The Yellowstone volcano has erupted three times in history – 2.1 million years ago, 1.2 million years ago and 640,000 years ago. Scientists have previously revealed that, should an earthquake occur, it could take less than two weeks before a catastrophic reaction event with the potential to wipe out a huge part of the US is triggered. However, geophysicist Michael Rampino is more concerned with the effects after the initial eruption.
The geophysicist and professor at New York University revealed during the BBC’s “Supervolcano” series how the world would be affected for up to six years by volcanic ash.
He said in 2015: “You cannot grow anything in volcanic ash, as we saw with Mount St Helens.
“It wipes out the breadbasket of the world.
“Recovery would be a long process, so where does food come from in the meantime?
“Imagine six years without a growing season – I foresee a very biblical time where civilisation would be strained at the roots.
“This [a Yellowstone eruption] would be the most severe conditions human beings have ever met.”
The last eruption of Yellowstone produced around 2,500 times more volcanic material than the 1980 eruption of Mount St Helens.
This created an eruptive column so colossal that it covered around 60 per cent of the US in a thick layer of ash.
Should the same happen again, a mixture of ash, lava blebs, and superheated gas exceeding temperatures of 1,000C could move at speeds of up to 300mph.
If the pyroclastic flow hits anyone, they would possibly die within seconds as the air could heat up to around 300C.
Mr Rampino also revealed how this huge pyroclastic cloud could also ground planes.
Any aircraft heading over the state of Wyoming faces the possibility of suddenly nosediving should the mixture of rock, minerals and volcanic glass suffocate their engines.
He said: “The ash can go into the jet engines and coat it.
“There have been horrifying predictions of planes just losing their power and nosediving while the pilots try to figure out how to get the plane under control.
“There are lots of ways you can die.
“Another way would be to inhale the stuff, the glass attacks the lungs, the bones and kill you from the inside.”
