© Earth and Planetary Science Letters (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2023.118244Shear wave speed and radial anisotropy of Yellowstone's shallow crustal structure. (a) Voigt average velocity and (b) Radial anisotropy depth slides at 1, 3, 5, 7, and 12 km. The red lines mark the cross-sections shown in Fig. 7. The shaded area represents the less-constrained area based on a derivative weighted sum (DWS) threshold shown in Fig. S4. Open squares mark the seismic stations. Solid and dashed lines delineate the 0.63 Ma caldera, resurgent domes, and Yellowstone Lake.
A small team of geologists and seismologists from the University of Utah, Salt Lake, the Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei and the University of New Mexico has studied the content of the Yellowstone magma reservoir and reports differences from prior measurements. In their study, reported in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters, the group used seismic wave data to better understand the conditions beneath Yellowstone National Park.
Yellowstone National Park is a U.S.
national park located in parts of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. It is known for its beautiful vistas and geothermal features, such as the Old Faithful geyser. These features exist due to
a massive reservoir of magma situated beneath the park. Prior research has shown that over the past 16.5 million years, the hotspot beneath the park has led to a series of volcanic eruptions, leaving behind multiple calderas. The last major eruption in the area is believed to have occurred approximately 640,000 years ago.
Comment: This graph from 2022 shows the progression of the uplift: