YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK — A small eruption from Yellowstone's Black Diamond Pool was captured by a webcam on Saturday.
The eruption was caught on a new webcam at 8:39 pm May 31, 2025. The new webcam was installed on May 14th at Biscuit Basin to track activity at Black Diamond Pool, where a hydrothermal explosion occurred last summer.
WATCH: Hydrothermal Eruption Recorded at Yellowstone’s Black Diamond Pool; Increased Monitoring Planned
According to a social media post from USGS Volcanoes, this is the first eruption from Black Diamond Pool that has been captured on video since the explosion on July 23, 2024, although there is evidence from other monitoring data and some eyewitnesses that sporadic eruptions have occurred several times since the July 2024 event.
The Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO) has reported that volcanic activity in the region remains at background levels, with minor seismic activity and a recent hydrothermal eruption.
According to the observatory's monthly update, a total of 119 earthquakes were recorded in May, with the largest measured at a magnitude of 2.7 on May 26, located approximately seven miles north of Lake in the park. Despite the frequency of seismic events, YVO noted that earthquake activity is consistent with normal background levels for the area.
Little activity has been reported from Steamboat Geyser following its last major eruption on April 14, indicating that it may be several weeks before the geyser exhibits significant behavior again.
In addition to monitoring for seismic and volcanic activity, researchers with the YVO deployed semi-permanent GPS stations throughout the region in May to monitor ground deformation. Initial findings reveal approximately three centimeters (1.2 inches) of subsidence in the Yellowstone Caldera since October, continuing a trend observed since 2015-2016. Minor deformation has also been detected near Norris Geyser Basin, although no new deformation has been recorded over the past two months.
The observatory is planning further developments, including the establishment of a new seismic/acoustic/GPS station at Biscuit Basin in June.
The current Volcano Alert Level remains at NORMAL, and the Aviation Color Code is GREEN, indicating that there are no significant hazards associated with volcanic activity.
For those interested in real-time monitoring of the activity at Biscuit Basin, the webcam can be accessed at Biscuit Basin Webcam.
For detailed seismic data and GPS information, the public can visit the UNAVCO data page.
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