Yellowstone Eruption

Today on Far Future Horizons we explore a very explosive question: What would happen if the"mega-volcano" underneath Yellowstone National Park erupted?

The world's largest, most active volcano system exists in the western United States. Some six hundred and fifty thousand years ago, the Yellowstone Volcano erupted. Lava and pyroclastic flows covered three thousand square miles with an ash layer some three feet thick.

Fossils discovered as far away as Nebraska were found to have died from inhaling the Yellowstone debris. If or when it erupts again, the Yellowstone"Mega-Volcano" will create a global cataclysm beyond human comprehension.

Everything within one hundred and fifty miles, including the cities of Cody, Wyoming and Bozeman, Montana, will be hit by an eight hundred degree blast of heat and two hundred mile per hour winds and thousands would be killed.

But, that's just the local effects. Half the US will be buried beneath a blanket of volcanic ash. Crops in the Midwest,in the world's breadbasket, will be destroyed. And it will take years before crops can grow again.

A nightmarish scenario of starvation, epidemics, civil chaos and social collapse would soon follow.

Mega Disasters: Yellowstone Eruption and other episodes of the acclaimed documentary series Mega Disasters are available on DVD from Amazon.com and the History Channel’s online store. This episode of Mega Disasters is also available from Amazon's Instant Video.

Mega Disasters - Yellowstone Eruption

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