Latest news with #MountRainier
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Science
- Daily Mail
Catastrophic volcano near 3m Americans rocked by 800 earthquakes as experts wait with bated breath
Nearly 800 earthquakes have rattled Washington's Mount Rainier in the last 30 days, sparking fears that one of America's most dangerous volcanoes is coming to life. More than half of the quakes, approximately 512, struck in July alone, with one intense swarm unleashing over 400 tremors in just 12 hours. This towering stratovolcano looms over more than 3.3 million people across the Seattle-Tacoma metro area, threatening to cripple entire communities with ashfall, flooding, and catastrophic mudflows if it erupts. Although Rainier has not produced a major eruption in over 1,000 years, earthquake swarms like this are often linked to volcanic unrest. Such seismic activity is typically triggered by magma rising toward the surface, fracturing surrounding rock under intense pressure. However, the US Geological Survey (USGS) has downplayed immediate eruption fears, saying the current tremors are likely caused by hot fluids, not magma. Regardless, volcanologists have said that it is only a matter of time until Rainier, arguably the most dangerous volcano in the US, unleashes on the Pacific Northwest. 'Mount Rainier keeps me up at night because it poses such a great threat to the surrounding communities,' Jess Phoenix, a volcanologist and ambassador for the Union of Concerned Scientists told CNN. When this volcano eventually blows, it won't be lava flows or choking clouds of ash that threaten surrounding cities, but the lahars: violent, fast-moving mudflows that can tear across entire communities in a matter of minutes. Large lahars can crush, abrade, bury, or carry away almost anything in their paths, according to the USGS. 'Tacoma and South Seattle are built on 100-foot-thick ancient mudflows from eruptions of Mount Rainier,' Phoenix said. But for now, the USGS has found 'no indication that the level of earthquake activity is cause for concern, and the alert level and color code for Mount Rainier remain at GREEN / NORMAL.' The USGS issued a notice on July 9, informing the public that a major swarm had rattled Mount Rainier, which saw hundreds of earthquakes in half a day. 'Earthquakes are too small to be felt at the surface and will likely continue for several days. There would be no damage caused by such small events,' the USGS said. Since the earthquake swarm, scientists have detected hundreds of more up to a 2.3 magnitude. The USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory (CVO) added: 'Instruments do not show any detectable ground deformation at the volcano, and no anomalous signals have been seen on the infrasound monitoring stations.' Volcanic eruptions usually cause lahars by rapidly melting snow and ice that covers the volcano's slopes, which then destabilizes loose dirt, rock and volcanic debris and causes it to flow rapidly downward. But it doesn't always take an eruption to trigger a lahar, according to the Seismological Society of America. Rarely, these powerful mudslides can form as the result of gradual weakening of the volcano's slopes due to past eruptions, or heavy rainfall after an eruption. The deadliest lahar in recent history resulted from a 1985 eruption of the Nevado del Ruiz stratovolcano in Tolima, Columbia. Within hours of the eruption, a torrent of mud, melted snow and rock inundated the town of Armero and killed an estimated 25,000 people. This event, now known as the Armero tragedy, was the costliest volcanic disaster in history, according to The International Disaster Database. The total economic impact was estimated at $1 billion. The 1980 eruption of Mount Saint Helens, located in Washington just 50 miles from Mount Rainier, also produced a dangerous lahar that destroyed more than 200 homes, over 185 miles of roads and contributed to the total death toll of 57 people. These tragic events have helped scientists better understand the threat that lahars pose to human communities around active volcanoes, and experts are currently preparing for the terrifying possibility of a lahar forming at Mount Rainier.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Yahoo
Scientists issue warning after discovering worrying phenomenon on iconic US mountaintop: 'The trends were clear'
