National Parks and Volcanoes

I just wanted to do a quick write up about National Parks and volcanoes after I saw this article on CNN. A portion of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park had to be closed due to a crater in the Kilauea volcano collapsing, causing lava flows in two directions. Wow, can you imagine visiting a National Park and have to consider whether or not a volcano will erupt!! That is both really cool but perhaps a little daunting. The park does a good job of keeping visitors updated about the volcano and the latest eruption information, which is monitored by the U.S. Geological Survey.

There are other parks and monuments that have a volcanic undertone. First, Yellowstone National Park. This thing is resting on top of a caldera (a volcano that has collapsed upon itself). I'm sure you have seen some sort of ridiculous T.V. program about how this thing might blow any minute. The park's website calls B.S. on that rumor (click here). It is this caldera that provides all the fuel for the geyers, hot springs, mud pots, and fumaroles. You can find out more about hydrothermal activity through Yellowstone's website (click here).

There is also the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument maintained by the U.S. Forest Service. The last major eruption was on May 18, 1980. There is a lot of research going on there, including how ecosystems recover after eruptions. You can learn more about this national monument through their website (click here).

Volcanoes are fascinating. They are a surface connection to the workings of the inner earth. These are just a few examples of parks with a volcanic past and present. Oregon State University has a great website (click here) that lists some other parks and monuments with a volcanic history. So, if you are a volcano enthusiast, there a lot of places in the good ole' U.S.A. you can go check out.