--- description: Scientists have discovered a previously unknown reservoir title: Magma Under Yellowstone Could Fill Grand Canyon 14 Times image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt01f88b6af72d30b3/6987ecac06f2c1dc98337e63/yellowstone1.jpeg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Science](/section/science/) ## Science Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [geology](/tag/geology/) ## geology Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Magma Under Yellowstone Supervolcano Could Fill Grand Canyon 14 Times ## Video: Wildfires, Beetles and Climate Change [Watch (HLS stream): Wildfires, Beetles and Climate Change](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/wYhUFMcF.m3u8) (4:46)  _Published 2009-09-14. In this Climate Central report, Dr. Susan Prichard explains how tree-killing bark beetles flourish in warmer temperatures, leading to severe wildfires_ by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 24, 2015 1:03 PM CUT  Yellowstone National Park, Upper Geyser Basin, Chromatic Springs. Yellowstone National Park, Upper Geyser Basin, Chromatic Springs.Wolfgang Kaehler—Getty Images by [Sarah Begley](/author/sarah-begley/) ## Sarah Begley Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Apr 24, 2015 1:03 PM CUT Researchers have [discovered](http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/giant-new-magma-reservoir-found-beneath-yellowstone-180955086/?no-ist "undefined") a previously unknown chamber of magma underneath Yellowstone’s supervolcano. That chamber contains 11,200 cubic miles of magma, which, in addition to the already-known 2,500 cubic miles in an upper chamber, means the combined amount could fill the Grand Canyon nearly 14 times. The University of Utah has produced the first 3D image of the underground expanse, giving greater insight to how the hotspot works, _Smithsonion_ reports. It has been erupting for 17 million years, most recently some 640,000 years ago. Most of the magma is hot, solid rock, not molten rock, and the risk of a new eruption has not increased with this discovery. Scientists say we would likely have fair warning before another eruption in the form of earthquakes, higher ground temperatures, or other indicators of volcanic activity. \[[_Smithsonian_](http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/giant-new-magma-reservoir-found-beneath-yellowstone-180955086/?no-ist "undefined")\] _Read next:_ [_The Problem with U.S. Wildlife Protection Efforts_](http://time.com/3772207/wilderness-protection-endangered-species/?iid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/autoplay/?xid=spl-fullbrief-article "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3834264/magma-yellowstone-supervolcano/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3834264/magma-yellowstone-supervolcano/"},"headline":"Magma Under Yellowstone Supervolcano Could Fill Grand Canyon 14 Times","datePublished":"2015-04-24T13:03:39.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T06:39:08.628Z","description":"Scientists have discovered a previously unknown reservoir","url":"https://time.com/3834264/magma-yellowstone-supervolcano/","keywords":["geology","Volcano"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt01f88b6af72d30b3/6987ecac06f2c1dc98337e63/yellowstone1.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sarah Begley","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sarah-begley/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt01f88b6af72d30b3/6987ecac06f2c1dc98337e63/yellowstone1.jpeg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"yellowstone","caption":"WYOMING, UNITED STATES - 1991/01/01: USA, Wyoming, Yellowstone National Park, Upper Geyser Basin, Chromatic Springs. (Photo by Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images)","creditText":"Wolfgang Kaehler—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/geology/","name":"geology"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3834264/magma-yellowstone-supervolcano/","name":"Magma Under Yellowstone Supervolcano Could Fill Grand Canyon 14 Times"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Wildfires, Beetles and Climate Change","description":"In this Climate Central report, Dr. Susan Prichard explains how tree-killing bark beetles flourish in warmer temperatures, leading to severe wildfires","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/wYhUFMcF/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2009-09-14T03:15:02.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/wYhUFMcF.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3834264/magma-yellowstone-supervolcano/","duration":"PT4M46S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3834264/magma-yellowstone-supervolcano/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```