Mount Rainier's glaciers have always done more than decorate the skyline. The News Tribune reports they anchor ecosystems, feed rivers, and support nearby communities. Now, they're melting away faster than many imagined. In the early 1900s, Mount Rainier had 30 glaciers. Today, it is estimated that only 26 remain, according to The News Tribune. Scientists say the Ohanapecosh Glacier may vanish within a decade. Retired National Park Service geologist Jon Riedel told The News Tribune, "The trends were clear at Mount Rainier: that the glaciers were losing more to melt in the summer than they were gaining in the winter." Years ago, tourists visited the Paradise Ice Caves, tucked inside the Paradise Glacier. "I think the real warning bell for a lot of people was — 'have you heard of the Paradise ice caves?'" Paul Kennard, a retired National Park Service geomorphologist, told The News Tribune. The caves, famous for their glowing blue formations, closed in 1980 when falling ice made visits too dangerous. "Now, the caves are gone," Kennard said. Melting glaciers do more than erase iconic views. They feed rivers that power homes, water crops, and keep fish alive. "These rivers are going to be really impacted by glaciers diminishing, and water resources in the Pacific Northwest might seem infinite, but they're not," Jill Pelto, art director for the North Cascades Glacier Climate Project, told The News Tribune. A lack of glaciers means less meltwater, which threatens the salmon populations essential to local communities and wildlife. Jacques White, CEO of Long Live the Kings, said, "If fish or wildlife depend on large volumes of cold water into summer, they're not getting it because the major melt has occurred earlier." Mauri Pelto, director of the North Cascade Glacier Climate Project, explained to The News Tribune, "There's certain glaciers that don't extend up toward the summit … those are the glaciers that are going to be lost in the next 20 years." Rockfalls also become more common as ice disappears. In 2019, one rockfall killed a climber and injured two others on Liberty Ridge. Sudden glacial floods can send water and debris rushing down trails without warning. Do you worry about air pollution in your town? All the time Often Only sometimes Never Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Experts connect glacier loss to Earth's rising temperatures. Another study tracking Greenland's ice sheet found major losses linked to warmer seasons. Large policy shifts matter, but daily choices help too. Walking or using public transit, switching to electric cars, and cutting out single-use plastics reduce pollution that fuels this warming. Some researchers are working to keep freshwater flowing from vanishing glaciers to the communities that rely on it. For those wanting to understand how disappearing ice shapes lives, there are helpful guides exploring these critical issues. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
‘Larger swarm than anything we've seen': Rainier quakes reach historic levels
The recent swarm of small earthquakes at Mount Rainier has not only made national headlines but also history: Researchers have never recorded seismic activity like this before at the active stratovolcano. 'It's now a larger swarm than anything we've seen since we've been (seismic) monitoring anything at Mount Rainier,' Alex Iezzi, a research geophysicist, said in an interview Thursday. Researchers started seismic monitoring at Mount Rainier in the 1970s, according to Iezzi, who works for the U.S. Geological Survey's Cascades Volcano Observatory and said she conferred with other seismologists to identify the origin of observations at the mountain. Prior to then, it's unknown whether the volcano had experienced a larger swarm — a term defined as a cluster of earthquakes occurring in rapid succession in the same area. This swarm was first reported by the USGS on Tuesday morning. Since then, there have been hundreds of so-called volcano-tectonic earthquakes detected relatively deep below Mount Rainier's summit. Researchers say there's been no cause for concern or any indications that the volcano is on the verge of eruption — something that hasn't occurred in about 1,000 years. 'Which I think is good,' Iezzi added. Since Tuesday's roaring start, the seismic activity has significantly declined and continued to dwindle into Friday. Still, the swarm has surpassed Mount Rainier's last large one in 2009 'in terms of magnitude, total events, event rate, and energy release,' the USGS said in a status report Thursday. Mount Rainier is viewed as 'potentially the most dangerous volcano in the Cascade Range' due, in part, to its frequent earthquakes, according to the USGS. In ordinary times, Mount Rainier sees an average of nine quakes per month and swarms once or twice every year. Only Mount St. Helens has more temblors in the Cascade Range. Seismic activity is different in all volcanoes, and researchers are unsure why, Iezzi said. The recent earthquakes have presented researchers with new opportunities to learn more about Mount Rainier, which Iezzi called 'exciting,' even as their magnitudes have been small enough to go undetected by the public. 