That makes sense to me!

Long story short, pay attention to the source of the information you get. If you want information about Cascades volcanoes, go to the people who are charged with monitoring them: the Cascades Volcano Observatory (volcanoes.usgs.gov/observatorie...) and the Pacific NW Seismic Network (pnsn.org).

They go on to say that the alert level has not been raised at Rainier because no other warning signs have emerged. No. The alert level has not been raised because the cause of all of their angst is a broken instrument. Jeez. 16/n

Did the Daily Mail ask a single seismologist about these data? Did they interview a volcanologist? Did they talk with anyone who studies this volcano for a living?

No. Here's their data source: "volcano watchers on social media". 15/n

Since the alleged shaking isn't visible at this other Rainier station we can be very confident it isn't a sign that the mountain is about to blow. 13/n

This allows us to rule out volcanic tremor as a source of the activity recorded by STAR. And again, it doesn't look like tremor, much as the sound of a car horn doesn't sound like a slipping fan belt. 12/n

Let's compare the last day at station STAR to another nearby station (RCS). STAR is maxed out, whereas RCS shows lots of tiny little blips--these are likely creaks and pops from within Rainier's zillions of glaciers. 11/n

And there's more! If we see a signal that we don't understand, we check to see if it was recorded by other instruments. A real signal that actually took place at Rainier will be detected by many seismometers. If something appears on only one station, it's probably not real or not volcanic. 10/n

The good news is that seismologists are familiar with this. We know this is noise, not signal. You know how a car mechanic can say "oh I know that noise--your fan belt is slipping"? That's what seismologists do with wiggles. We have looked at them a LOT and we can easily recognize issues. 9/n

Faulty instruments often generate wonky electrical signals. That's what is currently going on with station STAR on Mount Rainier. 8/n

But sometimes you get other electrical signals interfering with the transmission. And sometimes stations break (particularly in the challenging conditions one finds at stations like this one, which is over 10,000 ft up Mount Rainier. ) 7/n

This electrical signal can be sent over transmission lines to organizations such as the PNSN, who convert it back into what it really is: a representation of ground-shaking. 6/n

In a seismometer, you just throw a wire around that bouncing mass and surround it by a magnetic field. This generates a current within the wire that changes direction and amplitude as the mass bounces. Quaking therefore creates an oscillating current. 5/n

A quick lesson on seismometers, of which there are many on Mount Rainier. In its most simple form, a seismometer is just a mass on a spring. When the ground shakes, the spring bounces. 4/n

By citing the PNSN, the article makes the reader think the scientists there made, or were at least asked about this discovery. But no, they were not. Anyone at the PNSN would have immediately explained that the signals in question were not volcanic in nature. 5/n

The Daily Mail explains that this activity was "detected by the Pacific NW Seismic Network".

This is sort of true. The signals in question were, in fact detected by a seismometer operated by the PNSN. However, the signals are not from the volcano. The instrument is faulty. 3/n

The article alleges that Mount Rainier, Washington, is experiencing an "unprecedented" phase of unrest, "stoking fears that an eruption could come soon." It later says that the volcano "has been experiencing constant vibrations beneath the surface."

None of this is true. 2/n

It's clearly just a typo (likely 33.7 degrees latitude) but indicative of a lack of (a) baseline scientific knowledge, and (b) high quality editing at Fox News.