Understand The Times, International

Comment from UTT:

Scientists know that super volcanoes like the one at Yellowstone have occurred in the past and may happen again at any moment. The idea that human beings could prevent this from happening is bizarre in light of the Bible.

October 6 - NASA is trying to figure out how to contain a supervolcano that could destroy humanity

Article: Signs Of The Last Times

Yellowstone erupts roughly every 600,000 years, and it's about 600,000 years since it last exploded. An eruption at Yellowstone National Park could lead to the end of human civilisation. But the NASA has a plan that could prevent such an explosion and could also create a geothermal plant to generate electricity. What images go through your mind when you think of the end of the world? Asteroids? Perhaps a world war? Climate change? Or even aliens? Even if some of these things are realistic, there's a much greater threat lurking beneath Earth's surface that could put an end to human civilisation - and very few know about it. According to a report by the BBC, even NASA sees them as one of the greatest natural threats to humanity: supervolcanoes.

Below Yellowstone National Park, there's a huge magma reservoir that's responsible for all the geysers and hot basins, bubbling away - and it's precisely this reservoir that has the potential to destroy humanity. Roughly every 100,000 years, there's a supervolcano explosion somewhere in the world, the consequences of which can be fatal. If the volcano below Yellowstone National Park were to erupt, it would result in worldwide hunger and a volcanic winter (the cooling of the lower atmosphere). According to UN estimates reported by The Guardian, an eruption could leave us with just enough food reserves for exactly 74 days.

But NASA has an alternative solution: Drill 10 kilometers deep into the supervolcano and pump water down under high pressure. This would slowly lower the temperature day by day. Above all, it is important to drill into the sides of the volcano instead of directly at the tip of the magma reservoir, because drilling there could even accelerate the eruption of the volcano. The catch is that the plan comes with a hefty pricetag: $3.46 billion. When you weigh up the benefits - like the fact that we could prevent the end of mankind in the long run - it seems worth the cost.

NASA has warned us: "Yellowstone explodes roughly every 600,000 years, and it's about 600,000 years since it last exploded. That should be making us sit up and pay attention."