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[Nadaka]

Yellowstones eruptions tend to be about twice as powerful as the entire worlds nuclear arsenal concentrated at a single point. Nuking it to relieve the pressure would be like slapping a grizzly bear because it might want to eat you.

[xtank5]

Yellowstones eruptions tend to be about twice as powerful as the entire worlds nuclear arsenal concentrated at a single point. Nuking it to relieve the pressure would be like slapping a grizzly bear because it might want to eat you.

Too bad slapping a grizzly bear would probably make it want to eat you.

[Amalgam]

You do have a point. Letting releasing the pressure that abruptly could be dangerous. I revise my original plan by replacing nukes with drills; all we have to do is slowly drill however many miles into the ground until something starts to happen. I compare it to slowly opening a can of soda that's been shaken up over the sink as opposed to quickly opening it while it's aimed at your face.

[riffraffselbow]

I say we nuke yellowstone to let off the pressure.

...What? IT COULD WORK!

Sounds like a Syfy (lol) channel original movie.

FUND IT

[gtmattz]

I say we nuke yellowstone to let off the pressure.

...What? IT COULD WORK!

Sounds like a Syfy (lol) channel original movie.

FUND IT

You are 4 years too late 

[Greiger]

I seem to recall hearing some documentary mentioning venting drills as a possible way to reduce the severity or prevent the yellowstone eruption, and it does make sense.  If being crazy expensive.

I wouldn't want to be anywhere near the west coast when they try it though.  It could work properly and vent the pressure like they hope, or it could just blow the whole damn state sky high early.

[Chicken Launcher]

You do have a point. Letting releasing the pressure that abruptly could be dangerous. I revise my original plan by replacing nukes with drills; all we have to do is slowly drill however many miles into the ground until something starts to happen. I compare it to slowly opening a can of soda that's been shaken up over the sink as opposed to quickly opening it while it's aimed at your face.

When you shake up a can of soda and poke a hole in it, soda shoots out the hole at least 5 feet. Applying dwarven physics, drilling into a pressurized volcano would result in an epic magma fountain.

[clc02]

Pfft, everyone knows magma can't be pressurized.
ANYWAY
Pour magma on it, it solves all the other problems, why not this one?

[Quantum Toast]

Pfft, everyone knows magma can't be pressurized.
ANYWAY
Pour magma on it, it solves all the other problems, why not this one?

Come to think of it, water might work pretty well too. Just make it the world's biggest obsidian farm.

[HideousBeing]

We should just drain the magma pipe before it causes any trouble. A few pumps and a fortification on the map edge should do the trick nicely.

btw... supervolcano was nominated for an emmy? I think we just give those away to anyone that asks now.

[Graebeard]

You do have a point. Letting releasing the pressure that abruptly could be dangerous. I revise my original plan by replacing nukes with drills; all we have to do is slowly drill however many miles into the ground until something starts to happen. I compare it to slowly opening a can of soda that's been shaken up over the sink as opposed to quickly opening it while it's aimed at your face.

When you shake up a can of soda and poke a hole in it, soda shoots out the hole at least 5 feet. Applying dwarven physics, drilling into a pressurized volcano would result in an epic magma fountain.

From Wikipedia:

"The volcanic eruptions, as well as the continuing geothermal activity, are a result of a great cove of magma located below the caldera's surface. The magma in this cove contains gases that are kept dissolved only by the immense pressure that the magma is under. If the pressure is released to a sufficient degree by some geological shift, then some of the gases bubble out and cause the magma to expand. This can cause a runaway reaction. If the expansion results in further relief of pressure, for example, by blowing crust material off the top of the chamber, the result is a very big gas explosion."

I think I'll take a pass on any drill ideas.  Maybe we can just designate a huge stone stockpile on there to make sure the pressure doesn't get too low?

[Greiger]

That is why I mentioned I wouldn't want to be anywhere near when they tried it.  It could work, but it could also go horribly wrong beyond anyone's control quickly.

EDIT: But really, if you think about it, in the long term blowing it up now would be better than blowing it up later.  It can only get more powerful.

[DrMorbly]

We geologists have never said that we're due or overdue; we have only mentioned when the last eruptions have occurred.  It wouldn't kill 80% of all life on the planet directly.  It'll cover the US east of the volcano in ash.  The ash in the atmosphere may affect global temperatures for years which in turn affects crop viability.

[Halmie]

That is why I mentioned I wouldn't want to be anywhere near when they tried it.  It could work, but it could also go horribly wrong beyond anyone's control quickly.

Sounds dwarvy. Too bad we can't savescum earth or gen a new world.

[Impaler[WrG]]

Supervolcanos could theoretically end life on Earth.

Ridiculous, this statement implies a total lack of understanding of both geologic and biological history, Life on earth has survived massive Flood Basalt vulcanism (in which a continental area is covered in magma) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siberian_Traps and that only caused the Permian extinction.  Prior to that in the Pre-Cambrian its believed the entire planet was encased in two mile thick ice sheets and unicellular life did fine under the ice in hydrothermal vents.  A mere Super Caldera eruption is nothing compared to that. Only the loss of all liquid water through either a super greenhouse such as Venus or a loss of atmosphere as on Mars has any chance of ending life on Earth.