A Gigantic Crack Suddenly Appeared In The Mountains Near Yellowstone

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An enormous crack was recently found in the foothills of the Bighorn Mountains in northern Wyoming. The crack has a width of 150 feet and stretches 2,250 feet long.

Tectonic movements in the earth’s crust lead to earthquakes, which are typically the cause for such fractures. But the mystery here is that no activity of any kind was noted in the area. This deep rift had to be formed by other means.

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One explanation is that this canyon formed similar to how sinkholes are formed around the world. These are cases where the top layer of soil falls into a cavity created by several different reasons. The dissolving of carbonate rocks by acidic rain or subsurface water is one possible mechanism. Variations in flow of water underground can also shake up sediments supporting the surface layer. A similar theory is that this was an area with a cap rock (a strong rock resistant to weathering) on top of weaker rocks that broke done from a high volume of water.

It is important to note that this crack is located near the Yellowstone caldera, which is a dormant super-volcano that has shown signs of being recharged. The rising magma from this volcano would undoubtedly cause seismic activity as it rises to the surface, and since no seismic activity was reported in this occurrence, scientists are unable to connect the two directly.