Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Yellowstone Volcano Observatory

Find U.S. Volcano
Current Alerts
Yellowstone
green NORMAL, 2024-03-01 19:31:05 UTC

The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) is a consortium of nine state and federal agencies who provide timely monitoring and hazard assessment of volcanic, hydrothermal, and earthquake activity in the Yellowstone Plateau region. The USGS arm of YVO is also responsible for monitoring and reporting on volcanic activity in the intermountain west U.S. states.

News

The 1959 Madison Slide, Part 1: A deadly consequence of the Hebgen Lake Earthquake

The 1959 Madison Slide, Part 1: A deadly consequence of the Hebgen Lake Earthquake

Exploring 140 years of water chemistry research in Yellowstone National Park

Exploring 140 years of water chemistry research in Yellowstone National Park

Small talk: Using tiny pockets of melt in crystals to understand magmatic processes in Yellowstone

Small talk: Using tiny pockets of melt in crystals to understand magmatic processes in Yellowstone

Publications

Volcano crisis response at Yellowstone volcanic complex - after-action report for exercise held at Salt Lake City, Utah, November 15, 2011

A functional tabletop exercise was run on November 14-15, 2011 in Salt Lake City, Utah, to test crisis response capabilities, communication protocols, and decision-making by the staff of the multi-agency Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) as they reacted to a hypothetical exercise scenario of accelerating volcanic unrest at the Yellowstone caldera. The exercise simulated a rapid build-up of sei
Authors
Thomas C. Pierson, Carolyn L. Driedger, Robert I. Tilling

History of surface displacements at the Yellowstone Caldera, Wyoming, from leveling surveys and InSAR observations, 1923-2008

Modern geodetic studies of the Yellowstone caldera, Wyoming, and its extraordinary tectonic, magmatic, and hydrothermal systems date from an initial leveling survey done throughout Yellowstone National Park in 1923 by the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey. A repeat park-wide survey by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the University of Utah during 1975-77 revealed that the central part of the cal
Authors
Daniel Dzurisin, Charles W. Wicks, Michael P. Poland

Water chemistry and electrical conductivity database for rivers in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Chloride flux has been used to estimate heat flow in volcanic environments since the method was developed in New Zealand by Ellis and Wilson (1955). The method can be applied effectively at Yellowstone, because nearly all of the water discharged from its thermal features enters one of four major rivers (the Madison, Yellowstone, Snake, and Falls Rivers) that drain the park, and thus integration of
Authors
Laura E. Clor, R. Blaine McCleskey, Mark A. Huebner, Jacob B. Lowenstern, Henry P. Heasler, Dan L. Mahony, Tim Maloney, William C. Evans

Multimedia

Man smirks with "Volcanoes in Kansas?" on top of a U.S. map with volcanic eruption in the background. Kansas covered in ash? Yellowstone's aftermath (Yellowstone Volcano Update - March 2024)
Kansas covered in ash? Yellowstone's aftermath (Yellowstone Volcano Update - March 2024)
Sounds of Yellowstone, Steamboat Geyser
Steamboat Geyser — Sounds of Yellowstone (ASMR, Sleep, Concentration)
Steamboat Geyser — Sounds of Yellowstone (ASMR, Sleep, Concentration)
Whisper or Roar? No more secrets Whisper or Roar? No More Secrets (Yellowstone Volcano Update - Feb 2024)
Whisper or Roar? No More Secrets (Yellowstone Volcano Update - Feb 2024)
Schematic of the Huckleberry Ridge Tuff magma storage configuration
Schematic of the Huckleberry Ridge Tuff magma storage configuration
Schematic of the Huckleberry Ridge Tuff magma storage configuration
Melt inclusions in a quartz crystal from the Huckleberry Ridge Tuff
Melt inclusions in a quartz crystal from the Huckleberry Ridge Tuff
Melt inclusions in a quartz crystal from the Huckleberry Ridge Tuff
Illustration of the crystal growth process that leads to melt inclusion entrapment
Illustration of the crystal growth process that leads to melt inclusion entrapment
Illustration of the crystal growth process that leads to melt inclusion entrapment
Map of the locations of water samples collected in and around Yellowstone National Park, 1883-2021
Map of the locations of water samples collected in and around Yellowstone National Park, 1883-2021
Map of the locations of water samples collected in and around Yellowstone National Park, 1883-2021
Map of Yellowstone earthquakes that were located during 1973-2023
Map of Yellowstone earthquakes that were located during 1973-2023
Map of Yellowstone earthquakes that were located during 1973-2023
Histogram of Yellowstone earthquakes during 1973-2023
Histogram of Yellowstone earthquakes during 1973-2023
Histogram of Yellowstone earthquakes during 1973-2023