USGS: Mt Adams sees most monthly earthquake activity since 1982

PORTLAND, Ore. ( KOIN ) — During the month of September, Mt. Adams has recorded nearly six times the amount of earthquakes typically recorded in an entire year.

Earthquake activity around Mt. Adams increased during the month of September with a total of six quakes recorded. The U.S. Geological Survey Cascades Volcano Observatory (CVO) and Pacific Northwest Seismic Network (PNSN) explained in a statement that the earthquakes observed in September ranged from a magnitude of 0.9 to 2.0.

The agencies went on to explain that Mt. Adams typically only sees one earthquake every 2-3 years.

“To improve seismic monitoring capabilities, CVO has permission from the U.S. Forest Service to install temporary seismic stations south and southwest of Mount Adams. The seismic stations are part of CVO’s rapid deployment instrument packages that can be deployed quickly as needed,” the USGS explained in a statement Thursday, October 3, 2024.

“Data from the new temporary stations will be transmitted in real-time to CVO and PNSN along with data from the existing permanent station. This will improve our ability to locate smaller earthquakes with more certainty and assist in understanding the cause of these earthquakes. The results of our findings will determine if any additional actions are needed,” the statement went on to say.

Right now, the USGS Cascade Volcano Observatory explained that there is no cause for concern despite the increase in earthquake activity. All Mt. Adams alert levels remain normal.

The increase in monitoring of the southwest Washington volcano will hopefully help scientists get a better understanding of where and why these earthquakes started to increase over the last month.

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