Mount St. Helens May Erupt Again

Above, ash from the 1980 eruption. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It is hard to believe that 35 years has elapsed since Mount St. Helens in Washington state erupted.

The May 18, 1980 eruption was so explosive that it changed the geography of the mountain and killed 57 people. Insurance companies had massive claims and catastrophe teams were sent to handle them. One of my co-workers was sent up as and she brought back some ash from the eruption. My portion of it is pictured above in an airline vodka bottle.

Now, the possibility of another eruption is looming.

The U.K.'s Daily Mail reported:

Its scarred and jagged crater is a reminder of the terrible devastation that Mount St Helens wrought over the Washington countryside 35 years ago. 

Now a new study of the volcanic plumbing lurking beneath the 8,363ft (2,459 metre) summit suggests the volcano could yet again blow its top in an explosive eruption. 

Geologists studying the volcano, which is responsible for the most deadly eruption in US history, have discovered a second enormous magma chamber buried far beneath the surface. 

This giant pool of molten rock, which lies between seven to 25 miles (40km) below the surface, is connected to a slightly smaller chamber that lies directly beneath the mountain.

This is something we should keep a close watch on.

To read more, go here.