A giant volcano sits underneath Yellowstone National Park
I was fortunate to have visited Yellowstone National Park this year. I went in April. It was such a unique experience. This “Upper Geyser Basin” area of Yellowstone is where the majority of the world’s active geysers are located. You would be most familiar with the legendary Old Faithful, which is a short walk from the Chinese Spring. Much of this terrain is dangerous or destructive to walk on, so walkways are the only way to get around this wild landscape.
How do Yellowstone’s hot springs work? The short answer of how they work is volcanism. A giant volcano sits underneath Yellowstone National Park. In some areas, the molten rock is roughly three to eight miles below the surface. As precipitation and snow melt seep into the cracks and cervices, it is heated deep underground. This hot water rises. As it reaches the surface, this hot water is cooled off, causing it to sink. This colder water is immediately replaced by surfacing hotter water. This constant circulation results in the type of hot spring in this photo, Chinese Spring. However, this photo doesn’t do it justice, so I’ve included a video. As you can see in this video, this geyser’s steady boiling also comes with unique sound.
In the background of this photo of Chinese Spring is the outflow from another geyser called Improbable Geyser. Note the bright orange thermophiles on the rocks. These wild creatures are extremophiles. That means this is a living organism/bacteria/fungus that lives in an extreme environment (high heat in this case). Aside from living in areas with hot springs, thermophiles also live in deep ocean hydrothermal vents. Additionally, they live in decaying plant matter like compost and peat bogs.
The average temperature of Chinese Spring is 197 degrees Fahrenheit! The average PH is 8.2. The steam coming out of the ground paired with the snowy day created this unique image. If you look closely, you will also see other hot springs emitting steam up by the tree line in the top right.
The average temperature of Chinese Spring is 197 degrees Fahrenheit
Did you know?
- The spring gets its name from Chinese immigrants that used to wash their laundry in the spring. Legend has it, the geyser erupted and threw their clothes high into the air.
- Chinese Spring does have big eruptions, however this is considered rare.
- There are four other countries with large concentrations of hydrothermal activity, Russia, New Zealand, Iceland, and Chile.
0 Comments