Grand Prismatic Spring: Prism of Light, Spectrum of Life

Grand Prismatic Spring: Prism of Light, Spectrum of Life (HMUHK)

Location: Yellowstone National Park, WY 82190 Teton County
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Country: United States of America
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N 44° 31.545', W 110° 50.294'

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Inscription
Grand Prismatic Spring is the largest and one of the most brilliant of Yellowstone's many colorful hot springs. It massive expanse stretches approximately 200 feet (61m) across. The high temperature of its water—?160 (70?C)—ensures that the spring is often cloaked in steam.

Deep beneath us, magma from an active volcano heats water that rises to the surface through fissures in the rocks. The result is a hot spring that pours almost 500 gallons of hot water each minute into the Firehole River. Minerals dissolved in the hot water are deposited and gradually build the gracefully terraced shoulders of this feature.

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Did You Know?

· Prismatic means brilliantly colored.
· The intense blue color in the center of this hot spring is due to sunlight being scattered by fine particles suspended in the water.
· The yellow, orange, and brown colors encircling the hot spring and lining the runoff channels are caused by thermophiles—heat-loving microorganisms. These microbes contain colorful pigments that allow them to make energy from sunlight and thrive in the harsh conditions of hot springs.

This exhibit made possible by a generous grant to the Yellowstone Park Foundation
Details
HM NumberHMUHK
Tags
Placed ByYellowstone Park Foundation
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Thursday, October 2nd, 2014 at 1:53am PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)12T E 512854 N 4930282
Decimal Degrees44.52575000, -110.83823333
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 44° 31.545', W 110° 50.294'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds44° 31' 32.70" N, 110° 50' 17.64" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)307
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 229-269 Grand Loop Rd, Yellowstone National Park WY 82190, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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