Posts Tagged ‘Geyser Hill’
Just a few things I noticed in the Upper Geyser Basin when we were there in late September…
Copper Kettle 27 Sept 2011
Detail Crop of the Ripples on Copper Kettle 27 Sept 2011
Yep, ripples from bubbles on the water in Copper Kettle. I watched for a short while and never did see any bubbles appearing – just the telltale ripples from them.
Then I looked to my left – toward scissors springs – and noticed the hole across the boardwalk (another Unnamed Thermal Feature as far as I know) had water in it. Huh. So, I took a photo:
Unnamed Thermal Feature with water in it - across from Scissors Springs 27 Sept 2011
And then zoomed in on it…
Unnamed Thermal Feature across from Scissors Springs 27 Sept 2011
And then a little farther down the boardwalk – again on the uphill side, there’s an area across from Heart Spring (or maybe between Arrowhead and Heart Spring) that has a bunch of smaller tiny pools. One of them farther away from the boardwalk was still bubbling about as high as I had seen it in August. Here it is in September:
Unnamed Thermal Feature uphill from Pot o' Gold Spring (corrected) 27 Sept 2011
And how it looked back in August:
Unnamed Thermal Feature across from Pot o' Gold Spring (corrected) 10 Aug 2011
Just a few random observations from Geyser Hill.
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Heading up to the Giantess Geyser area on the morning of August 10th, I almost did a double take. Infant Geyser. Boiling cyclically. Well, that’s not something I’ve seen before – though probably others have. Knowing there’s a connection with Giantess Geyser, I watched Giantess for a bit as well – and saw some nice boils (not huge, but nice) on the west side. Then back to Infant, and looking at others in the area. It may mean absolutely nothing but an increase in activity in Infant. Or – if we’re lucky – it might mean Giantess is considering making an appearance soon. Last eruption of Giantess was May 7. Either way, I found the chance to even see Infant boiling a treat.
Watching a new thermal feature (hot spring, geyser, fumarole, mud pot, etc.) appear is always exciting. The observations of Bulger’s Hole are coming in. Here are some videos up on YouTube:
The reason for the increase in the videos is simply because people knew to look. While going through my photos to look for any of Bulger’s Hole I might have, I found another area to watch. This one is on Geyser Hill, near the boardwalk around Improbable Geyser.
Area to Watch 5 June 2011
At first I thought I was looking at Pygmy Geyser, but this is a different area. Something may appear here, or it may go for years like Pygmy Geyser has done. But here’s how it looked in June.
Sulphide Spring (foreground) 8 June 2010
One of the first hot springs you’ll encounter on Geyser Hill is Sulphide Spring – which seems to be giving off more of a sulfur/rotten egg odor than it has in the past. I almost don’t notice it anymore (it’s just the smell of Yellowstone to me), so to gauge it better, I watch the reaction of visitors to the area. Three or four years ago, there was no reaction, and last year young people with more sensitive noses noticed it, but on this last visit there were nearly constant comments about the smell from adults as well as kids.
A Typical Reaction to Sulphide Spring in Early June 2011
My notes from all of last summer and fall said bubbling and near sizzling along the edge of the spring closest to the boardwalk. In early June, though, there was bubbles showing throughout the pool creating agitation to the water’s surface – still more bubbles seen along the edge. But at times it also seemed nearly calm – my guess is that it’s cycling through times of boiling and times of calm. If you spend a few minutes there, I’d love to know what you see – leave a comment here or on the Sulphide Spring page.
Looking at photos from years past, I see the water level changes as well. Here are two from the past:
- Comparison of Sulphide Spring’s Water Level – seen in the Overflow Outlet
And here’s one from June. Because the Park Service does a good job of keeping people on the boardwalks and not tossing items into the thermal features, comparisons like this are possible even though millions of people visit them. Thank you for doing the right thing.
Sulphide Spring 4 June 2011
So, the next time you tour through geyser hill, take note of this often ignored hot spring – though its odor makes it harder to ignore these days.
