Mammoth Hot Springs is a large complex of
hot spring
A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a Spring (hydrology), spring produced by the emergence of Geothermal activity, geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow ...
s on a hill of
travertine
Travertine ( ) is a form of terrestrial limestone deposited around mineral springs, especially hot springs. It often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, cream-colored, and rusty varieties. It is formed by a process ...
in
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in the northwest corner of Wyoming, with small portions extending into Montana and Idaho. It was established by the 42nd U ...
adjacent to
Fort Yellowstone and the
Mammoth Hot Springs Historic District. It was created over thousands of years as hot water from the spring cooled and deposited
calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is a common substance found in Rock (geology), rocks as the minerals calcite and aragonite, most notably in chalk and limestone, eggshells, gastropod shells, shellfish skel ...
(over two tons flow into Mammoth each day in a solution). Because of the huge amount of geothermal vents, travertine flourishes. Although these springs lie outside the
caldera
A caldera ( ) is a large cauldron-like hollow that forms shortly after the emptying of a magma chamber in a volcanic eruption. An eruption that ejects large volumes of magma over a short period of time can cause significant detriment to the str ...
boundary, their energy has been attributed to the same magmatic system that fuels other Yellowstone geothermal areas.
The hot water that feeds Mammoth comes from Norris Geyser Basin after traveling underground via a fault line that runs through
limestone
Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
and roughly parallel to the Norris-to-Mammoth road. The limestone from rock formations along the fault is the source of the calcium carbonate.
Shallow circulation along this corridor allows Norris's superheated water to slightly cool before surfacing at Mammoth, generally at about .
Algae
Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...
living in the warm pools have tinted the travertine shades of brown, orange, red, and green.
Thermal activity here is extensive both over time and distance. The thermal flows show much variability with some variations taking place over periods ranging from decades to days.
Terrace Mountain at Mammoth Hot Springs is the largest known carbonate-depositing spring in the world. The most famous feature at the springs is the Minerva Terrace, a series of travertine terraces. The terraces have been deposited by the spring over many years but, due to recent minor
earthquake
An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...
activity, the spring vent has shifted, rendering the terraces dry.
The Mammoth Terraces extend all the way from the hillside, across the Parade Ground, and down to Boiling River. The Mammoth Hotel, as well as all of
Fort Yellowstone, is built upon an old terrace formation known as Hotel Terrace. There was some concern when construction began in 1891 on the fort site that the hollow ground would not support the weight of the buildings. Several large sink holes (fenced off) can be seen out on the Parade Ground. This area has been thermally active for several thousand years.
The Mammoth area exhibits much evidence of
glacial
A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires ...
activity from the
Pinedale Glaciation. The summit of Terrace Mountain is covered with
glacial till
image:Geschiebemergel.JPG, Closeup of glacial till. Note that the larger grains (pebbles and gravel) in the till are completely surrounded by the matrix of finer material (silt and sand), and this characteristic, known as ''matrix support'', is d ...
, thereby dating the travertine formation there to earlier than the end of the Pinedale Glaciation. Several thermal
kames, including Capitol Hill and Dude Hill, are major features of the Mammoth Village area. Ice-marginal stream beds are in evidence in the small, narrow valleys where Floating Island Lake and Phantom Lake are found. In Gardner Canyon one can see the old, sorted gravel bed of the Gardner River covered by unsorted glacial till.
Gallery
File:Mammoth Hot Springs - Terracing - August 2011.JPG, Crystallized calcium carbonate
Calcium carbonate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is a common substance found in Rock (geology), rocks as the minerals calcite and aragonite, most notably in chalk and limestone, eggshells, gastropod shells, shellfish skel ...
terraces
File:HotSprings.jpg, Elk on travertine terraces
File:YNP Mammoth Springs MGB01.jpg, Mineral deposition
File:Mammoth Hot Springs Travertine Terrace.JPG, Travertine Terrace
File:Cleopatra's Terrace in 1902, Mammoth Hot Springs, Y.N.P, from Robert N. Dennis collection of stereoscopic views.jpg, Cleopatra's Terrace Stereo card by T.W. Ingersoll
File:Orange Spring Mound at Mammoth Hot Springs.jpg, Orange Spring Mound at Mammoth Hot Springs
File:MK01292 Mammoth Hot Springs-Liberty Cap.jpg, Liberty Cap
File:Dyrad Spring.jpg, Dryad Spring
File:Mound Spring.JPG, Mound Spring
File:Mammoth Hot Springs, Pulpit Terraces - DPLA - 528c84b004e3103607a006e96e662765.jpg, Pulpit Terraces, ca. 1879–1894.
Individually named thermal features
* Angel Spring 1
* Angel Spring 2
* Angel Spring 3
* Aphrodite Terrace
* Baby Terrace
* Bath Lake
* Blue Springs
* Canary Spring
* Cavern Terrace
* Cedar Tree Spring
* Cheops Mound
* Cleopatra Terrace
* Cupid Spring
* Dedolph Spring-a
* Dedolph Spring-b
* Dedolph Spring-c
* Devil's Kitchen Springs (The Sodas)
* Devil's Thumb
* Fan Spring
* Fissure Ridge
* Glen Springs
* Highland Terrace
* Hymen Terrace
* Ladies' Lake
* Liberty Cap
* Little Burper
* Little Joker
* Little Lucifer
* Main Springs and Terrace
* Marble Terrace
* Minerva Terrace
* Mound Terrace
* Naid Spring
* Narrow Gauge Terrace
* New Blue Spring
* New Highland Terrace
* New Pallette Springs
* Opal Terrace (across the road from Liberty Cap)
*
Orange Mound Spring
* Painted Pool
* Palette Spring
* Paperpicker Spring
* Poison Cave
* Poison Spring (Gaseous Hot Spring)
* Prospect Springs and Terrace
* Pulpit Terrace
* Rath Spring and Terrace
* Reservoir Springs
* River Styx-a
* River Styx-b
* Sidewalk Spring
* Soda Spring (Bargar-Allen & Day)
* Squirrel Springs and Squirrel Ridge
* Sulphur Pits
* Sulphur Spring
* Tangerine Spring
* The Buttress
* The Esplanade
* The Grottos
* Trail Springs
* White Elephant Back Terrace
See also
*
Geothermal areas of Yellowstone
The geothermal areas of Yellowstone include several geyser basins in Yellowstone National Park as well as other Geothermal activity, geothermal features such as hot springs, mud pots, and fumaroles. The number of thermal features in Yellowstone ...
References
External links
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Geothermal features of Yellowstone National Park
Geothermal features of Park County, Wyoming
Hot springs of Wyoming