Why Earth's Newest Glacier Is Inside An Active Volcano
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On the morning of May 18, 1980, Mt. St. Helens volcano exploded with 500 times the force of the Hiroshima bomb. It was the most destructive eruption in U.S. history. The cataclysmic chain of events killed 57 people and thousands of animals, took out 250 homes, 47 bridges, and 185 miles of highway, and flooded valleys. The mountain’s north side collapsed leaving a yawning crater the size of downtown Seattle. To this day, the crater of Mt. St. Helens volcano remains a place of immense danger and strictly off-limits to the public - avalanches, crevasses, poison gas, and boulders tumbling down the near-vertical slopes are just a few of the threats. But in recent years, the crater has become a place of great scientific interest. Few people realize that the hollowed-out crater now holds the world’s youngest glacier. And it continues to grow while most others around the world are shrinking.
Not only is it the newest, but it’s also one of the few that’s growing. What’s behind its growth and how might it one day help scientists discover life on other planets?
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Quick shout out to Robert landsburg, the source of some of the most important photos of Mt St Helens eruption. Realizing he was in range of the eruption and that he could not escape, the man took as many photos as he could, wrapped his camera in all of his bags, and curled around it to save it. Hell of a way to go out.
I live within the shadow of St Helens, it looms over my backyard, been on many Search and Rescue missions on its slopes. I still remember how beautiful it was when I was a child before it blew up.
What’s a good way to start helping with sar stuff? I’m not the most outdoorsy, but growing up here has made me want to help someday and at least start to learn the appropriate prerequisites to be a volunteer.
Hey, on the plus side, it's become an even more attractive spot for scientists. First it helped with tourism, now it's helping with research.
Hats off to people who dedicate their lives helping others. Thank you
My name is Neil Armstrong ive walked on the moon.
wow!!
Impressive how diverse the US is in terms of geography
Search india my man!!
well, in all fairness, it is a big country
@@ecurewitz It is a factor, but there are a lot of places bigger than the contiguous US and are somewhat homogeneous, like Antartica, the Sahara, Siberia, and even some countries like Brazil or Australia that are big but have like 6 biomes and fewer mountains
@@danielmoura2255 Siberia isn't exacly homogenous, other than having cold climates. And some parts are much colder than others. Parts are dry or humid, flat or mountainous, urban and rural. The USA's location stratling the breadth of the mid latitudes along with geologic features running north-south do increase the variation of features within the country. Also, the USA has noncontiguous regions as well just as Alaska, Hawaii and uerto Rico adding to the variation
@Anurag law Classes yeah, but India's natural diversity is unmatched with that of her people! love from Brazil!
The AMAZING teacher I had for 4th & 5th grade had a photo of Mt St Helens during its eruption hanging on the wall in our classroom. Whenever I hear someone mention this volcano or see a documentary on it, that teacher I had comes to mind. Sadly, she is no longer with us but she left a legacy of fond memories and taught all her students and anyone who knew her an immense amount of knowledge and she had a way of doing this so what she taught stuck with you for life. Watching this particular video had me expecting to see her inside of those caverns under the glacier checking things out with those guys who were exploring.
This is so beautiful. I love that we never stop finding reasons to marvel at Earth and Nature's grandeurs.
Beautiful but terrifying. If that ice makes it anywhere near the magma chamber, the resulting explosion will make the last detonation of that mountain look like a cake sparkler.
Yes, it is beautiful, it would be even better if the people were missing.
Good reason to stop converting rainforest to agricultural land or stop perpetuating the species
Nice to know at least one new glacier is growing. All others seem to be melting. Crazy scientists are happy to investigate these things?
Crazy times call for crazy hope. THAT calls for crazy folk. A-h'yuk
I have been to the new summit twice in the last three years. Each time I looked down at this glacier. Such an incredible sight, I hope I can go back again next year.
The flattened trees as far as the eye can see really impacted me as a kid when I saw footage of it. I was born in '89 in north west Oregon and my parents told me what it was like with the ash covering so many places in the PNW region here.
