A rare planetary alignment on January 10, 2026 sparked viral fears that Jupiter’s so-called “gravity spike” could trigger supervolcanoes, but scientists—frustrated yet firm—explain that the event is visually dramatic, not gravitationally dangerous, leaving the public torn between awe, confusion, and unnecessary panic.

On January 10, 2026, a rare and visually stunning event will unfold above Earth as Jupiter reaches its brightest opposition, forming an apparent line with Mars, Saturn, and several inner planets—a moment already igniting anxiety across social media and conspiracy forums that claim the Solar System’s geometry could “wake up” dormant supervolcanoes beneath Yellowstone, Campi Flegrei, or even Taupo.

As the countdown continues, scientists are scrambling to clarify what they call a “dangerous misunderstanding” between what people see in the sky and what gravity actually does beneath Earth’s crust.

For weeks, YouTube channels, doomsday blogs, and TikTok creators have circulated dramatic predictions under the banner “The 2026 Gravity Spike,” reviving long-debunked fears from the infamous 1982 “Jupiter Effect”—a prediction that planetary alignment would trigger catastrophic earthquakes in California.

The theory never materialized, but its emotional imprint appears to have survived.

This time, the focus has shifted to supervolcanoes, with viral posts claiming that the January alignment “will increase gravitational stress” on magma chambers.

At a press briefing held on November 29 at the European Geoscience Center in Vienna, planetary physicist Dr.Lina Verhofstadt addressed the controversy head-on.

“There is no gravitational spike,” she said, emphasizing each word.

“Planetary alignment may look dramatic from Earth’s perspective, but the planets are still separated by hundreds of millions of kilometers.

The combined gravitational pull is negligible—far weaker than the daily influence of the Moon.

” She added with faint exasperation, “If gravity worked the way conspiracy videos claim, Earth’s tides would shred continents twice a day.”

At Yellowstone National Park, where tourism has unexpectedly surged this month with visitors joking—some seriously—about “seeing it before it blows,” geologists have been receiving a record number of emails from concerned citizens.

Dr.Nathan Reed of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory described one message as “a heartfelt but misinformed plea to evacuate the region before January 10.

” Reed, usually reserved, allowed a brief laugh during his live radio interview on KWTN: “The truth is, the ground here isn’t any more stressed by Jupiter than it is by a toddler jumping on a trampoline.”

Meanwhile in Italy, Naples residents—already accustomed to sensational headlines about Campi Flegrei—have been circulating posts claiming satellites detected “rising magma” ahead of the alignment.

The Italian National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology responded calmly, stating that all current measurements show normal fluctuations unrelated to external gravitational influences.

One researcher reportedly told a local newspaper, “If Jupiter could trigger eruptions, Vesuvius would have blown every 12 years.”

Despite this, the online narrative persists.

Much of the renewed panic stems from a viral clip featuring an edited quote from geophysicist Dr.Rahul Mehra of Caltech.

In the original lecture, Mehra discussed how extreme tidal forces—such as those on Io, Jupiter’s innermost moon—can create volcanic heating.

However, in the manipulated video, the key context was removed, making it appear as though he was warning about Earth’s vulnerability.

Contacted for comment, Mehra responded sharply: “Io is torn apart by Jupiter because it orbits only 422,000 kilometers away.

Earth is 778 million kilometers from Jupiter during alignment.

The comparison is absurd.”

To further debunk the panic, NASA released updated simulations showing gravitational values on Earth’s crust from January 1–31.

The combined gravitational deviation on January 10 measured just 0.00000003% above average—far beneath the threshold needed to influence tectonic stress.

In a short statement, NASA’s Dr.Eliza Howard summarized the data with dry humor: “If this is a ‘gravity spike,’ then a mosquito landing on your arm is a tectonic catastrophe.”

Still, experts acknowledge the emotional power of celestial events.

History shows that every generation has interpreted dramatic skies as omens—from comets to eclipses to planetary alignments.

Sociologist Dr.Andrew Lowell calls it “cosmic anxiety,” noting that people often project fears onto astronomical events during uncertain times.

“It’s less about Jupiter and more about human psychology,” he explained.

“Alignments give people a visual symbol to attach their worries to.”

As January 10 approaches, observatories worldwide are preparing public livestreams to redirect the conversation toward science rather than speculation.

“We want people to look up and feel wonder, not dread,” Dr.Howard said.

“This alignment is a beautiful reminder of cosmic geometry—not a countdown to doom.”

Whether the message will reach everyone remains uncertain.

Online, the “2026 Gravity Spike” hashtag continues to trend, mixing humor, fear, and confusion in equal measure.

But for scientists, the conclusion is definitive: the Solar System’s ballet may dazzle the eye, but it won’t shake the Earth.