#MSH45 | May 16, 1980
On May 1, Penn State's Barry Voight sends his delayed hazard report on Mount St. Helens' north face by mail.
15 days later, the report arrives in Vancouver. It will accurately depict what will come in under 48 hours.
Yet, it's just one of many guesses.
On May 1, Penn State's Barry Voight sends his delayed hazard report on Mount St. Helens' north face by mail.
15 days later, the report arrives in Vancouver. It will accurately depict what will come in under 48 hours.
Yet, it's just one of many guesses.
Comments
He even sketches the shape of the crater that would form.
But he also hedges:
The bulge might just lead to rockfall or glacier collapse.
Ray didn't see it. Most USGS scientists never saw it, either. Not until after the eruption, at least.
Even then, the source bristled some.
Voight’s comment that geodetic work should be done by “professionals, not scientists compromised by other interests” didn’t sit well.
Some at USGS had considered that the bulge might fail and trigger an eruption.
But it was just one “what-if.”
The bulge might grow.
The bulge might shrink.
Or the bulge might give way.
And no one really knew which way it would go—save for a few.