[Geysers] "Beehive Doesn't Like to Erupt at Night"--Lynn Stephens

[Lynn Stephens]

THIS POST IS FOR THE PERSONAL USE OF THE SUBSCRIBERS TO THIS LISTSERV AND MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED

FOR ANY OTHER PURPOSE.  

 

TARA--If you haven't finished the "Current Geyser Activity" column for the June Sput, you can go ahead and insert this if you want to do so.

 

Once again, I am hearing the statements “I heard Beehive does not like to erupt at night,” and “So-and-so looked at the data and said Beehive does not like to erupt at night.”  I addressed this issue in a column in the February 2008 issue of The Sput.  Over the years there have been some years when Beehive exhibited a strong diurnal effect and other years when it did not.
 
Using Ralph Taylor’s electronic data for January 1 through April 22, 2009 (thank you to the Park Service for providing the monitors and to Ralph Taylor for analyzing the temperature data to compute the eruption times),  the best 4 hour window for Beehive is between noon and 4 pm when 26% of the eruptions occur,  9.6% more than would be expected if the eruptions were spread evenly throughout the 4-hour blocks.  Interestingly, the 4-hour blocks of midnight to 4 am and 4 am to 8 am each have 16.7% of the eruptions, the same number that would be expected if eruptions were spread evenly throughout the 4-hour blocks.  The largest deficit is in the 8 pm to midnight block, which contains only 10.9% of the eruptions, a  5.8% deficit.  The other 4-hour blocks with deficits include 4 pm to 8 pm with a 2.6% deficit, and the 8 am to noon block with a 1.3% deficit.  
 
Using available data to date this year, it appears that Beehive’s aversion to eruptions is late afternoon through midnight, but once the clock strikes midnight, Beehive awakens.
 





2009 Beehive Data 1/1/ - 4/22


 

 
 
Number of eruptions

 
 
Percent of Eruptions

Percent if Eruptions were Evenly Distributed

 
 
 
Surplus/Deficit


 

 

 

 

 


Midnight to 3:59 am

 
26

 
16.67

 
16.67

 
0


4:00 am to
7:59 am

 
26

 
16.67

 
16.67

 
0


8:00 am to
11:59 am

 
24

 
15.38

 
16.67

 
-1.29


Noon to 
3:59 pm

 
41

 
26.28

 
16.67

 
+9.62


4:00 pm to
 7:59 pm

 
22

 
14.1

 
16.67

 
-2.57


8:00 pm to
11:59 pm

 
17

 
10.9

 
16.67

 
-5.77


 

 

 

 

 


Number 

156

 

 

 
 
Note, because this is just a quick note for readers of the listserv, I have not performed any tests of statistical significance.  I’ll save those for an expanded article for either the Sput or the Transactions.
 

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