The Senate unanimously passed the National Volcano Early Warning and Monitoring System Act (S. 346), sponsored by Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), on May 17. The bill establishes the National Volcano Early Warning and Monitoring System, under the authority of the U.S. Geological Survey, to modernize and unify the current U.S. volcano monitoring network, including a data center and a national volcano monitoring office that is operational twenty-four hours a day and seven days a week.

Hazards Caucus briefing conveys the importance of geologic mapping and monitoring

The Hazards Caucus Alliance, a network that supports the Congressional Hazards Caucus, hosted a briefing on April 6 about how geologic and hazards mapping and monitoring are used to prepare and protect communities from natural hazards.

Senators introduce Volcano Warning and Monitoring bill

Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), and Mazie Hirono (D-HI) introduced a bill to establish a National Volcano Early Warning and Monitoring System (S.346) on February 8.

Downgrading the Great Dying

It makes for a dramatic narrative: Roughly 252 million years ago, a mass extinction event killed up to 96 percent of marine life, earning an infamous name in the geologic record, "the Great Dying." However, a new study suggests that this cataclysmic event has been overestimated. In the February issue of EARTH Magazine, read how a University of Hawaii paleontologist is improving our understanding of mass extinction events by exploring the effects of natural variability on background extinction levels, revealing a clearer signal in the noise.

Happy New Year! 2 free articles from January issue of EARTH

Is your New Year's resolution to read more about science? The January 2017 issue of EARTH Magazine is now available, including two stories that you can read online without a subscription:

Life-saving Diplomacy: The Volcano Disaster Assistance Program at Thirty

On Nov. 13, 1985, the eruption of the Nevado del Ruiz volcano in Colombia killed more than 23,000 people. Geoscientists at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Cascades Volcano Observatory in Vancouver, Wash., moved to action. Having studied the warning signs and responded to the eruption of Mount St. Helens five years earlier, they knew from experience that the Nevado del Ruiz disaster could have been prevented. Their advocacy paved the way for the formation of the Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP) in 1986. VDAP is the world’s first and only international volcano response team. In the January issue of EARTH Magazine, VDAP’s growth and evolution over 30 years are chronicled, highlighting the team’s past successes and goals for the future.

Critical Issues: Map of the Day - Volcanoes and Volcanic Activity Alerts across the United States

#MapOfTheDay! Interactive map of #volcanoes and current volcanic activity alerts from @USGS: http://bit.ly/1Fr07sC

#MapOfTheDay! Today the Critical Issues Program (@AGI_GeoIssues) shared an interactive map of volcanoes and current volcanic activity alerts across the United States from the Volcano Hazards Program at the U.S.

When Earth Hit the Reset Button on Life

EARTH Magazine explores new research on the "P-T" mass extinction to look at what caused it, and how it can inform our understanding of today's ongoing extinction event.

American Geosciences Institute

volcano

Investigating Volcanic Landslide Hazards

Geologic maps identify volcanic hazards in Washington

Senate passes bill to improve national volcano early warning and monitoring capabilities