Earthquakes in Yellowstone Evidence of a Volcano or Supervolcano to Erupt?

This December a series of quakes shook Yellowstone. Considering Yellowstone's awesome geologic history, it might point to an uptick in volcanic activity.

Yellowstone was formed over a relatively short period, with several large areas experiencing lava flows and explosions. The whole area could be called a super volcano, or series of volcanoes.

According to the Yellowstone National Park website "No one has ever seen a volcanic explosion on the scale of the Yellowstone eruptions."

When I was there a few years ago, they said that Old Faithful wasn't running on a regular schedule because of slight shifts. While it formerly erupted like clockwork twenty years ago, today they can only estimate when it will go. Sometimes they're off by a few minutes. It still keeps to a schedule, but it isn't as easily timed.

Conditions there aren't stable. They've been keeping data on geographic points at least since the early 1920s. And what they've found has been interesting. Some points have moved as much as an inch in one year.

We know for certain that Yellowstone is a hotspot. Since the 26^th of December a swarm of quakes over an area about a kilometer across has scientists and volcano enthusiasts wondering: will it blow?

Earthquake data also suggest that soft or molten rock is close to the surface of Yellowstone. Minor earthquakes jiggle Yellowstone hundreds of times each year, but above the caldera the foci of these quakes are extremely shallow, less than three miles below the surface. These clues suggest that the material underlying Yellowstone is still very hot and ductile, as would be expected if a magma chamber still exists.-Yellowstone National Park Website

The size and focus of the current tremors have lead people to speculate that it will blow. It might not be a super volcano, but there could be lava flows and shifts in the area. The great thing about volcanoes is that they give us warning.

This area has had about 250 tremors over the last three days. Most have been small quakes that the average person wouldn't even notice. One hit 3.8. At 4.0, a quake can cause moderate damage in an urban area.

The largest Yellowstone quake in recent memory was one that hit the scales at 7.5 in 1959. This quake did kill people when it caused a landslide.

Right now scientists are monitoring the situation. If it escalates or continues, some parts of Yellowstone might be off-limits while they figure out what the earth is going to do. If a large event is going to happen, there will be notice because of all the seismic equipment in and around Yellowstone. It's clear that they don't expect a major event based on the data so far, but there might be small lava flows, new geysers or schisms because of the activity.

Sources:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hklq5saMBlMynv31EbfNSka-SpOwD95COBD00

http://www.yellowstonenationalpark.com/calderas.htm