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A group of University of Wyoming professors and students has identified an unusual belt of igneous rocks that stretches for over 2,000 miles from British Columbia, Canada, through Idaho, Montana, Nevada, southeast California and Arizona to Sonora, Mexico. “Geoscientists usually associate long belts of igneous rocks with chains of volcanoes at subduction zones, like Mount Shasta, Mount Hood, Mount St. Helens and Mount Rainer,” says Jay Chapman, an assistant professor in UW’s Department of Geology and Geophysics. “What makes this finding so interesting and mysterious is that this belt of igneous rocks is located much farther inland, away from the...

... Mount St. Helens is located outside the main line of the Cascade Arc of volcanoes. ...scientists discovered a giant subsurface rock formation, known as the Spirit Lake batholith. They say it appears the batholith diverted magma and partially melted rock outside of the arc and to the west, forming Mount St. Helens. Researchers used two methods to analyze the subsurface rocks and geomagnetic and geoelectric fields; they studied data from earthquakes and explosions and used magnetotelluric to measure the Earth’s subsurface and conductivity. ,,, Schultz said the batholith acts like a plug in the crust and diverted magma that...

The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network says Wednesday the 3.9-magnitude and 2.1-magnitude temblors struck shortly after midnight near the volcanic peak.   ...   Residents reported feeling the largest earthquake as far away as Portland, Oregon -- about 70 miles to the south -- and in a large area of southwest Washington.   ... The seismic network outreach director, Bill Steele, says it's fairly typical to see earthquake swarms in this area, though somewhat unusual to have one with a 3.9 magnitude.   ...   He says even though the quakes have been located near Mount St. Helens, it's not caused...

Learning the lessons of Mount St Helens. How its eruption backs biblical history by Tas Walker It was not until I visited Mount St Helens volcano in Washington State, USA, that I fully appreciated the immensity of its 1980 explosion. Over many years, I had learned a lot about the eruption, watching videos, listening to lectures, and reading reports. When the mountain blew up physically, it also blew away many false ideas about geology, ideas that were wrong, but had been believed for more than a century. After decades of inactivity, Mount St Helens coughed to life in March 1980,...

If you're planning to go hiking or Bigfooting in Helens sometime in the next couple of weeks, we suggest you stay away from locations where these 70 something passive seismic stations are located. Scientists are planning to set off a bunch of explosives all around the volcano to learn more about it and get a detailed map of what the volcano looks like 50 miles below the surface. According to Gizmodo: The explosions are part of a research project called iMUSH, or Imaging Magma Under St. Helens. As Nature reports, the project staff will be hiking through the mountain to...

The Huffington Post has a pop-up feature entitled "Politicians' Science Gaffes" included on a related article about how "GOP Lawmaker Says Climate Change Is 'The Greatest Deception In The History Of Mankind'." Of course, the feature only includes Republican politicians (10 in total) who have said purportedly dumb things about science. And, according to the Huffington Post, the first listed science gaffe by a politician is the following statement by Ronald Reagan:

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Magma levels are slowly rebuilding inside Mount St. Helens, a volcano in Washington state that erupted in 1980 and killed 57 people, although there was no sign of an impending eruption, U.S. scientists said. ... "The magma reservoir beneath Mount St. Helens has been slowly re-pressurizing since 2008," the U.S. Geological Survey said in a statement on Wednesday. "It is likely that re-pressurization is caused by (the) arrival of a small amount of additional magma 4 to 8 km (2.5 to 5 miles) beneath the surface." The USGS said this is to be expected with an active...

At 8:32 a.m., a 5.1 magnitude earthquake shook open Mount St. Helens in the state of Washington, in what was one of the largest volcanic eruptions in the continental United States since the early 1900s. The devastation to the landscape, the forests and the wildlife, was incalculable, and the lives of 57 people were lost that day... Note: it only took Jimmy Carter three days to declare a disaster and visit the area of devastation. Bonus points for the semi-bouffant and extremely geeky Dan Rather appearance, sitting in for Walter Cronkite on the linked video...

A team of scientists say they have evidence that a "super volcano" may be brewing underneath Mount St. Helens, NewScientist.com reports. Researchers say indicators suggest Mount St. Helens and other northwest volcanoes are plugged into a huge subterranean pool of magma that could one day burst to the surface in a "super" eruption. If what they believe is true, the structure beneath the mountain would be comparable in size to the biggest magma chambers ever discovered, such as the one below Yellowstone National Park.

