Yellowstone Region’s Earthquake Threat Larger Than Previously Estimated, Scientists Say

Weather.com

Yellowstone’s earthquake threat is larger than scientists previously thought, according to new findings released by the U.S. Geological Survey.

It isn’t just the national park at risk – it’s the entire Yellowstone region, which includes Wyoming, Montana and Idaho, according to the Associated Press. Updated earthquake hazard maps of the area led to the conclusion.

Still, the increase in seismic hazard is a small one, University of Utah geophysicist Bob Smith told the Jackson Hole News and Guide.

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“The map isn’t really anything new, it’s just more complete because we have more and better data,” Smith said in the report. “It’s an area of well-above-normal earthquake hazard, and now with all the population going in – all the new roads and dams – also high risk.”

This region is as capable of the Big One as anywhere in America. In 1959, a 7.3-magnitude earthquake rocked the area, which USGS reports was one of the largest tremors in the United States since 1900.

Here’s what concerns scientists the most: The population of tourists and residents has boomed in the area recently, and an earthquake similar to the 1959 temblor could pose a much bigger threat to life and property this time around, according to The West.

The report also mentions that the Teton Fault is capable of an earthquake as large as 7.5 every 1,600 to 6,000 years, and it’s been about 4,800 years since a quake that large occurred.

In March, a magnitude-4.8 earthquake shook Yellowstone, the park’s largest since 1980.