Is Mount St. Helens, WA, Going To Erupt Again?

Gregg Frantz | | Post Tag for Industry NewsIndustry News
The setting sun illuminates dust rising from the crater on Mount St. Helens, about 20 years after its initial eruption. Photo Credit: Jim Richardson

Mount St. Helens’ last big eruption was on May 18, 1980, and since February 1, 2024, approximately 350 earthquakes have been recorded at the 8,300-foot Washington state volcano by the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. The largest quake recently felt at the volcano, which is located about 50 miles northeast of Portland, Oregon, was a magnitude 2.0 on May 31, 2024. There are concerns that the earthquakes could lead to another massive explosion reminiscent of the 1980s eruption that left 57 people dead and permanently altered the area’s ecosystem. The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens was the most destructive volcanic eruption in the history of the United States.

According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), Mount St. Helens is a volcano that most likely will erupt again in our lifetimes.  The exact timing and magnitude of the next eruption cannot be forecast decades in advance. However, growing technology and continued monitoring will enable the USGS to provide short-term forecasts and warnings. Since the last major eruption, a deep crater has formed at Mount St. Helens, and the large debris avalanche or the major lateral blast that happened in the 1980 blast is not expected to happen again.

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Mount St. Helens stood at 9,677 feet in elevation before the 1980 eruption and more than 1,300 feet was taken off the top of the volcano by the historic blast due to the largest landslide in recorded history. The current summit elevation of Mount St. Helens is now approximately 8,300 feet. Within minutes of the eruption over 230 square miles of forest were destroyed and the lateral blast, which traveled at more than 300 miles per hour, scorched 230 square miles of forest. More than 900,000 tons of ash was cleaned up from areas around Washington.

The increase in earthquakes at Mount St. Helens is part of the process of “recharging,” the USGS said. It happens when magma rises and increases the pressure inside the volcano. In the Mount St. Helens report, that this process “can continue for many years without an eruption,” the USGS said. “Recharge has been observed in the past at Mount St. Helens and other volcanoes,” the USGS said.

High rates of seismicity, interpreted as recharge, have been observed in the past at Mount St. Helens and other volcanoes and can continue for many years without an eruption. There have been no significant changes in other monitoring parameters (ground deformation, volcanic gas, or thermal emissions) and no change in hazards at Mount St. Helens as a result of this activity according to the USGS.

Mount St. Helens is the most active volcano in the continental United States, however, people should not worry about an eruption the USGS said. The USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory jointly operates the monitoring network at Mount St. Helens with the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network (PNSN). The USGS and PNSN will continue to monitor the volcano closely and issue notifications as warranted. No changes have been observed at other Cascade Range volcanoes the USGS said. At the time of the 1980 eruption, there was only one monitoring system in place, but currently there are 20 systems.

Mount St. Helens eruption on May 18, 1980. Photo Credit: USGS

 

 

Posted by Avatar photo Gregg Frantz |

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