In the US Geological Survey’s 2018 threat assessment, Mount Rainier was ranked as the third most dangerous volcano
The snow-capped peak of Mount Rainier, which rises 4.3 kilometers (2.7 miles) above sea level in Washington state, has not produced a major volcanic eruption in the past 1,000 years. However, more than Hawaii’s lava fields or Yellowstone’s volcano, it is Mount Rainier that worries many US volcanologists.
“Mount Rainier keeps me awake at night because it poses too great a threat to the surrounding communities. Tacoma and South Seattle are built on 100-foot-thick (30.5-meter) ancient torrents from the Mount Rainier eruptions,” said Jess Phoenix, a volcanologist and ambassador for the Union of Concerned Scientists, on an episode of “Violent Earth With Liv Schreiber,” a CNN original series.
The destructive potential of the sleeping giant does not lie in its fiery lava flows, which, in the event of an eruption, are unlikely to extend more than a few miles beyond the boundaries of Mount Rainier National Park in the Pacific Northwest. Most of the volcanic ash will likely be blown eastward away from population centers, according to the US Geological Survey.
What is the dreaded lahar
Many scientists dread the prospect of one lahar, that is, of a rapidly moving mass, consisting of a mixture of water and volcanic rocks, derived from ice or snow, and rapidly melted by eruption. This mass collects debris as it flows through valleys and drainage channels.
“What makes Mount Rainier difficult is that it’s so high and covered in ice and snow. If there’s any explosive activity, the hot stuff will melt the cold stuff and a lot of water will start coming down,” explained Seth Moran, a research seismologist at the USGS Cascade Volcano Observatory in Vancouver, Washington.
23,000 people were killed within minutes
Moran highlighted the risk to the tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of people living in areas that could be quickly affected by a large lahar. A recent example of the destructive power of lahars is the November 1985 eruption of the Nevado del Ruiz volcano in Colombia. Just a few hours after the eruption began, a river of mud, rocks, lava and freezing water swept through the city of Armero, killing over 23,000 people in minutes.
“When it stops … you have this hard, almost concrete-like substance that can be like quicksand when people try to get out of it,” Columbia University volcanologist and lecturer in geosciences and environmental sciences Bradley Pitcher said in another episode of “Violent Earth With Liv Schreiber.”
Pitcher noted that Mount Rainier has about eight times more glaciers and snow than Nevado del Ruiz had during its deadly eruption. “There is the potential for a much more destructive mudflow.”
In the US Geological Survey’s 2018 threat assessment, Mount Rainier was ranked as the third most dangerous volcano in the United Statesafter Hawaii’s frequently erupting Kilauea and Mount St. Helens, which erupted catastrophically in May 1980.
Despite its long dormancy, Mount Rainier with its extensive ice and snow cover coupled with its height and proximity to populated areas, is a sleeping giant that requires constant monitoring and preparation to mitigate the risks of potentially catastrophic lahars of.
Source: Skai
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