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Copper Kettle in Overflow on 8 June 2010
The hot spring known as Copper Kettle sits on geyser hill, across the boardwalk (and down a bit toward Depression Geyser) from Beehive Geyser.It has a slightly raised outer edge which makes one wonder what its past was like – was it like Chinese Spring, boiling, and building a bit of a cone, or like it’s neighbor, Beehive and erupting? We’ll never know its past, but it would be nice to know more about its current behavior.
For the past few years, I’ve taken photos of it many times below overflow, but last June, there it was overflowing nicely. A first for me. I’ve heard others say it overflows regularly, and others say that they, like me, don’t see that normally. This is one I’d love to hear from anyone about to help figure out how often it really is in overflow like this. Then to see if there’s any connection with other thermal features on Geyser Hill.
You may notice in the photo above that Copper Kettle is almost a perfect pentagon shape. I use that in my notes:
- 8 June 2010: Copper Kettle’s overflow is coming out over the entire bottom edge and half way up the next left hand side.
There are lots of ways to let us know – add a comment to this post, submit an observation by clicking on the form link in the sidebar column or on the Copper Kettle Page. Let us know what you see – even if your comment is that it’s not in overflow.
“What are you scribbling?” I know it’s odd to see someone out on the boardwalks taking notes. What I think they really mean to ask is: What type of observations do you record?
Some people write down the geysers they see erupt with the times – as well as any calls they hear on the radio. It’s all about what draws you in, I suppose. Much of my record is with photos. I don’t rely on my memory of what a thermal feature was doing, but rather check my notes and my records. Then, when I have more time, I pull that together to create a journal page.
Bronze is one of the first thermal hot springs you see when walking around the lower part of Geyser Hill. It has surging ‘eruptions’ where the water heaves up or boils up, but doesn’t really shoot jets into the air like others. I still have yet to see it do its thing, but I take notes and photos when walking by.
Bronze Spring showed quite a bit of change while I was there last June. Here’s what I saw on 8 June 2010 at 1251:
Bronze Spring was in overflow with orange microbes pretty much all the way to the vent. Little Squirt was not in eruption and Silver Spring was drained. I knew to look at these other springs because there’s a likely connection between them. Park Geologist, George Marler saw a definite relationship after the 1959 Hebgen Lake Earthquake with both springs not only behaving in a similar manner – boiling at the same time, temperatures dropping at the same time, water levels rising or falling in unison, etc. [see USGS GD 73-018 by George Marler, p. 133 - available in the GOSA store for full details]. T. Scott Bryan suggests a relationship with the theory of the Geyser Hill Wave – where all three are active – Bronze Spring full, Silver Spring Full, and if Little Squirt starts to erupt, that the water in Silver may drop and it will start erupting from a much lower water level in its crater. [see his book, The Geysers of Yellowstone available in many stores in and around the Park for further info as well as the GOSA Transactions #IV, 1993 for the paper written on this theory – both available at the GOSA store).
The next photo I have of Bronze from this trip was taken in the morning of 15 June 2010 (at 0653):
.The angle of the sun was much lower, making it more difficult to observe, but my notes still said brown/orange microbes all the way to the vent, and it was still in overflow. Silver Spring was below overflow, but I could see the water from the boardwalk and it boiled and bubbled extra at times. Little Squirt was not erupting, though the electronic sensor recorded it starting an eruption at 2037 (8:37 PM) that evening.
The last time I saw it on this trip was 23 June 2010 at 1126 and a change was happening:
Definitely fewer microbes near the vent, indicating a rise in temperature – and it was below overflow – AND had steady bubbles rising from the vent. Silver Spring was empty, and Little Squirt was not in eruption.
The next time I got to Geyser Hill was the 18 Sept 2010 at 1222.
On that day, Little Squirt was in eruption (starting that morning at o440 according to the electronic monitor) and Silver Spring was boiling – at times to above the surface, so an eruption? I’m still not fully clear if the boiling up to within visual range is considered an eruption or just boiling. Bronze was hot, clear, blue green with no microbes, overflowing and sending up a steady stream of bubbles.
