Why Has Yellowstone Had 150+ Quakes This Month?

Yellowstone earthquakes are a common thing. Most of the time, people don't even feel them. So what do the scientists and seismologists at Yellowstone National Park consider normal for a month?

I decided to query the USGS earthquake archive for the past 30 days and the results are compelling. It reveals that the Yellowstone National Park vicinity of Wyoming has had upwards of more than 150 earthquakes in the past 30 days.

There are a lot of things that are monitored within the Yellowstone system. The Monthly Update from the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory gives a great summary of events of the past month. Not only does it speak about the number of earthquakes, but also mentions the eruption at Black Diamond Pool that was captured on the new webcam in Biscuit Basin and the GPS stations that are used to track movements in the ground surface during the warm months of the year.

What is a normal amount of earthquakes in a month for Yellowstone?

According to the National Park Service, there are around 700 to 3,000 earthquakes in Yellowstone each year, which means there are somewhere between 60-250 per month. Earthquakes allow for energy that builds up to be released and also help manage the hydrothermal activity, reducing the larger explosions of energy that would occur if that energy weren't released in smaller amounts.

Does this activity mean a super-volcano eruption is coming soon?

No, it does not. As long as the number of earthquakes stays around the 100's per month and other activity doesn't suddenly change, there's no reason to expect an imminent super-volcano eruption. Mike Poland, the scientist-in-charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory says that a warning sign for a major eruption of the super-volcano would be 1000's of earthquakes plus uplift throughout the park. That's simply not happening - yet.

So the number of earthquakes in May is actually a pretty average amount for the Yellowstone region. There's no cause for concern from any of the recent earthquakes in and around the Yellowstone region, including the ones which have been occurring near Stanley, Idaho. All of the activity around Yellowstone tends to get people's attention but unless something changes drastically, things appear to be just fine at Yellowstone.