Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park

 

Yellowstone National Park is located in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. It was established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872. Yellowstone was the first National Park in the U.S. and is also widely held to be the first national park in the world. The park is known for its wildlife and its many geothermal features, especially Old Faithful geyser. It has many types of ecosystems, but the sub-alpine forest is the most abundant. It is part of the South Central Rockies forests eco-region.

 Native Americans have lived in the Yellowstone region for at least 11,000 years.  Aside from visits by mountain men during the early-to-mid-19th century, organized exploration did not begin until the late 1860s. Management and control of the park originally fell under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior, the first being Columbus Delano. However, the U.S. Army was subsequently commissioned to oversee management of Yellowstone for a 30-year period between 1886 and 1916.  In 1917, administration of the park was transferred to the National Park Service, which had been created the previous year. Hundreds of structures have been built and are protected for their architectural and historical significance, and researchers have examined more than a thousand archaeological sites.

 

 

 Yellowstone Lake is one of the largest high-elevation lakes in North America and is centered over the Yellowstone Caldera, the largest super volcano on the continent. The caldera is considered an active volcano. It has erupted with tremendous force several times in the last two million years.  

Half of the world's geothermal features are in Yellowstone, fueled by it's ongoing volcanism.  Lava flows and rocks from volcanic eruptions cover most of the land area of Yellowstone. The park is the centerpiece of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, the largest remaining nearly-intact ecosystem in the Earth's northern temperate zone.

Hundreds of species of mammals, birds, fish, and reptiles have been documented, including several that are either endangered or threatened.  The vast forests and grasslands also include unique species of plants.  Grizzly bears, wolves, and free-ranging herds of bison and elk live in the park. The Yellowstone Park bison herd is the oldest and largest public bison herd in the United States.

 

 

 

 

The park contains the headwaters of the Yellowstone River, from which it takes its historical name. It is commonly believed that the river was named for the yellow rocks seen in the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

 

The most famous geyser in the park, and perhaps the world, is Old Faithful , located in Upper Geyser Basin, and erupts approximately every 91 minutes.   Castle Geyser, Lion Geyser and Beehive Geyser are in the same basin.   A study that was completed in 2011 found that at least 1283 geysers have erupted in Yellowstone and of these, an average of 465 are active in a given year.   Yellowstone contains at least 10,000 geothermal features altogether, with half the geothermal features and two-thirds of the world's geysers concentrated in Yellowstone. 
^{Here's Old Faithful from beginning to end of her performance.  As the photos go by I think you can  see the sheer power of this geyser.}  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In May 2001, the U.S. Geological Survey, Yellowstone National Park, and the University of Utah created the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO), a partnership for long-term monitoring of the geological processes of the Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field, for disseminating information concerning the potential hazards of this geologically active region.

 

 

You can't visit Yellowstone with out learning about the most recent changes within the system.  In 2003, changes at the Norris Geyser Basin resulted in the temporary closure of some trails in the basin. New fumaroles were observed, and several geysers showed enhanced activity and increasing water temperatures. Several geysers became so hot that they were transformed into purely steaming features; the water had become superheated and they could no longer erupt normally.  The Geological Survey research team also mapped the bottom of Yellowstone Lake and identified a structural dome that had uplifted at some time in the past. Research indicated that these uplifts posed no immediate threat of a volcanic eruption, since they may have developed long ago, and there had been no temperature increase found near the uplifts.  There was also an upsurge in earthquake activity in April 2004.  There have been other changes within Yellowstone since 2004 and although these events inspired a great deal of media attention and speculation about the geologic future of the region, experts responded to the conjecture by informing the public that there was no increased risk of a volcanic eruption in the near future. However, these changes do demonstrate the dynamic nature of the Yellowstone hydrothermal system.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, while all these historical and scientific facts are interesting, and at times very concerning,  the absolute beauty and uniqueness of Yellowstone is  to be enjoyed.  You’ve seen some of this in the photos above but here are additional sights that just leave a person awe struck!  Enjoy as you get lost in the beauty of Yellowstone.

 

 

 

Watch for more soon !

Jan 🌷🌷🐾🐾