In my November 28th column "5 Things to do with $10 Billion a Month," I mentioned the megavolcanic eruption of 70,000 years ago as a challenge our species has faced -- and surmounted. That ancient catastrophe bottlenecked the human population and reduced our numbers to a few thousand or less.
Last week in my column "Resolution for a New American Year," I mentioned the Yellowstone megavolcano as something we should be paying attention to. Yellowstone is, like the ancient eruption which threatened us, a simmering cauldron of nature's fury pressure-cooking beneath the famous national park.
Well, yesterday came word that 400 small earthquakes have begun rocking Yellowstone for the past few days, and it's got scientists worried.
Says Robert Smith, geophysics professor at the University of Utah:
"[The earthquakes are] certainly not normal. We haven't had earthquakes in this energy or extent in many years."
There is much information available on the subject; for a quick look, here's the
Wikipedia entry.
Now, my readers know that I am a vehement opponent of end-of-the-world prophecy and I reject all belief in Armageddon. I continue to stand by that. If the eruption of 70,000 years ago couldn't polish us off, it sure won't now. Our human family has grown quite a bit, and we've got some nifty survival tricks up our sleeves.
That said, a megavolcanic eruption at Yellowstone would be a global catastrophe. America's grain-producing regions (which amount to the chief breadbasket of the world) would be obliterated, and the resulting climate change from volcanic ash skyrocketed into the atmosphere would represent the greatest challenge to human dominance -- and Earthly life -- since before recorded history.
These things happen. And Yellowstone will blow eventually; the ground swells higher every year as incredible pressures exert their terrible influence.
Earth's seasons aren't just the ones we measure on our wall calenders. Ours is a living world with creaks and moods entirely indifferent to us. We build a city, and a tsunami or hurricane or volcano wipes it out. That tsunami or hurricane or volcano would have still happened, even if humans never existed. They are a natural feature of our world. And nature is a brutal benefactor.
This news about Yellowstone hasn't made it into the major news networks yet, and it's possible it will boil over (no pun intended.) On the other hand, if this series of seismic activity is indeed a precursor to a major eruption, we've got our work cut out for us. The least challenge will be dealing with the end-of-the-worlders -- yes, the ones who will blame it on God or Allah or Jesus or Bush or Obama. I can hear their chant already. Natural disasters tend to bring out the best and the worst; it shows us who we really are.
For the rational among us, let's keep an eye and ear peeled. Forewarned is forearmed.
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