Geologists in Utah report they've had to look no further than their back yard for evidence of some of the largest volcanic eruptions in Earth's history. Researchers from Brigham Young University say the supervolcanoes are no longer active, but 30 million years ago they spewed almost 2 million cubic feet of magma during a one-week period near a place called Wah Wah Springs in west-central Utah. By comparison, this eruption was about 5,000 times larger than the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption, they said. "In southern Utah, deposits from this single eruption are 13,000 feet thick," study leader Eric Christiansen said. "Imagine the devastation -- it would have been catastrophic to anything living within hundreds of miles." The eruption buried a vast region extending from central Utah to central Nevada, and traces of ash have been discovered as far away as Nebraska, they reported in the journal Geosphere. It wasn't an isolated event, the researchers said; evidence was found of 15 super-eruptions and 20 large calderas. The supervolcanoes have been hidden in plain sight for millions of years, hidden by the ravages of erosion and later deformation and not obvious to the naked eye because they affect enormous areas, they said. "Supervolcanoes as we've seen are some of Earth's largest volcanic edifices, and yet they don't stand as high cones," Christiansen said. "At the heart of a supervolcano instead, is a large collapse."
GMT 10:54 2018 Sunday ,02 December
Egypt wins membership of World Water Council board of governorsGMT 13:57 2018 Thursday ,29 November
UN weather agency: 2018 is fourth hottest year on recordGMT 07:52 2018 Thursday ,15 November
Massive meteorite crater discovered under Greenland ice-sheetGMT 14:25 2018 Sunday ,28 October
Indonesia quake losses soar to 1.2 billion dollarsGMT 07:44 2018 Wednesday ,24 October
Hurricane Willa gathers speed on way to Mexico's coastGMT 09:11 2018 Tuesday ,23 October
Sri Lanka, Germany top Lonely Planet's destination list for in 2019GMT 19:48 2018 Tuesday ,23 January
Oil slick off China coast trebles in sizeGMT 13:38 2018 Sunday ,21 January
Spotted hyena returns to Gabon park after 20 yearsMaintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©
Send your comments
Your comment as a visitor