Science & Technology

'Supervolcano' forming near New Zealand

By T.K. Randall
February 15, 2013 ·  26 comments

Image Credit: Oliver Spalt Supervolcanoes occur when vast quantities of magma build up beneath the surface over a large period of time, eventually erupting in a single destructive event that tends to have dire consequences for life on Earth. One such supervolcano in Yellowstone National Park is well known and has been documented for years, but now it seems that there is another beginning to form north of New Zealand.

"What we may be detecting is the start of one of these large eruptive events that - if it ever happens - could cause very massive destruction on Earth," said University of Utah seismologist Michael Thorne. "This is the type of mechanism that may generate massive plume eruptions, but on the timescale of 100 million to 200 million years from now."

Source: Stuff.co.nz | Comments (26)

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