Earth Sciences

Plume of smoke comes from the crater of Mount St. Helens in 1982

Spring 2022

Large volcanic eruptions 1800–present in the United States*

*as delineated by its current international and state boundaries

1800 — Mount St. Helens (Washington) The eruption was seen by Native Americans. Oral tradition of NE Washington tribes noted many people starved to death the winter following the eruption.

1812 — Augustine Volcano (Alaska) Augustine has had six significant eruptions: 1812, 1883–1884, 1935, 1963–1964, 1976, and 1986. The 1883 eruption produced a tsunami.

1825 — Isanotski Peaks (Alaska) Also known as Isanotski Volcano, locally as “Ragged Jack,” is a multi-peaked mountain on Unimak Island, the easternmost Aleutian Island. Other … » More …

Winter 2021

The great recession

From satellite observation to boots on the ground, Northwest climate patterns and declining snowpack are laid bare. » More ...

Winter 2021

Plastic

Piling up without foreseeable end, Washington State University researchers work to solve the “plastics problem.” » More ...

Summer 2020

In our new backyard

A portrait of resilience from the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens to the COVID-19 pandemic » More ...

Summer 2020

Great floods from simple sources

Farming on floodplains support both good agriculture and biodiversity, which inspires Jordan Jobe from WSU Puyallup Extension to educate on the worth of floodplains. » More ...

Summer 2020

When the sky fell

Forty years ago, on a fateful day in May, a volcanic eruption—unprecedented in modern times—etched itself on the memories of Washingtonians from Vancouver to Pullman. » More ...

Summer 2020

Remains of the day

When the ash fell on May 18, 1980, faculty and students at WSU gathered it, bagged it, and placed it in barrels. The volcanic ash still waits for examination four decades later. » More ...

Illustration of an open window showing trees outside

Summer 2020

A natural understanding

What we don’t know is immense. Natural history can be a profound catalyst for understanding. » More ...

Flowers among ruined trees on Mount St. Helens

Summer 2020

Mount St. Helens: The aftermath and lessons learned

The sky was falling. And Richard “Dick” Mack gathered a group of graduate students to help collect it. In the first few days after Mount St. Helens erupted—sending some 540 million tons of ash over an area of 22,000 square miles—the WSU ecology professor was already thinking of its potential research value.

Mack‚ now a professor emeritus in WSU’s School of Biological Sciences, spent the summer of 1980 doing field work between Pullman and Vantage, studying the effects of the ash on vegetation—particularly native plants, such as certain willows and grasses. For about five years or so after that, he and … » More …

Spring 2020

A rare solution

Rare earth elements, such as lithium and cobalt, are essential to our smart devices and clean energy solutions. At Washington State University, the Joint Center for Deployment and Research in Earth-Abundant Materials (JCDREAM) searches for more sustainable options. » More ...