Posted on 03/10/2007 8:19:17 AM PST by aculeus
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have discovered what likely triggered the eruption of a "supervolcano" that coated much of the western half of the United States with ash fallout 760,000 years ago.
Using a new technique developed at Rensselaer, the team determined that there was a massive injection of hot magma underneath the surface of what is now the Long Valley Caldera in California some time within 100 years of the gigantic volcanos eruption. The findings suggest that this introduction of hot melt led to the immense eruption that formed one of the worlds largest volcanic craters or calderas.
The research, which is featured in the March 2007 edition of the journal Geology, sheds light on what causes these large-scale, explosive eruptions, and it could help geologists develop methods to predict such eruptions in the future, according to David Wark, research professor of earth and environmental sciences at Rensselaer and lead author of the paper.
The 20-mile-long Long Valley Caldera was created when the supervolcano erupted. The geologists focused their efforts on Bishop Tuff, an expanse of rock that was built up as the hot ash cooled following the eruption. The researchers studied the distribution of titanium in quartz crystals in samples taken from Bishop Tuff.
A team from Rensselaer previously discovered that trace levels of titanium can be analyzed to determine the temperature at which the quartz crystallized. By monitoring titanium, Wark and his colleagues confirmed that the outer rims of the quartz had formed at a much hotter temperature than the crystal interiors. The researchers concluded that after the interiors of the quartz crystals had grown, the magma system was "recharged" with an injection of fresh, hot melt. This caused the quartz to partly dissolve, before starting to crystallize again at a much higher temperature.
(Excerpt) Read more at redorbit.com ...
mark
catastrophism (spelling?) ping.
I'm selling Supervolcano Eruption credits. They are currently going for $10.00 a credit. Who wants to buy some?
YEC INTREP
I'm trying to capture the market on 'super volcano insurance.' If one erupts, I'll be right there, trust me.
Sell 'em to yourself, a la Algore.
Ok, when the Yellowstone caldera erupts, I'll give you a call.
So, what they are saying is that a build up of MAGMA causes a volcano to erupt. NOW WHO WOULD HAVE EVER SUSPECTED THAT!!!!
This is a conservative website where we extol the virtues of a market economy. My Supervolcano Eruption credits are available for purchase at $9.75 a credit, and I'll give a 10% discount for every 100 credits purchased.
All I have to do is get my website up, and I'm ready for bidness.
This sort of eruption is now forbidden by EPA regulations, thank goodness.
Come on FRiend. Let's set up a Corporation.
This sucker goes off again it will make one huge carbon footprint, NO? LOL!
LOL!!! Sounds good to me. Texas has a 4.5% corporate income (franchise) tax. What's the cost of doing business in Alaska?
"So, what they are saying is that a build up of MAGMA causes a volcano to erupt. NOW WHO WOULD HAVE EVER SUSPECTED THAT!!!!"
Yeah, everybody knows that Republican greed causes volcanoes to erupt.
That's what I was thinking. Looks like another case for CAPTAIN OBVIOUS!!
ROTGLMAO!!!
Thanks for that bit of info, I will sleep much better tonight : )
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