The volcano that killed the most people was Mount Tambora in Indonesia, with an estimated 92,000 to 120,000 deaths from its massive 1815 eruption, primarily due to famine, disease, tsunamis, and pyroclastic flows, which also led to global climate cooling and crop failures (the "Year Without a Summer").
May 18 marks the anniversary of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens that laid waste to over 200 square miles of forest and killed 57 people, as well as thousands of wild animals and birds. The first warning of the impending catastrophe was an earthquake swarm beneath the volcano in late March 1980.
Yellowstone Caldera activity remains at background levels, with 79 located earthquakes in December (largest = M2. 7). Deformation measurements indicate subtle uplift along the north caldera rim that appears to have started in July.
Tambora's catastrophic eruption began on April 5, 1815, with small tremors and pyroclastic flows. A shattering blast blew the mountain apart on the evening of April 10. The blast, pyroclastic flows, and tsunamis that followed killed at least 10,000 islanders and destroyed the homes of 35,000 more.
The diagram below shows that the three largest Yellowstone eruptions emitted much more material than the eruptions of Mount St. Helens (1980), Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines (1991), Krakatau in Indonesia (1883, incorrectly known as Krakatoa), and Tambora in Indonesia (1815).
Broken windows and shaking homes resulting from the concussion sound waves of the explosion were reported up to 160km from the volcano around Krakatoa. People within this 160km vicinity of the eruption would have experienced intense ear pain and permanent hearing loss from exposure to these concussion waves.
As pressure is released, gases dissolved in the magma come out of solution, turning the magma into a boiling froth. The total energy released would be equivalent to an 875,000 megaton explosion. The shockwave would kill 90,000 people. Most of the lava would fall back into the crater.
No such luck with supervolcanoes. Supereruptions occur so infrequently that even with the best-studied supervolcanic hot spots, experts only know about two or three at most that have occurred there, which makes it hard to nail down frequency.
Yes, Whakaari (White Island) survivors and victims' families were awarded nearly NZ$10 million in reparations and fines from guilty parties in early 2024, but recent legal challenges, including overturned convictions for the volcano's owners (Whakaari Management Limited), have complicated payments, leaving uncertainty about how much will actually be received, with some settlements happening outside court, notes 10 News Australia and ABC News Australia, NBC News, 9News.
The most violent eruption registered in history was that in the La Garita Caldera in the United States. It occurred 2.1 million years ago and formed a 35 x 75 km crater, drastically changing the climate on Earth. Fortunately, these eruptions are rare: they occur every 50,000 or 100,000 years.
Is a Yellowstone Eruption the End of Humanity? No, the eruption of the Yellowstone supervolcano isn't the end of the human race.
The hot springs at Yellowstone National Park have injured or killed more people than "any other natural feature" there, according to the National Park Service. As you might imagine, the damage is usually caused by entering or falling into the boiling thermal waters.
We know that Mount St. Helens is the volcano in the Cascades most likely to erupt again in our lifetimes. It is likely that the types, frequencies, and magnitudes of past activity will be repeated in the future.
Crusty old Harry Truman was the last holdout on Mount St. Helens and surely the first to die when the volcano erupted on May 18, 1980.
It was then he learnt his family had not made it off the island alive. The body of Jesse Langford's sister Winona has never been found.
A survivor of the Whakaari/White Island eruption, who lost her sister and father during the event, has recalled the moment her skin fell off her hands immediately after the explosion. Australian woman Stephanie Browitt, 23, suffered burns to 70 per cent of her body and lost parts of her fingers.
Authorities believe both Ms Langford and Mr Marshall-Inman's bodies are in the waters around Whakaari/White Island and may have drifted up to 70km away.
When will Yellowstone erupt again? We do not know. Future volcanic eruptions could occur within or near Yellowstone National Park for the simple reason that the area has a long volcanic history and because there is hot and molten rock, or magma, beneath the caldera now.
Prophetic passages in the Old Testament warn mankind of phenomena described very similarly to what we call volcanoes today. "You will be punished by the Lord of hosts with thunder and earthquake and great noise, with storm and tempest and the flame of devouring fire" (Isaiah 29:6).
Lava won't kill you if it briefly touches you. You would get a nasty burn, but unless you fell in and couldn't get out, you wouldn't die. With prolonged contact, the amount of lava "coverage" and the length of time it was in contact with your skin would be important factors in how severe your injuries would be!
This comes out to an average of about 725,000 years between eruptions. That being the case, there is still about 100,000 years to go, but this is based on the average of just two time intervals between the eruptions, which is meaningless. Most volcanic systems that have a supereruption do not have them multiple times.
The most recent period of dormancy has already lasted 70,000 years and may continue for thousands of additional years. “Yellowstone will reawaken someday to host more eruptions. But volcanoes like Yellowstone don't erupt without warning. We'd expect months of intense activity prior to any future eruption.”