I have seen so many geological documentaries about yellow stone and they all mention it being overdue, and it could blow tomorrow or in 10,000 years. From what I understand though, a sequence of smaller tremors increasing in magnitude is a likely build up pattern. This is because the magma solidifies creating a plug and when pressure builds up, if the plug is big enough it will move a little bit before eventually giving way.
This kind of event doesn't just effect America though. A large portion of the world will be effected by Yellowstone.
Let's hope it's not too serious.
Yeah. On geological timescales, 10,000 years is nothing. The only thing that can be said is that, at some point, in will pop. Though I
think there's some possibility of the plug itself acting to spread the magma around a little, decreasing the overall effect from 'supervolcano' to 'two or three very large volcanoes, which may or may not erupt at the same time'. That was suggested in a doc I saw...maybe...10 years ago? (Sorry. Time is sometimes a bit messed up for me. Sometimes it seems like 1998 was just 5-6 years ago instead of 16! I just know I'm going to hit 70 and think 'What? I only turned 55 last week!'
)
Anyway, details have become sketchy and research will have moved on. Could be it was always a fringe theory and has since been found to be total hooey.
But either way, a Yellowstone eruption would affect the entire world, and could/would probably spell the end of civilisation as we know it, though not necessarily the end of us as a species (though the airborne pollution, potential depletion of oxygen, and the ensuing cold and food shortage from a possible 'nuclear winter' type scenario, etc, would thin the numbers all the way down).
Now, who thinks that colonies on the Moon and maybe Mars, with space stations orbiting the Earth, is a waste of time, money and effort? (And that, despite the fact that the US economy realized $14 for every $1 spent on the space program during the Apollo era.)
At least something of the race (as in Human) would survive, should anything happen to the old dustball.
