Seismic security

Yellowstone volcano TREMORS: Seismometers detect 'seismic ENERGY' prompting need for study

More than 50 seismic trackers around Yellowstone volcano’s biggest lake have recorded evidence of tremors known as microseism. The Yellowstone discovery comes off the back of a study examining the presence of tremors in great lakes around the globe. Microseism is a faint shake of the Earth associated with the interaction of ocean waves and the seabed. In Yellowstone, trackers have found evidence of microseism on a much smaller scale, at the 135.9 square miles (352.1 square km) Yellowstone Lake in Northwest US.

Jamie Farrell, chief seismologist at the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, said the study funded by the National Science Foundation, has found the most likely source of the tremors.

The geologist explained in the weekly Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles: “There are two ways that the ocean’s waves cause seismic shaking.

“The direct interaction of ocean waves and the solid ground near the shoreline – single frequency microseism – and the interaction of two sets of wave trains travelling in different directions in the open ocean – double frequency microseism.