Trekked up to the crater rim 4 weeks ago. Treacherous hike but it was beautiful up there. Zero wind, I’m not kidding. Steam rising from center, and a 360 view with unlimited visibility.
The next eruptions will be lava dome building eruptions with thick magma that doesn't flow out like a river. This will build up the summit again slowly and a lot of that water in that glacier will get trapped in the new rocks. Over time as magma causes that water to flash to steam it will have chemical reactions that will weaken the rocks and create conditions for new landslides. It's really interesting to see how these volcanoes just collapse and explode violently, slowly build themselves up again, go to sleep, and then repeat the cycle. If you want an idea of how Mt. St. Helens will look in the future, search Mt. Bezymianny in Russia. It had a very similar eruption with a landslide and lateral blast back in the 50s.
Those guys crawling in those caves are nucking futs !!!
Pretty amazing , and was super excited to help with the project as they flew the drone with the phantomrain Wet Suit on it . Special thanks to Jason for giving us the Drone footage of the Glacier inside and out.
Visited the overlook about ten years ago.
Magnificent desolation...
You know you've been watching too many volcano vids when the news of a glacier fills you with dread because lahars in the event of another eruption.
The more you know...
This is utter eye candy! What fantastic cinematography. I hiked the windy ridge and Truman trails in 1994 as a young man, I was surprised at in only about a decade and a half how far life had come to reclaiming the destruction. But I didn’t get to see this. Thanks PBS fantastic as always 😁
This is awesome but I wish it was longer and more detailed! I really enjoyed this, but I could have watched a couple hours more!
Why do they put such loud background music/sound on with these videos these days. This video is awe-inspiring without us being deafened and unable to hear the voices. It's all over the media these days and makes things appear trivial.
Exactly, every single interesting stuff video has blaring elevator and call waiting music onto it, its usually to make it seem like what they are telling you is more than basic facts worded in a complicated way.
That’s your opinion!
Nature will never cease to amazed me.
Thanks for the video, i never heard of this glacier before. Fire and ice cohabiting for some mysterious reason 😁
Fascinating!
Actually the north side of the mountain collapsed following an earthquake, itself a function of rising magma chamber pressures, thereby releasing the enormous pressures built up with the magma chamber and thereby the explosive release of gasses. Magma release was not a part this eruption.
But you just said the earthquake released the pressure that released the magma. So magma WAS a part of the eruption 😲
@@StrangeTerror what he meant was Helens had no magma in it's eruption escape.
It's far too thick, but yes.. the volcano has magma, but only deep below the surface.
I remember when Mount St helens erupted in 1980. I also visited the mountain about a decade ago. Cool Place, there was still devastation from decades earlier
I go about once every 6 months and there's still a lot of destruction present but it's mostly petrified stumps and plains where forests once stood
Ok and?
Ken Coppus,was a family friend.He lived on a mountain that faced the flank that blew up.20 miles away.Wiped out.He sent pictures,7to 10 days before, mandatory evacuations.
So Olympus loses the Blue Glacier and Helens gets a new one? nifty! last time we looked that caldera was dry as a bone and all dirt! Thanks for the info PBS, love ya!
Blue Glacier is still there 1.7 sq mi in size
@@deanfirnatine7814 Well, barely hanging in there. :( Thanks.
OK, I'm probably nitpicky here, but he says the glacier "grows" 15M per year.
Growth, is not typically two dimensional. I don't think he means 15 cubic meters or meters squared.
I think by grow, he meant advances. Advancing 15M makes more sense.
Or am I just an ass?
I heard 15m in height/depth per year. Another video from a few years back describes the forward creep as 60' or just under 20m per year
damn that is beautiful footage.
Amazing to hear about a new glacier forming in an active volcano :)
Looks so smooth and shiny in some areas. Why do I suddenly feel the need to touch it?
This was fascinating!
Good vid. Quality.
Insane that, the volcano erupted so recently it was before my time so i never even knew. Really interesting,
It was 41 years ago. Most of the ash headed to Eastern Washington. I was in College in Bellevue, WA. 20 years old.
Moved to the Puget Sound Basin in Spring of 1960, when I was 6 weeks old. Military fam.
Awesome video!
informational
More of this please!!!!
