Giant rock fin rapidly growing in Mount St. Helens' crater

[WhiteTara]

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_Mount_St_Helens.html

SEATTLE -- Visitors to the Johnston Ridge Observatory at the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument can look forward to a spectacular view of a hulking slab of rock that's rapidly growing in the volcano's crater.

It's jutting up from one of seven lobes of fresh volcanic rock that have been pushing their way through the surface of the crater since October 2004.

The fin-shaped mass is about 300 feet tall and growing 4 feet to 5 feet a day, said Dan Dzurisin, a geologist at the U.S. Geological Survey.

The observatory opened for the summer season on Friday. The day dawned with clear blue skies over the southwest Washington volcano, with snow-covered features within the crater easily visible from a Web camera at Johnston Ridge. The National Weather Service said clouds should move in on Saturday, with rain likely Sunday.

The rock in the crater began growing last November, steadily moving west and pushing rock and other debris out of its way as it goes.

no pictures, but they make it sound like a picnic. Quite the summer outing.

[Judi Lynn]

1. I found some photos. Yikes.

http://www.katu.com/news/story.asp?ID=85601

[Occulus]

2. I name this "Anger Fin"

The Earth is angry.

Look out.

[arwalden]

39. I'm Going To Call It "Huckleberry"

[Radio_Lady]

41. Remember "2001: A Space Odyssey"? The big black slab???

[radwriter0555]

3. Awwww, it's a baby rock!

Kinda wow....

[regnaD kciN]

6. Land Shark!

;-)

[JNelson6563]

18. Looks like a big, angry zit

that is going to pop with great force.

[WhiteTara]

26. I just envisioned that rock flying during the spew

:wow:

[Haole Girl]

28. Nature is amazing

I wonder if people will refuse to leave when it's time for another eruption. That was the strangest thing, in 1980, when some people refused to leave their homes and perished. I just didn't understand. In fact, I still don't understand it. :shrug:

[AnneD]

33. My brother lived there at the time of the eruption....

I worked with a bunch of geologists/geophysists here in Houston. The guys here were really watching it and were commenting about how dangerous it was. I called Bro the night before it exploded. He told me that they were going camping/picnicking the next day on the mountain. I admonished him and said that they were closing the roads. He laughed and said he knew all the logging roads in the area. Well that was all I heard from him for over a week. We were out of our minds with worry because they were going right to area that had received the ash plume. Mom was an upper manager at the phone co. and even she couldn't get through. When we got through, he was shaken up. The night before the camping trip, my nephew had developed an ear infection and they had canceled the camping trip. That ear infection had saved their lives. Funny how something like that can save your life.

[goforit]

37. Interesting story. Glad he got out.

[Radio_Lady]

43. Is your brother still working or living around the mountain?

On edit: May, 1980 was a long time ago. What's your brother doing now?

[AnneD]

60. Different mountain...

In the Rockies. He does welding and breaks show cutting horses. Nephew graduated and is Naval Lawyer.

[Radio_Lady]

61. Sounds like an interesting family!

[Rex]

29. Wow, 4 to 5 feet a day!?!

That's 120 to 150 feet a month! Gonna be a strange site when it starts to grow over the crater! Earth rocks!

:yourock:

[Scairp]

30. It's going to collapse

According to this website http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/volcanocams/msh/ ,this formation is doomed to fall down pretty soon. This website http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Volcanoes/MSH/Images/MSH04/framework.html has all the cool pics archived. The pics aren't live shots as with VolcanoCam from the Johnston Observatory, but they are clear and recent.

[MilesColtrane]

4. It looks like Thor's hammer.

[ToeBot]

5. When the sun's up you can see it (sorta) on the VolcanoCam

http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/volcanocams/msh/

[Judi Lynn]

7. Thanks for the link. Can't wait to see it in the morning! n/t

[Judi Lynn]

36. Wow! The clouds have lifted long enough to see the volcano.

I looked earlier today and it was totally fogged up.

This is a very interesting live cam. Thank you.

[Mojorabbit]

55. I don't knwo how many times I have been to that link

and I have never seen anything other than a grey screen. Perhaps it is my computer.

[OneBlueSky]

8. 4-5 feet a DAY? . . . um . . .

if I lived anywhere near there, I think I'd start to consider relocating . . .

[electropop]

17. Exactly. When the Earth moves that fast, watch out.

No picnics for me!

[CountAllVotes]

22. yep and the whole Cascadian range it part of this too

Mt. St. Helen's is not alone. The chain runs south into California - Mt. Shasta and also Mt. Lassen are also part of the chain. Mt. Shasta is an active volcano and I've got some stories about it that cause one's hair to stand on end, believe me. :scared: and rightly so!!!

:kick:

[Radio_Lady]

47. Not as many people there as there are right on Mt. Rainier.

Statistically, that's the one mountain in the Cascade chain that has the most chance to blow up.

This is the beautiful but deadly mountain -- we lived in Milton, Washington, south of Seattle, for six months in 2000. We could see Rainier from lots of vantage points (unless it was overcast and raining). The towns on its flanks have evacuation plans, of course. I had several nightmares during the time we were there -- we were just too close for comfort.

[TriMetFan]

56. On clear days not only can I see MT. ST. Helen but....

Mt. Rainier. And Yes I agree with you. If and when MT. Rainer does blow her top Seattle is up the creek with no paddle.

[tridim]

9. Does it get much cooler than that?

Wow!

Geologists are probably having a mass orgasm. :)

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

10. Eww...

You must not know any geologists. That is really, really gross.

