Yellowstone national park, Wyoming, USA

( video 2005, West Thumb Geyser Basin, Yellowstone, Wyoming). The geothermal areas of Yellowstone include several geyser basins in Yellowstone National Park as well as other geothermal features such as hot springs, mud pots and fumaroles. In total, the number of thermal features in Yellowstone is estimated at 10,000 and 200 to 250 geysers erupt in Yellowstone each year, making it the place with the highest concentration of active geysers in the world, thanks to its location in an ancient caldera. Many of these features build up sinter, geyserite or travertine deposits around and within them. The West Thumb Geyser Basin 44°25′07″N 110°34′23″W / 44.41861°N 110.57306°W / 44.41861; -110.57306 (West Thumb Geyser Basin), including Potts Basin to the north, is the largest geyser basin on the shores of Yellowstone Lake. The heat source of the thermal features in this location is thought to be relatively close to the surface, only 10,000 feet (3,000 m) down. West Thumb is about the same size as another famous volcanic caldera, Crater Lake in Oregon, but much smaller than the great Yellowstone Caldera which last erupted about 640,000 years ago. It is interesting to note that West Thumb is a caldera within a caldera.

West Thumb was created approximately 162,000 years ago when a magma chamber bulged up under the surface of the earth and subsequently cracked it along ring fracture zones. This in turn released the enclosed magma as lava and caused the surface above the emptied magma chamber to collapse.[15] Water later filled the collapsed area of the caldera, forming an extension of Yellowstone Lake. This created the source of heat and water that feed the West Thumb Geyser Basin today.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• West Thumb
• Yellowstone
• Wyoming

[mizledyooth]

I live in Wyoming, say what you want but I like living here

[emeraldlizard909]

Can't wait to visit Yellowstone!

[TheMovingPlanetForum]

Your info would be great on the NEW Moving Planet Forum. You can post your videos and any website or Blog you may have. Full video embed is supported. It is connected to twitter and digg so any new threads you make will be posted also to twitter and digg. We are looking for new members as its a new forum. We cover Weather, Earthquakes, Solar activity, Volcanoes, Conspiracy theories, Ufos, Diseases and Pandemics, Earth News and much more.

[misterbetta1]

Cool video- my dad & I are going in June, I haven't been in 18 years. I don't even remember visiting the West Thumb area, so it will essentially be new to me. Can't wait to see all of those awesome thermal features Yellowstone has to offer

[mountainstandardtime]

The entire Yellowstone Park is a volcano caldera. It erupts every 600,000 years. It is 30,000 years late. Last time it erupted everything within 100 to 200 miles was killed. Ash was in the air for years sparking off a mini ice age.

[navy7700]

Odd to think that West Thumb, the location of Yellostone's central eruptive vent, contains very little geyser activity...

The basin's premiere geyser, Twin, is virtually dormant.

[davidsquall351]

The color of those places are Great!

I like the way that Red Algae looks.