This is one of the reasons it’s so important to take notes – when I took the last photo in June, I was pretty certain it had microbes all the way to the vent before, but I wanted to verify with the photo taken and my notes. I know not everyone wants to have a huge catalog of photos of thermal features, but for me, it’s just a part of my Yellowstone Nature Journal.
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A place to watch near Doublet Pool on Geyser Hill
Many new thermal features starting to break out looking like this. Not much of anything at all to notice among the thousands of steaming holes in the ground. But as you become more familiar with them, you do start to notice these smaller features.
This triplet sits right there by the Doublet Pool sign on Geyser Hill. I noticed them a few years back – maybe 2007, but they could very likely have been there for longer. If you remember seeing them before, please leave a comment to add your information. This is how they looked in early June 2010, and I didn’t notice any significant change later on in the summer. In June they really sizzled away – water making the surrounding rock (sinter) dark. Later in the summer, though, due to the absence of spring water (or perhaps less energy in this spot?) they weren’t nearly as sizzly.
This is one of the reasons to stay on the boardwalks. The ground might just be a thin covering over a hot spring. Spots like this can start with bison steps. Often they aren’t harmed, but at times, they may burn a hock or if very unlucky, may fall in. Anything falling in or falling through won’t live long.
Since we can safely watch this area from the boardwalk, though, do keep an eye on this triplet by Doublet. It may change soon, or not for decades.
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I work with two computers – with every intention of multitasking (get photos crunching or something on one and write or something on the other). Yet most of the time, I just have the Old Faithful Streaming Cam full screen on one – keeping me company. I absolutely love the fact that one of my favorite spots on this big earth has a streaming webcam looking at it. The biggest skill this has increased for me due to this practice is paying attention to my peripheral vision.
Yesterday morning – I watched Lion Geyser erupt and finish. I sighed contentedly and looked back at my work on the other screen.
Next thing I know, the camera’s zoomed in on an eruption and I stare in disbelief – no, it can’t be. It is! North Goggles Geyser was erupting and the person at the controls of the camera had it zoomed in. It’s a rare sight to see. I think this is the second eruption this year…actually the second major eruption that’s been seen and reported in MANY years.
North Goggles Geyser is to the ‘right’ of the Lion Group (well, it’s part of the Lion group, but isn’t on the same rock mound where Lion sits). This isn’t a perfect stitching job (darn, I need to go back to reshoot this!), but it shows the location:
(Lion far left) Goggles Spring on the left and North Goggles Geyser on the right
North Goggles Geyser has major and minor eruptions – biggest difference is the height. Minors don’t reach very high (maybe ten feet) but the majors reach considerably higher – 20 feet or more. This one was a major. It’s common for the (rare) eruptions to happen after Lion finishes. There are many more details to what happens, but that’s the basic info I focus on.
Yeah, I would have loved to have seen this in person, but being able to watch on the streaming cam is still amazing. Thank you, Canon and The Yellowstone Park Foundation!
Here’s the video captured from the streaming cam:
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Sponge Geyser – this is about it most of the time over the past few years. It simply cycles between low and high water – ‘a cyclic geyser.’ When at high water, it boils – ‘a boiling eruption.’ When I took these two photos I had a gentleman ask me what it does and upon learning this was it, he was visibly disappointed. The size of the cone does suggest maybe it does something more.
But then when I walked up to Sponge Geyser this year, it was different. Still not big, but different, and those differences capture me. There’s a bench to sit on at Sponge Geyser, and I sat for an hour or so – it’s really a great spot to watch much of the action on Geyser Hill. This time, at high water it bubbled and overflowed. Then as the water level dropped, the boiling began AND water spurted out some side vents I had not seen before. Some eruptions spurted water out these back or side vents fairly high, while others just splashed up a few drops. There might be a pattern to it – or there might not be any pattern. But a change definitely happened.
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Janet
http://youtu.be/5AEIEBWUFYE