May 18, 1980 Eruption

Before May 18, 1980 Spirit Lake

Before May 18, 1980 Spirit Lake

Summit Mt. St. Helens

Pre Mt. St. Helens

March 20, 1980 Mt. St. Helens

March 27, 1980 First Crater

March 30, 1980 ash on summit Mt. St. Helens

April 6 Steam blast Mt. St. Helens

April 10 Mt. St. Helens

April 12, 1980 Chehelis, I-5 Mt. St. Helens

April 27, 1980 Bulge on north side grows (5 ft. per day) Mt. St. Helens

May 3, 1980 Bulge on north side grows to 400 ft. Mt. St. Helens

May 17, 1980 Bulge on north side grows to 450 ft. View from Johnston’s Ridge 6 miles NW Mt. St. Helens

May 17, 1980 David Johnston’s camp View from Johnston’s Ridge 6 miles NW Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 Eruption after largest known rock slide, avalanche released pressure and triggered a 9 hour ash and pumice eruption. Plume moved east at 60 miles per hr ft. (400 meters) of the peak collapsed. 200 million cubic yards (150 million cubic meters) of material deposited directly by lahars, volcanic mudflows, into river channels. 57 people killed or missing. Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 Mt. Adams in background Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 Mt. Adams in background Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 Blowdown in the North Fork Toutle drainage, with singed area on left. Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 Blowdown in the South Fork Toutle drainage, with singed area in middle. Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 The slopes of Smith Creek valley, east of Mount St. Helens, show trees blown down by the May 18, 1980 lateral blast. Over four billion board feet of usable timber, enough to build 150,000 homes, was damaged or destroyed. Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 May 18, 1980 lahar covering highway at the Toutle River. The bridge was wiped out Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 More than 200 homes and over 185 miles (300 kilometers) of roads were destroyed by the 1980 lahars. Pictured here is a damaged home along the South Fork Toutle River. Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 Debris avalanche, with the beginnings of the mudflow heading down the North Fork Toutle River Valley. Mt. St. Helens

May 31, 1980 Reid Blackburn's car, located approximately 10 miles from Mount St. Helens. Reid was a photographer for National Geographic as well as the Vancouver's Columbian newspaper Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 Spirit Lake, Pumice Plain, and phreatic explosions, soon after the May 18, 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980 Ash along the roadside, Connell, Washington. Mt. St. Helens

May 18, 1980,Connell, Washington. Mt. St. Helens

After - Sept. 16, 1980 Volcanic ash collected in Randle, Washington, located about 40 km NNE of Mount St. Helens. Mt. St. Helens

After - Oct. 4, 1980 Spirit Lake, once surrounded by lush forest, is within the area devastated by blast. Remnants of the forest float on the surface of the lake Mt. St. Helens

After – August 22, 1980 For weeks volcanic ash covered the landscape around the volcano and for several hundred miles downwind to the east. Ash fell in eleven states. The total volume of ash (before compacted by rainfall) was enough ash to cover a football field to a depth of 150 miles (240 kilometers). Mt. St. Helens

After- Sept 30, 1980 Harrys Ridge, five miles north of Mount St. Helens' crater was within the blast zone. The view is from the southeast. Mt. St. Helens

After - Sept. 30, 1980 Aerial view of Mount St. Helens volcano, with Harrys Ridge in the foreground. Mt. St. Helens

After – May 19 View of denuded slope and blowdown timber Mt. St. Helens

After – May 19 View of denuded slope and blowdown timber Mt. St. Helens

Photos and information: USCS As an unbiased, multi-disciplinary science organization that focuses on biology, geography, geology, geospatial information, and water, we are dedicated to the timely, relevant, and impartial study of the landscape, our natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten us. Learn more about our goals and priorities for the coming decade in our Science Strategy. “ Mount St. Helens, Washington Before, During, and After May 18, – 2004” Science Strategy “Mount St. Helens, Washington May 18, 1980 Eruption Images”