Hidden water channels had previously been discovered under the Yellowstone Caldera. Article about it published in the journal Nature.
A volcanic caldera sometimes called a supervolcano is located in Yellowstone National Park in the northwestern United States. When this volcano last erupted 640,000 years ago, and since then, activity has manifested mainly in regular emissions of hot water and steam to the surface.
Using the SkyTEM312 instrument aboard a helicopter, the scientists were able to map the paths where the water rose to the top. This device sends low frequency electromagnetic pulses to the ground, and by interpreting the responses from different parts of the surface, you can understand what is below based on the calculated electrical conductivity of the material.
As a result, scientists from the Virginia Institute of Technology found that beneath the park, hundreds of feet deep, there were high-vaulted clay-lined channels running along faults of volcanic rock. Groundwater flows through these channels, mixing with water from the warmer parts of the caldera at depths of more than a kilometer.
This data will help scientists understand the volcano’s past and predict its next possible eruption.