USGS Yellowstone Volcano Observatory

USGS Yellowstone Volcano Observatory
Name	USGS Yellowstone Volcano Observatory
Formation	2001
Headquarters	Wyoming
Parent organization	United States Geological Survey

USGS Yellowstone Volcano Observatory

The USGS Yellowstone Volcano Observatory monitors the Yellowstone Caldera and Yellowstone National Park region, coordinating scientists from the United States Geological Survey, University of Utah, University of Wyoming, Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, and federal partners to assess hazards from the Yellowstone hotspot. It provides assessments for stakeholders including the National Park Service, Federal Emergency Management Agency, United States Forest Service, and state emergency managers in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho.

Overview

The observatory integrates data on seismicity from regional networks such as the EarthScope Transportable Array and the International Seismological Centre, geodetic measurements from Global Positioning System stations and InSAR satellites including missions like Landsat, Sentinel-1, and NASA, gas geochemistry from sampling programs tied to institutions like USGS Gas Geochemistry Laboratory and Colorado School of Mines, and geologic mapping informed by work at the Geological Society of America and publications in journals such as Science and Nature Geoscience. It coordinates modeling efforts using tools developed at California Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California, Berkeley, and Purdue University to estimate eruption scenarios, ground deformation, and ash dispersal, informing aviation agencies such as the Federal Aviation Administration and international partners including the International Civil Aviation Organization.

History and Establishment

The observatory was created in 2001 following increased attention from research at the USGS and academic studies by teams at the University of Utah, University of Wyoming, Montana State University, and the University of Colorado Boulder. Its establishment responded to syntheses in reports by the National Research Council, policy guidance from the Department of the Interior, and hazard frameworks used by the Federal Emergency Management Agency after high-profile events like the 1997 Phivolcs upgrade and lessons from responses to the Mount St. Helens eruption and Mount Pinatubo eruption. Early collaborations included scientific exchanges with the Smithsonian Institution and technical support from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Organization and Partners

The observatory is a cooperative effort involving the United States Geological Survey, Yellowstone National Park, the University of Utah Seismograph Stations, the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, the Idaho Geological Survey, the Wyoming State Geological Survey, the Nevada Seismological Laboratory, and federal agencies such as the National Park Service, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and United States Forest Service. Academic partners include University of California, Santa Cruz, University of Michigan, Indiana University Bloomington, University of Washington, Oregon State University, University of Texas at Austin, Cornell University, Columbia University, Rutgers University, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Brown University, University of Florida, University of Arizona, Texas A&M University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and University of Hawaii. International scientific links span organizations like the British Geological Survey, Geological Survey of Canada, GNS Science, Australian Geological Survey Organisation, and research programs supported by the European Space Agency.

Monitoring and Research

Monitoring combines dense seismograph networks, continuous GPS stations, gravity surveys, and gas emission sensors to document unrest. Seismic monitoring leverages instruments from the IRIS Consortium and partnerships with the University of Utah Seismograph Stations and the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology to detect swarms, long-period events, and volcanic tremor. Geodetic research uses continuous GNSS observations, campaign GPS, and interferometric techniques with data from Sentinel-1, ALOS, RADARSAT, and NASA missions including GRACE to measure uplift and subsidence of the Yellowstone Plateau. Geochemistry programs analyze carbon dioxide and helium isotopes in hydrothermal vents and fumaroles following protocols developed at the USGS Volcano Science Center and laboratories at the California Institute of Technology and University of New Mexico. Petrology and geochronology work uses methods from the Geological Society of America community and facilities at Smithsonian Institution and Oak Ridge National Laboratory to constrain eruptive histories and magmatic processes related to the Yellowstone hotspot and the Heise volcanic field.

Public Outreach and Hazard Communication

The observatory issues regular status updates, technical summaries, and hazard maps used by the National Park Service, Federal Aviation Administration, and state emergency management agencies in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. Outreach includes collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History, educational programs with the American Geophysical Union, and media coordination with outlets such as National Public Radio, PBS, and major newspapers. Public materials reference guidance from the National Research Council, the Federal Emergency Management Agency volcanic ash emergency plans, and aviation advisories coordinated through the International Civil Aviation Organization.

Notable Events and Responses

The observatory has responded to episodes of increased seismicity such as the 2004 Yellowstone earthquake swarm, the 2008 Yellowstone earthquake swarm, the 2014–2015 earthquake series, and notable ground deformation episodes including uplift episodes documented in the 2015 Yellowstone uplift. It provided scientific assessments during broader events that influenced volcanic hazard policies shaped after eruptions like Mount St. Helens eruption and Mount Pinatubo eruption. The observatory’s alerts, coordination with the National Park Service, and liaison with the Federal Emergency Management Agency have informed contingency planning for aviation, tourism, and infrastructure across the Snake River Plain and communities such as Yellowstone Village, West Yellowstone, Cody, Wyoming, and Gardiner, Montana.

Category:Volcano observatories Category:United States Geological Survey Category:Yellowstone National Park