Oh, I thought glaciers were history...pun intended. This one will not be the last!
I knew right after the eruption that a glacier would form. Just from knowing how the form
That is phenomenal, can't believe I never knew about this before. :D
Pffft mount Saint Helens was a tiny eruption on the v scale
I am not American. I am a Bangladeshi. I have seen old images of Mount Saint Helens. How beautiful it was ! Almost like American Mount Fuji.
So, are they taking core samples with the ice screws or placing them for protection? I'm confused. I see one of the guys placing one is roped but another guy is just sitting on the ground.
They are getting samples to study the bacteria that feed off the minerals trapped in the ice.
Not in a million years could you get me to go a mile underground beneath an unstable glacier on an unstable volcano. I have no such death wish. Nay Nay.
It seems like it would be more like Ceres than Mars, which reminds me, what is going on these days about that mini planet? Do they still think it might have primitive life in the ice?
Amazing!
What a magnificent opportunity for study. And not bad vistas either. 😎🥃
pbs has the best content
Well...No, we're not necessarily looking out into our solar system. Why? Because every form of bacteria here has had billions of years of evolution in an environment favorable for the rise of intelligent life. For bacterial growth, you may have to have conditions favorable for intelligent or otherwise complex life. I feel the two go hand in hand. What's more, that bacteria didn't necessarily evolve there. It was likely carried on the wind or in precipitation.
By learning what extreme environments small life forms are capable of evolving in, you can can make approximations of similar environments in other places.
Our home is gorgeous💛PNW
Is it strange that I guessed where it was (correctly) based solely on the title?
(I've lived within sight of Mt. St. Helens nearly my whole life - and the famous big eruption was on my sister's 8th birthday.)
Title should be "Why Earth's newest glacier is inside an active volcano and why that is not a good thing."
Vulcano rocks!
Beautiful
This glacier could also be considered just about the most dangerous glacier on the planet. If the soil temperature on Mt. St. Helens were to rapidly rise, then that entire glacier could melt in a matter of hours. That would send a horrific flood of water and mud down to rivers below that could kill a lot of people, and do tremendous damage.
I do think this is a year we need to be prepared for any serious eruptions in the pacific.
so cool
I can't Wait for this Volcano to Blow Out Completely AGAIN!😍
I'm a veteran and I keep a hot sauce bottle filled with sea water from over 700ft below the North Pole on a living room shelf. Seen some interesting things in my time in the service.
The glacier melt water could act as a steam creator inside the volcano. This could lead to a pressure cooker type explosion.
At the 1:15 mark, that song in the background is “The Sky at Night” by DJ Food off the album “Kaleidoscope”!
I feel like there must be newer glaciers in places like on top of Andean volcanoes that have erupted more recently. Is it a confirmed fact that it is Earth’s newest glacier? Or just catchy clickbait for the title?
Also, how do you not wear a gas mask in a cave created by volcanic gases?
Idk, maybe click-bait but the Andean volcanoes are a bit more remote, I think. On the subject of the gasses, I imagine they carry breathing equipment and have gas detectors to alert them to put them on.
Maybe watch the video! It says in it that it’s the youngest! God idiots
Wonders of Planet Earth 🌏
Mount Saint Helens could be more deadlier now that a glacier formed. A eruption of mount saint helens could cause a Jökulhlaup
Why do US documentaries never use number measurements? Downtown Seattle? Two football fields? Bruh stop
Sometimes they even use "as heavy as a semi-truck" or something alike. 🙄
it's to help people visualize. I understand measurements do it as well , but without the imagery
@@ecurewitz how many people know how heavy a "semi truck" or how large "seattle" is vs 15000 multiply a kilogramme or 217 of kms.
@@necromancer2367 The point is it doesn't really exactly matter *how* heavy or big something is and the way it's phrased is to just communicate the concept of "really big/heavy".
The problem with using imagery is, if there's no point of reference in the audience, then the image is useless. Measurements are more useful. Then we can add our own image to it.
glaciers have started to grow again in many parts of the world.
Yes. But we're not all to say anything about this.
@@liamblack8621 citation?
