. A group of scientists planned to visit the mountain Monday to collect data.

"There's been no explosions, there's no outward sign that anything is occurring. This is all based on the pattern of earthquake activity that is occurring below the dome," said Scott.

Experts believe there is "an increased probability of explosions from the lava dome if the level of current unrest continues or escalates," USGS and the University of Washington Pacific Northwest Seismograph Network in Seattle said in a joint statement.

A similar swarm of quakes in November 2001 and another in the summer of 1998 did not result in an eruption. However, the quakes could increase the likelihood of small rock slides from the 876-foot-tall lava dome within the mountain's crater.

In the 1986 eruption, magma reached the surface and added to the pile of lava on the crater floor.​

​

 

[RuneyPoo]

Wow, I jinxed it...

-Prays it erupts.- Hey, we could have another goldrush...

 

[l33t bunny master]

that would be cool if it did erupt.

 

[I_Robbie]

http://cnn.netscape.cnn.com/news/st...LS&idq=/ff/story/0001/20040927/2120491459.htm

I dont know if I would get the lava if it did... i dont think so, but im building a fort anyways.

 

[Sogeking]

i dont think a sandcastle will do it robbie....

but thats scary shit. i go to mt shasta every year and one year we had unusual quakes...it was scary, i thought the thing was going to erupt durring the night while i slept! but it was just a false alarm...damn california and the quakes

 

[I_Robbie]

sand is weak! you would need ply wood and cinder blocks and lots of duct tape! oh and tin foil to go on the out side so it wouldnt burn the ply wood.

 

[RoaCh of DisCord]

Sounds like it's getting close...

"The lava dome in the crater of Mount St. Helens apparently is growing and moving slightly northward, a top volcano scientist said Wednesday."

Read more here..

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/nation/20040929-0738-wst-st.helens-quakes.html