[benburch]

14. I knew a really cute one once...

and you know, when she had an orgasm, it was not gross at all!

Though once the big geode she had on her headboard fell off and nearly beaned us!

[Radio_Lady]

46. OT: benburch, I'll be thinking about you during early June.

I'm determined not to let ANYTHING ruin my birthday on May 31st when we are visiting New York City.

June is another matter... hope all goes well for all of us. However, I cannot disagree with the locking of the thread due to lack of proof (!!!!). You just scared the S*** out of all of us and that's a no-no!

In peace,

Radio_Lady

[Kailassa]

12. Looks more like Mt. St. Helens is about to have one. n/t

[Demit]

11. dooo-dooo.... dooo-dooo.... dooo-dooo....

(my interpretation of the music in Jaws.)

[benburch]

13. The infrared picture is interesting, too

[ktlyon]

53. If you look very closely you will see the Ten Commandments

god speaks

[NYC]

15. How strange looking. Thanks for the report.

[lonestarnot]

16. bushitler's mummy... haven't seen her in a while, her beautiful mind.

[Bozita]

19. brings back memories of the monolith in "2001: A Space Odyssey"

[Radio_Lady]

42. See my reply #41 -- I thought about 1968's "black monolith" too!

"2001: A Space Odyssey" -- directed by Stanley Kubrick

[whatelseisnew]

20. "At any time, however, things can change."

Mount St. Helens, located in the Cascades of Washington, has been quietly erupting since a flurry of tiny earthquakes began in late September 2004. Scientists initially mistook the quakes as rainwater seeping into the hot interior of the older lava dome
...
"Given the way things are going now, there's no hint of any sort of catastrophic eruptions," USGS geologist Tom Pierson said. "At any time, however, things can change."

[CountAllVotes]

23. i.e. ...

I do believe that Mt. St. Helens, and perhaps the entire Cascadian range might just blow. :nuke:

You haven't seen anything yet!

[Odin2005]

25. The volcanoes have seperate magma chambers.

The activity of one volcano doesn't effect the activty of a nearby one.

[Radio_Lady]

44. Spelling aside, you're completely correct, Odin2005!

separate

affect

activity

Have a great week!

;)

[Thor_MN]

21. Earth is flipping off Bush.

For being an environmental failure, Mount St. Helens is giving W the bird...

[Radio_Lady]

45. Um-m, Earth doesn't give a s*** about Bush. Earth is scheduled

to be absorbed in the exploding and dying Sun, and then all will be reduced to a cinder billions of years from now.

I read it in Scholastic Magazine when I was a child in the 1950s.

Of course, we were all worried about nuclear war then.

Not much has changed, really.

People, get over yourselves!

[Odin2005]

24. WOW!

[daleo]

27. It is rather science fiction looking

But there must be a lot of very active magma underneath that slab.

[WCGreen]

31. Where is Spock.....

He needs to Mine Meld with it.....

[TriMetFan]

32. On clear day's you can see Mt. ST. Helen

from my yard. hmmmm. I bet if/when she blow up it is going to look way kool.

[Radio_Lady]

49. Get out your shovel! People in Oregon reported that ash fell --

on their homes and in their yards and it was thick enough to have to shovel it away.

If you live in Portland, Oregon, you're looking at the back (south) side of the mountain -- rounded off from the explosion and shrouded in snow in the month of May. If the mountain had blown to the south, towards Portland, there would have been many more people affected in 1980.

[TriMetFan]

58. Yes I live in Portland.

From my back yard you can see ST. Helen and on very clear days I can see MT. Rainer

[BarbaRosa]

34. Check out this AVI

MSH avi

talk about things happening fast.

[Psephos]

38. Cool link, thanks. n/t

[rocktivity]

40. HOW is this thing growing?

From magma hardening underneath? Or is it on top of gas bubble? I find the abscence of snow on the rock to be VERY disturbing.

:scared:
rocknation

[Radio_Lady]

50. Well, it is the merry month of May -- hasn't snowed in a while.

Many of the web sites on Mt. St. Helens describe what's been happening here since September and October 2004 when there were several ash bursts. I wouldn't be too alarmed if I were you. On edit: I don't know if you are in this area, rocknation.

The largest danger in the Cascades, as I understand it, is not from Mt. St. Helens, but from Mt. Rainier, near Seattle, Washington.

[rocktivity]

59. I'm a jersey girl via the bronx, lol

So I'm very much out of my jurisdiction on this subject. I flew over St. Helen's on my way to Los Angeles--even from thousands of feet up, it looked like someome had bitten the top off.

:headbang:
rocknation

[alfredo]

62. Mt Augustine in Alaska has been acting up for several months.

http://www.avo.alaska.edu/webcam/augustine2.php

Check out the archives if it is cloudy.

[Judi Lynn]

48. Whoa! That is startling. Thanks for posting that view. n/t

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

35. I helped rescue people after the last one

This one looks even worse.

[MilesColtrane]

51. [Arnold] It's not a tumaahh!! [/Arnold]

[hippiechick]

52. Hmmm .... the horns of the beast ?

Mama Nature seems to have had just about enough of George and his polluter pals, eh ?

[Gregorian]

54. Can anyone tolerate another WMD joke?

Because...

Mother nature is a terrorist.

[hunter]

57. If you look at it up close...

It has commandments written all over it...

"Don't burn coal."

"Protect the California Condor."

"Love your neighbor."

"Impeach Bush."

[montana_hazeleyes]

63. It's the

Mighty Clenis I tell ya.