In January 2009, ICR received a copy of a recent ministry letter published by television personality Dr. John Ankerberg. For many years, Dr. Ankerberg has skillfully tackled tough issues related to the church, society, the Middle East, and other topics of interest to believers. Christians everywhere need to be informed, challenged, and also taught sound doctrine—there is no substitute for the Bible. However, the January letter from Dr. Ankerberg’s television ministry reveals a dangerous trend toward subjugating the accuracy, understandability, and authority of the Bible to the foolish musings of men—namely, scientists who deny that God’s revelation in the book...

MOUNT St. HELENS, Wash. - On May 18, 1980, the once bucolic ice-cream cone shape that defined Mount St. Helens in Washington state disappeared in monstrous blast of ash, rock, gas, and heat. ... And inside the volcano, which was once a soft dome of snow but is now a gaping, steaming menace with an unpredictable streak, an unexpected phenomenon is taking place: a glacier is growing. ... But Walder cautions that a glacier inside a volcano leads a tenuous existence. A surge in volcanic activity, especially an eruption, could melt away the glacier in the space of a day,...

Not much...Thanks Fox

VANCOUVER, Wash. - Mount St. Helens shot a steam and ash plume at least 16,000 feet into the air Monday after a large rockfall from the lava dome in the volcano's crater, scientists said. Pilots reported the plume rose between 16,000 and 20,000 feet in the air, scientists at the Cascades Volcano Observatory said. The rockfall coincided with a magnitude 3.1 earthquake shortly after 9 a.m. Monday at the mountain, scientists said. Such events are expected during growth of the lava dome, they said. "There is no evidence of an explosion associated with this event," the observatory said in a...

If the skies are clear as forecast, volcano watchers who turn out for the reopening of the Johnston Ridge Observatory on Friday will get a spectacular view of a hulking slab of rock that's rapidly growing in Mount St. Helens' crater. It's jutting up from one of seven lobes of fresh volcanic rock that have been pushing their way through the surface of the crater since October 2004. The fin-shaped mass is about 300 feet tall and growing 4 feet to 5 feet a day, though it occasionally loses height from rockfalls off its tip, said Dan Dzurisin, a geologist...

What is Mount St. Helen's doing? The video cam, which is usually dark this time of night has bright flares.

Earthquakes At Mount St. Helens Collapse Dome August 1, 2005By BERNARD CHOI / KING 5 News MOUNT ST. HELENS, Wash. - The rumblings at Mount St. Helens have been so strong, the lava dome has collapsed. Scientists are trying to figure out what's behind the recent string of stronger-than-normal quakes at the volcano. In the last 24 hours, the seismograph has recorded three earthquakes with a magnitude at or near 3.0, and these quakes are shaking things up inside the crater. St. Helens is at it again, shaking and rattling and sending the seismograph needle into overdrive. Compare a printout...

Link post, provided to interested Freepers in the News/Activism section so that they may access the post in the General/Chat section (and post thine commentary THERE): Geology Pictures of the Week, July 10-16, 2005: Landslides, Ash Layers, and Property Values

Learned a few new things last week, leading to this week's posting: The town of Orting, in Washington, sits right on top of the landslide deposits from the Electron mudflow generated by Mount Rainier. A buried tree stump excavated from the Electron mudflow. Ash layers from Mt. St. Helens. I learned last week that after the 1850 BC eruption, the native population abandoned the area for about 2000 years. That's a pretty long length of time for "you don't want to live in that neighborhood" to get passed along around the campfire.

Magnitude 6.1 - PAPUA, INDONESIA 2004 November 28 07:36:47 UTC Preliminary Earthquake Report U.S. Geological Survey, National Earthquake Information CenterWorld Data Center for Seismology, Denver A strong earthquake occurred at 07:36:47 (UTC) on Sunday, November 28, 2004. The magnitude 6.1 event has been located in PAPUA, INDONESIA. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.) Magnitude 6.1 Date-Time Sunday, November 28, 2004 at 07:36:47 (UTC) = Coordinated Universal Time Sunday, November 28, 2004 at 4:36:47 PM = local time at epicenter Location 3.678°S, 135.457°E Depth 35 km (21.7 miles) set by location program Region PAPUA, INDONESIA Distances 95 km...

Link post: access the thread for discussion and comment in the Chat section: Geology Pictures of the Week, November 7-13, 2004: Volcanoes and more volcanoes