Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Geysers and hot springs are often connected in complex and delicate underground net-
works and affect each other in ways we don't yet understand.
PSYCHEDELIC SCIENCE
Given that Yellowstone, with its 10,000 geothermal features, is the world's foremost source of heated water, it
comes as no surprise that heat-loving (thermophilic) micro-organisms were first discovered in the park's boiling
hot waters.
A huge variety of microbes and bacteria thrive in these extreme waters, tolerating heat, extremely acidic or al-
kaline conditions and toxic minerals. One such species has yielded an important enzyme crucial to DNA finger-
printing tests (
Click here
)
. Other research is revealing important clues about the origins of life on earth and sur-
vival of life in outer space.
Much of this activity occurs on a microscopic scale, but visitors can still appreciate the brilliant colors these
micro-organisms produce in bodies of water. With species inhabiting a highly specific temperature and chemical
zone, each layer produces the rings and patches of vibrant color that gives Yellowstone waters their psychedelic
signature.
Hot Springs
Hot springs occur with a gradual release of hot
water. Springs may rage like oil in a deep fryer,
churn like giant washing machines or remain
completely still. Their crazy colors are a com-
bination of mineral content, which affects the
absorption and reflection of light, and water
temperature, which supports a range of algae
communities. Since algae or thermophiles are very temperature-specific, they may create
beautiful concentric bands of colors. Blue pools are the hottest, absorbing all color except
blue. Green pools result when the blue is mixed with small amounts of yellow sulfur.
The pink to grey rhyolitic lava that dominates park
landscapes owes its hue to silica. The same sub-
stance is known to clog up narrow steam vents to
create powerful geyser explosions.
Mud Pots
Imagine that the sulfuric acid in groundwater is
potent enough to dissolve rock, creating a sort
of hot spring of viscous bubbling mud. The
mud is known as kaolinite, a form of clay. Mud
pots form above the water table, where less
Yellowstone's fascinating geology is laid bare in
Windows into the Earth,
by Robert B Smith and
Lee J Siegel.
