A hydrothermal explosion occurred in Yellowstone National Park's Biscuit Basin area on Tuesday morning, damaging a boardwalk and sending debris several stories into the air. The incident happened around 10 a.m., about 2.1 miles northwest of Old Faithful, likely originating from the Black Diamond Pool, according to Michael Poland, the Scientist-in-Charge at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Yellowstone Volcano Observatory.
Poland described the explosion as "small" and reported that no injuries had been recorded. Videos posted online by witnesses show people on the boardwalk near the explosion site, and footage of the aftermath reveals scattered debris and damage to the boardwalk.
For safety reasons, Biscuit Basin’s parking lot and boardwalks are temporarily closed. Yellowstone National Park geologists are investigating the explosion, though monitoring data indicates no unusual volcanic activity.
"Monitoring data show no changes in the Yellowstone region. Today’s explosion does not reflect activity within the volcanic system, which remains at normal background levels of activity," Poland stated. He emphasized that hydrothermal explosions like this are not indicative of impending volcanic eruptions and are not caused by rising magma.
These explosions occur when underground water rapidly turns to steam, and they are relatively common in Yellowstone. Similar incidents have happened before, including one in Biscuit Basin in May 2009 and another in Norris Geyser Basin on April 15. The Porkchop Geyser in Norris Geyser Basin exploded in 1989.
Hydrothermal explosions can launch boiling water, steam, mud, and rock into the air, sometimes reaching heights of up to 1.2 miles. A 2018 U.S. Geological Survey report noted that large hydrothermal explosions occur approximately every 700 years, with at least 25 craters in the park measuring at least 328 feet wide.
"Although large hydrothermal explosions are rare events on a human time scale, the potential for additional future events of the sort in Yellowstone National Park is not insignificant," the report stated. "Based on the occurrence of large hydrothermal explosion events over the past 16,000 years, an explosion large enough to create a 100-meter (328-ft-) wide crater might be expected every few hundred years."
According to the National Park Service, the Black Diamond Pool erupted with black, murky water following a July 2006 earthquake, experiencing "several explosive eruptions" shortly after, though eruptions have been infrequent since. The pool’s average temperature is 148.5 degrees Fahrenheit.
The public affairs office for Yellowstone National Park referred inquiries to the news release from the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, indicating no further information was available early Tuesday afternoon. The observatory stated that more information would be released as it becomes available.
This article was first published by the Daily Montanan, part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501(c)(3) public charity. Daily Montanan maintains editorial independence.
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