Yellowstone News and Information

  The Changing Moods of Colloidal Pool in Norris Geyser Basin By Lauren Harrison, PhD , USGS Release Date: November 15, 2021   Many of Yellowstone’s hot springs, geysers, mud pots, and fumaroles look different depending on the season, year, or sometimes even the day one visits. Colloidal Pool, in Norris Geyser Basin, is an interesting example of a feature that changed over the course of summer 2021. Yellowstone  Caldera   Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Lauren Harrison, postdoctoral researcher with the U.S. Geological Survey.   Comparison of (a) 1904 Historical map with (b)  1988 USGS map . Colloidal Pool is a large, labeled pool roughly located on a straight line between Hurricane vent and Whirligig Geyser on the 1988 map (b); this same transect on the 1904 map (a) shows no feature at that location (white circle). Note: maps are not at th

1941 audio interview with William Henry Jackson, photographer of Yellowstone and the Old West, at age 98

  Scientists can now “sniff” Yellowstone gases in real time Release Date: September 13, 2021 Much is known about how the chemical compositions of gases vary across the Yellowstone volcanic system, but how they vary in time has remained largely a mystery.  Our understanding should greatly improve with a recent installation of a station that continuously monitors gases and communicates those data in real time. Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Jennifer Lewicki, research geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park, CA. USGS scientist Laura Clor performing maintenance on the SNIF multi-GAS station on Mount St. Helens, Washington. (Credit: Peter Kelly, USGS. Public domain.) Over the past several decades, scientists have sampled gases from all of the major thermal areas of Yellowstone i

  Silver Gate—the Mammoth Terraces of yesteryear! Release Date: September 6, 2021 Just south of Mammoth Hot Springs, near the north entrance of Yellowstone National Park, lies a jumble of white/gray rock known as the Hoodoos or, more formally, Silver Gate.  The origin of this deposit is a quintessential tale of the dynamic nature of Yellowstone. Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Michael Poland, geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey and Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. A few miles south of Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone National Park, Highway 89 winds through the white/gray jumble of rocks known as the Hoodoos, or Silver Gate, that formed when travertine from Terrace Mountain collapsed in a landslide. Imagine you have just arrived at the north entrance to

  Locating earthquakes in the Yellowstone region Release Date: August 30, 2021 Ever wonder how seismologists determine the location of an earthquake in Yellowstone?  It’s an intricate process, but thanks to experienced scientists, up to thousands of earthquakes are located in the Yellowstone region every year! Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Jamie Farrell, assistant research professor with the University of Utah Seismograph Stations and Chief Seismologist of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. Record section showing horizontal component seismograms from stations in the Yellowstone region from the M4.8 earthquake that occurred near Norris Geyser Basin on March 30, 2014.  The vertical blue dashed line represents the origin time of the earthquake at 12:34:39.16 UTC.  The red line represents th

  More than 1,000 earthquakes rock Yellowstone in July

Yellowstone rattled by swarm of earthquakes

  The long journey of water from Yellowstone’s hot springs and geysers to different oceans Release Date: July 5, 2021 Yellowstone’s hot spring waters ultimately flow for thousands of miles before entering the ocean. But waters enter two different oceans—the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean. Yellowstone  Caldera  Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Shaul Hurwitz, Research Hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. There are numerous hot springs and a lot water flowing in Yellowstone, but what is the fate of the hot water erupted from Old Faithful Geyser , for example? Where does that water ultimately end up? Map of Yellowstone National Park showing the major rivers and the continental divide (red dashed). Yellowstone Caldera is oulined by purple dashed line. Water flowing south and west of the divide ends up in

  The day that Porkchop Geyser exploded Release Date: June 28, 2021 Small hydrothermal explosions—steam blasts—are common at Yellowstone, occurring every year or two.  Most happen in the backcountry and are not observed by people.  In 1989, however, Porkchop Geyser blew up right in front of several observers on an otherwise sunny September afternoon. Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Michael Poland, geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey and Scientist-in-Charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. Porkchop Geyser erupting in August 1989. (Credit: Jim Peaco, National Park Service. Public domain.) Norris Geyser Basin is one of the most unique parts of Yellowstone National Park.  The basin hosts both acidic and neutral hot springs —a somewhat unusual combination—is the location of some

  Yellowstone’s gravest threat to visitors (it’s not what you might think) Release Date: May 31, 2021 Yellowstone National Park is truly a wonder of nature, globally appreciated for its untamed beauty. Visited by millions each year, tourists travel from all over the world to witness its unique environment. However, while enjoying Wonderland, visitors should also keep safety in mind. Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Erin Krieger, student in Environment and Natural Resources at the University of Wyoming, and Mairin Sims, Laramie High School student. With the arrival of the Memorial Day weekend, summer is upon us!  And for many, that means holiday time.  What better place to take a holiday than Yellowstone?  But while enjoying the spectacle of America’s first National Park, please keep safety in min

  Travertine: Yellowstone’s Hydrothermal Timekeeper Release Date: May 24, 2021 Standing on the boardwalk next to any of Yellowstone’s hot, steamy, vigorously bubbling hot springs, mud pots, fumaroles, or geysers, you may be struck by the sheer amount of energy that powers this system, night and day. But how long have these features been active?  To address this question, geologists can turn to the “clock” that is frozen within hydrothermal travertine deposits. Yellowstone  Caldera  Chronicles is a weekly column written by scientists and collaborators of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory. This week's contribution is from Lauren Harrison, a postdoctoral researcher with the U.S. Geological Survey. Travertine is a form of limestone composed of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are both made of calcium carbonate (CaCO 3 ). In contrast to limestones that are formed in the ocean from the shells of tiny plankton and other ma

YVO Update of Activity at Yellowstone and Plans for Summer Fieldwork Detailed Description It's May, the snow is melting and the roads are mostly open, so it's time for geologists, geophysicist and geochemists to head into Yellowstone to start projects they have been planning for the last several months. Next week, a field team will deploy a temporary GPS network to help “densify” the network of continuous GPS stations already in place. The temporary GPS stations are low profile, low power, aren't radio connected, and will need to be picked up later this year before the snow starts to fall. Each statio