Yes but unfortunately not as fast as crater glacier
And this is why you want your bedroom to be North facing.
Coolest part of your house, by far....in the Northern Hemisphere anyway.
01:10 the Tsara Bomba was 1,570 times more powerful than the two bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki combined.
Looks like all the glaciers are not melting after all.😎
Because nature, that is a good reason enough...
Now my wife has to hear about me wanting to ski this.
Who knows the size of downtown Seattle outside people from Seattle?! Maybe consider changing it to more internationally understandable measurement units.
Mount St. Helens is the biggest "active" volcano in the US, you say?!
What about Yellowstone??? The plentiful geysers regularly spewing steam, make it active.
And I'm pretty sure it's WAY bigger, in bloody greatness!
Let's say the geysers start getting plugged (or otherwise incapable of sustaining the CONSTANT release of gasses)... eventually she's gonna blow, and I think that eruption will dwarf anything this continent has seen in millenia!
Let's just hope that it doesn't explode again while scientist or inside/near.
5:39 That's just tantalizing: "ERGENCY ESCAPE ATHING DEVICE". What is that, is it a breathing device?
May be just correct amount to cause a big explosion when the ice and lava meet.
Watch this become as popular as Mount Everest
Speed
Now I know what I wanna be when I grow up
Mount St Helens is going to blow up and it'll be a fine swell day.
Life finds a way somehow
Professor Andreas is about the most german sounding person i've ever heard haha
This is interesting because this volcano had a bunch of earthquakes lately. The magma is definitely pushing its way to the surface.
Well now that the glacier is there if another eruption occurred Laura’s will be extremely deadly. That’s bad.
8:00 Wait, what? That's it? Go back to the astrobiologist! What is he actually studying? Talk about the actual science!
Would liked to have listened to your video, seemed like it would be interesting but without the sound noise. So loud cannot hear the speaker
Insanity! Beautiful insanity!
This is awesome but I have one question. Why are we spending billions of dollars researching Mars and looking at sending people there when there are millions of people dying of hunger and disease 🤔 Surly science should be looking at trying to stop babies dying of malnutrition or disease?? Going to Mars would be amazing but I think we need to fix problems here on earth before we wonder about Mars.
That was like three guys LOL There's like millions of scientists in the world. And there are many different scientific fields - like thousands of scientists looking into saving your babies. But without a planet what's the point? If we ignore the earth sciences so that all hands on deck can create some super food that makes people stop being so dumb then less babies will die. eh?
Talk about the land of fire and ice
It’s okay to be smart out me on you guys
Glad I didn't have to hear your drone.
So, it's not actually active!
For smart people they are pretty dumb going down there and drilling holes in the unstable ice.
How else are you gonna find out what's down there, chicken?
@@Human_Earthling I guess we should feel lucky that there are dumb people willing to risk their lives as well as priceless glaciers in the name of science.
@@syrthdr09sybr34 And how do you think they could harm the glacier?
TH-cam needs to be renamed commercialsTube!
This is super dangerous more ways to die there then I can count and everyone is not an if it is only a question when.
proof glaciers can form quickly, more evidence of a young earth
Joe, is that you? ;)
whats up its ok to be smart guy
ummm, so...eruption=massive flood???
Yeah, all the glacial ice in the crater becomes superheated and flows down from the mountain, channeling in the valleys, and melting more ice on the way, until it crosses the snow line. Eventually this glacier will fill the crater and become thick enough to prevent the gases from escaping through the ice. Melting water from the cap of ice then leaks back towards the magma chamber and the pressure from the stream and volcanic gases builds and builds until another eruption occurs; it essentially acts like a kettle on a stove. The process then repeats: glacier, trapped gases, boom. Think of it as a giant Old Faithful.
whose up for scientist bolling
#HowToBuildGlaciers
"500 times more powerful than Hiroshima Nuclear Bomb" that's nature's way of avenging things..
I swear the more we get to this planet dying because of human's, the more I hear about space exploration! A bigger oxymoron, I cannot think of!
space allows humans to get recourses and put factories in a place that is not earth.
👍🏻
Global warming in st. Helens
Ight ima head out