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A cluster of six volcanic islands in Alaska could be a giant interconnected volcano similar to the Yellowstone caldera, study finds
- The Four Mountain Islands in Alaska are made up of six volcanic islands
- Experts now suggest interconnecting to form a single giant volcano
- The team thinks the giant volcano is similar to the Yellowstone caldera
- They mapped the seabed and saw several curved structures on the seabed
- A depression over 400 feet deep has been observed which may be part of the caldera
A small cluster of volcanic islands in Alaska may be part of a single giant volcano similar to the Yellowstone Caldera and others that have had super-eruptions in the past.
The group belongs to the Four Mountain Islands in the Central Aleutian Islands, which consist of six stratovolcanoes named Carlisle, Cleveland, Herbert, Kagamil, Tana, and Uliaga.
However, a team from the American Geophysical Union suggests they form an interconnected caldera that could have produced a more powerful eruption than Mount St. Helens of 1980.
The hypothesis, the researchers said, could also help explain the frequent explosive activity observed at Mount Cleveland over the past 20 years, which has released ash clouds up to 30,000 feet above the level of the sea.
A small cluster of volcanic islands in Alaska may be part of a single giant volcano similar to the Yellowstone Caldera and others that have had super-eruptions in the past
While this undiscovered volcano may be massive, the team notes that it is not suggesting that a catastrophic event is occurring in the near future.
The eruptions forming the caldera are the most explosive volcanic eruptions on Earth and they have often had global effects.
The ash and the gas they put into the atmosphere can affect the Earth’s climate and trigger social upheaval.
For example, the eruption of the nearby Okmok volcano in 43 BCE was recently implicated in the disruption of the Roman Republic.
The group belongs to the Islands of the Four Mountains in the Central Aleutian Islands, which consists of six stratovolcanoes named Carlisle, Cleveland, Herbert, Kagamil, Tana and Uliaga
An image of the seabed shows several curved structures and a depression more than 400 feet deep that could be part of the caldera
The proposed caldera underlying the Four Mountain Islands would be even larger than Okmok.
Diana Roman of the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, DC, co-author of the study, said: “We scratched under the cushions of the sofa for data.
“But everything we’re looking at is a caldera in this region.
Roman and his team collected a range of evidence, including gravity anomalies from satellite data and bathymetric studies that were conducted in the area shortly after World War II, reports National Geographic.
Although the images are low-resolution, the team was able to see several curved structures on the seabed and a depression over 400 feet deep that may be part of the caldera.
If their suspicions are confirmed, the team believes that the potential underwater basin could have resulted from a volcanic explosion that was just timid to earn the “super eruption” label.
The caldera hypothesis could also help explain the frequent explosive activity seen at Mount Cleveland, Roman said.
Mount Cleveland has been arguably the most active volcano in North America for at least 20 years. It produced ash clouds as high as 15,000 and 30,000 feet above sea level.
The team suggests the giant volcano is similar to the one in the Yellowstone caldera (pictured)
The hypothesis, the researchers said, could also help explain the frequent explosive activity seen at Mount Cleveland (pictured) over the past 20 years, which has released ash clouds up to 30,000 feet above the sea level.
These eruptions pose hazards to aircraft using the busy air routes between North America and Asia.
John Power, US Geological Survey researcher at the Alaska Volcanoes Observatory, said: “This potentially helps us understand what makes Cleveland so active.”
“It can also help us understand what kind of breakouts to expect in the future and better prepare for their dangers.
The team is expected to present their findings at the American Geophysical Union’s Fall 2020 meeting on December 7, 2020.
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