'Even if you were standing on Mount Rainier,' Iezzi said, 'you wouldn't be able to feel these.' Researchers currently hypothesize that the swarm, as others have been in the past, can be attributed to hydrothermal fluids — very hot water and gases deep in the volcano — moving through preexisting faults beneath the mountain. While earthquakes can cause volcanic eruptions, there has been no evidence of a correlation in the Cascades, and researchers have not seen any troubling signs during the swarm, according to Iezzi. Such warnings would include magma moving from the depth toward the surface, rockfalls and quakes increasing in size or becoming more shallow, she said. On its webpage about general Mount Rainier earthquake hazards, the USGS noted that quakes could trigger landslides, leading to volcanic mudflows, known as lahars, which could be dangerous to surrounding valleys. The agency said that the recent earthquakes are too small to pose a significant threat to hikers. A recent increase in rockfall and icefall at Mount Rainier has been attributed to warm temperatures unrelated to the swarm, it said. As of Friday morning, the Cascades Volcano Observatory and Pacific Northwest Seismic Network have located 391 earthquakes since the swarm's beginning and identified many others that it could not locate, according to the USGS. A quake can be detected by data, but it needs to be big enough and identified by enough seismometers to be pinpointed, Iezzi said. The earthquakes were between 1.5 and 4 miles in depth, with the largest being a 2.3 magnitude on Tuesday afternoon, the USGS said Friday. After being detected at rates up to several per minute when the swarm began, quakes were occurring three days later at a much slower rate. Researchers officially located 30 earthquakes per hour at the swarm's peak Tuesday but that figure had dwindled to a few per hour by Friday. By comparison, researchers in 2009 located 120 earthquakes at Mount Rainier during a three-day swarm — the largest being a 2.3 magnitude — although more than 1,000 quakes were detected, the USGS said. A 3.9-magnitude earthquake documented beneath Mountain Rainier in 1973 is the largest on record at the volcano, according to the agency. Iezzi said it was unclear when the current swarm would come to an end, a conclusion that researchers will reach when Mount Rainier returns to normal seismic activity. When the swarm began, the USGS said it likely would continue for several days and that most swarms at the volcano last less than a week. 'If the swarm lasts more than a week or so, that would be different than the last large swarm at Rainier in 2009,' the agency said in a statement Tuesday. For Iezzi, the swarm has served as 'a good reminder' that Mount Rainier is an active volcano, and she encouraged the public to keep aware of information distributed by the USGS. 'These are active systems,' she said, 'so we're constantly monitoring all the volcanoes in the Cascades.'
Washington Post
10-07-2025
- Science
- Washington Post
Officials are tracking an earthquake swarm at Mount Rainier but say there is no cause for concern
SEATTLE — Officials are tracking the largest swarm of earthquakes in more than 15 years on Washington's Mount Rainier but say there is no indication that the cluster of quakes is cause for concern. The U.S. Geological Survey Cascades Volcano Observatory said the swarm began early Tuesday at the 14,410-foot (4,392-meter) volcano near Seattle. The swarm has consisted of hundreds of small earthquakes — the largest of which so far has been a magnitude 2.3 — and has surpassed a 2009 swarm in terms of magnitude, event rate, total events and energy release, the agency said in a statement Thursday.
Al Arabiya
10-07-2025
- Science
- Al Arabiya
Officials are tracking an earthquake swarm at Mount Rainier but say there is no cause for concern
Officials are tracking the largest swarm of earthquakes in more than 15 years on Washington's Mount Rainier but say there is no indication that the cluster of quakes is cause for concern. The US Geological Survey Cascades Volcano Observatory said the swarm began early Tuesday at the 14,410-foot (4,392-meter) volcano near Seattle. The swarm has consisted of hundreds of small earthquakes–the largest of which so far has been a magnitude 2.3–and has surpassed a 2009 swarm in terms of magnitude event rate, total events, and energy release, the agency said in a statement Thursday. The cause of the current swarm is consistent with the circulation of fluids along preexisting faults beneath the volcano and considered background activity at Mount Rainier, the agency said. The volcano alert level remained at normal, and the earthquakes have been too small to be felt at the surface, the agency said. Swarms can occur once or twice a year at Mount Rainier, though the number of quakes involved are usually smaller, the volcano observatory said. Mount Rainier, about 60 miles (97 kilometers) southeast of Seattle, is the most glaciated peak in the Lower 48 states.
