VolcanoCam Movies Archive

October 1, 2004

Shortly before Noon today, Mount St. Helens emitted a plume of steam and minor ash from an area of new crevasses in the crater glacier south of the 1980-86 lava dome. The event lasted from 11:57 to 12:21 PDT and created a pale-gray cloud that reached an altitude of about 9,700 feet (from pilot reports).

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October 4, 2004

This morning visitors to Mount St. Helens witnessed a 40-minute-long steam-and-ash emission starting at 9:43 PDT. Steam clouds carrying minor ash billowed out of the crater to an altitude of 10,000 to perhaps 12,000 feet. The event did not generate earthquakes or an explosion signal. We infer that hot rock was pushed up into the glacier, melted ice, and generated the steam. Part of the vent for today’s and other steam and ash emissions of the past few days is now covered by a boiling lake. The emission occurred during a time of gradually increasing seismicity, which dropped slightly after the emission, but continued to increase gradually through the afternoon.

Another period of smaller steam and ash bursts occurred between 2:10 and 2:40 P.M. Visual observations show that the area of uplift, which includes part of the glacier and a nearby segment of the south flank of the lava dome, continues to rise. We infer that magma is at a very shallow level and could soon be extruded into the vent or elsewhere in the deforming area. Additional steam and ash emissions are likely and could occur at any time without warning. Conditions suggest that there is also an increased probability of larger-magnitude and more ash-rich eruptions in coming days.

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October 5, 2004

This morning the rate of seismicity was at a high, sustained level when, shortly after 9:00 a.m. PDT, the most vigorous steam and ash emission of the current period of unrest began. The emission originated from the same vent as have others this past week, as well as from another nearby new vent in the intensely deforming area on the south side of the 1980-86 lava dome. For more than one hour, steam clouds billowed from the crater. The ash content varied with intensity of steam jetting from the vent. For the first time, ash content was sufficient that it was detected by National Weather Service Doppler Radar. Steam and ash clouds reached about 12,000 feet and drifted north-northeastward. Ash forecasts warned downwind residents. Media reports indicate that a light dusting of ash fell in Morton, Randle, and Packwood, Washington, towns about 30 miles from the volcano. Nearby traffic on U.S. 12 stirred up the ash, slightly reducing visibility. We have no reports of ash falling at greater distances.

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October 10, 2004

As a result of the intense unrest of the past 11 days, we infer that magma is at a very shallow level. During times of unrest, Mount St. Helens and similar volcanoes elsewhere typically go through episodic changes in level of unrest over periods of days to weeks, or even months. Such changes are in part driven by variations in the rate of magma movement. We expect fluctuations in the level of unrest to continue during coming days. Escalation in the degree of unrest and perhaps an eruption could occur suddenly or with very little warning. There may be little time to raise the alert level before a hazardous event occurs. Therefore, we continue to monitor the situation closely and will issue additional updates and changes in alert level as warranted.

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October 11, 2004

Seismic activity remained at a low level overnight. Small earthquakes (maximum about magnitude 1) continue to occur at a rate of about 1 per 5 to 10 minutes. Visual observations and thermal imaging of the crater, the 1980-86 lava dome, and the intensely deforming and uplifting area on the south side of the dome were made yesterday afternoon. Thermal imaging of the western part of the uplifting area revealed temperatures of 500 to 600 degrees C on a large pinkish-gray fin of rock and in nearby fumaroles and cracks. These observations are consistent with new lava having reached the surface of the uplift. Additional visual and thermal observations will be made today to further evaluate this interpretation.

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October 26-27, 2004

The VolcanoCam has an apparent limited IR capability. We discovered this when it was found the VolcanoCam was able to record magma extruding into the crater of Mount St. Helens, begining around October 10 and 11, 2004.

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The full moon of October 26-27, 2004, offers a unique opportunity to view Mount St. Helens at night, complete with magma visibly extruding into the crater as captured by the VolcanoCam. Weather conditions were not ideal so expect the image to be lost in camera noise as clouds moved through the area. None of the images in this movie are enhanced to reduce noise. This movie is best observed from a distance of at least five to six feet away from the computer monitor with the room lights dimmed.

October 27, 2004

Wednesday, October 27, 2004, turned out to be a fantastic day to observe Mount St. Helens. It was a beautiful sunny day between several days of rain and clouds. More importantly, Mount St. Helens put on a continuous show of steam. So sit back and enjoy the view under clear skies and a light wind.

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October 27-28, 2004

The VolcanoCam has an apparent limited IR capability. We discovered this when it was found the VolcanoCam was able to record magma extruding into the crater of Mount St. Helens, begining around October 10 and 11, 2004.

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The full moon of October 27-28, 2004, offers a unique opportunity to view Mount St. Helens at night, complete with magma visibly extruding into the crater as captured by the VolcanoCam. In addition, this night was also a full lunar eclipse. However, by the time the effects of the eclipse ended around 10:00 pm, the full moon and clear night sky afforded an extraordinary view of Mount St. Helens as viewed by the VolcanoCam. Compare these movies to the movies from the previous evening.

None of the images in this movie are enhanced to reduce noise. This movie is best observed from a distance of at least five to six feet away from the computer monitor with the room lights dimmed.

Blinded By The Light Enhanced Special Edition Movies

We "enhanced" all the individual still images in the movie to reduce the noise. Once the lunar eclipse ends, this enhanced version allows you to see the volcano, the snowline, crater, old dome, steam event and glowing magma under a full moon.

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Our thanks to a VolcanoCam viewer and supporter (who wishes to remain anonymous) in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, who provided assistance to us in developing the enhanced version.

Friday, December 17, 2004, turned out to be a much better than average winter day to observe Mount St. Helens. It was only the second day in more than two weeks VolcanoCam viewers were able to view the volcano. Steady westerly winds and intermittent clouds added variety while Mount St. Helens put on a continuous show of steam.

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On February 02, 2005, Mount St. Helens saw its shadow.

Groundhog Day 2005 was clear and a wonderful viewing day for observing Mount St. Helens. We were treated with an ash event in the middle of the afternoon. You are also able to see the new dome for the first time in a VolcanoCam movie. The new dome is now visible above and behind the old dome.

The USGS reports the old dome took six years to build up to a volume of some 97 million cubic meters. The new dome has only been growing since October 11, 2004 and is already 44 million cubic meters in volume.

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Tuesday, March 08, 2005 - Tuesday, March 08, 2005, turned out to be a roller coaster day for the Mount St. Helens VolcanoCam and Mount St. Helens.

The network connection to the VolcanoCam had failed the previous Friday and Forest Service telecommunications experts were hard-pressed to locate the failure point. All communications (telephone, computer and the VolcanoCam link) were down between the Coldwater Ridge Visitor Center and the Johnston Ridge Observatory, with the rest of the world. The network connection was restored around 1:30 pm PST.

Four hours later ...

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