[Geysers] Memorial Day weekend notes

[Paul Strasser]

Much of the geyser activity has already been noted in prior posts.  Here are
a few extra observations from the weekend.

 

Somebody's got to figure out those "bear closings" at Midway and Fountain
Paint Pots.  Their "enforcement" was nonexistent.  I don't know of a single
gazer who violated the closings, and that is - of course - to be commended.
But it's also frustrating because many of us actually want to collect data
and we wouldn't cross the line.  But hundreds of non-gazers did with
impunity.  

 

The new jugwalk at the Paint Pots appears to be the kind that has some wood
mixed in with the post-jug stuff, so it (one hopes) will not develop that
slick sheen of the lousy jugwalk at Old Faithful, Grand, et al. as it ages.
It seems more reminiscent of the jugwalk in the Giant cage, which is the
best in the park.  Yes, the installation is being done at a rate that would
charitably be described as glacial, but it will likely be better.

 

Re Giant.  On Saturday there was the start of a 19.5 hour marathon of Grotto
that ended at appox 0430 on Sunday.  That is unusually long for the last few
months, so decided to see how the Giant platform would recover.  At 0600
Variable Spring was down 10-12 inches, the GIP was very low, the platform
was quiet.  By 1000 there was water in Giant and some in Bijou and Mastiff;
the GIP was higher but still low by recent "good" years standing.  By 1200
Bijou's activity became one of the standard modes of behavior seen in past
years, with Pauses every 7, then 11, minutes.  These were real pauses, with
the GIP rising (but still low, too low for Mastiff water to be visible).
Within an hour the pauses were uniformly 11 minutes apart.  At that time
Heinrich, somewhat bemused, stopped by and was intrigued that there was
something actually occurring on the platform.  Within about 10 seconds he
saw that Emerald (a platform vent) was bubbling.  Damn.  I was staring at
the activity for so long I had no idea when the bubbling began; looks like a
fresh set of eyes was required.

 

Emerald is peculiar in that its activity matches Bijou's - when Bijou is
"on" during the marathon recovery (and sufficiently far enough along in the
recovery process) you can see modest "burbling" in its vent, with an
occasional drop or two landing on the surrounding sinter.  When Bijou is in
a pause the burbling in Emerald stops.

 

However, nothing much else was progressing.  The GIP got to a point where
the entire "back" of its hole (the area in the shadows) was covered with
water, but it never got higher.  The pauses continued every 10-11 minutes,
but their duration diminished.  By 1800 or so they had essentially ceased to
take place, although "slowdowns" were continuing.  Grotto's post-marathon
eruption took place appox 1930.

 

What this means?  I have seen similar activity in past years - I'd need to
dig out my logbooks, but in the late 80s and again in the mid-90s Bijou
would have pauses but hot periods were infrequent.  I have no idea if what I
saw - the pauses, the activity of Emerald, etc - is something new or has
been occurring all along.  Jim told me that he sat at Giant after a marathon
of unknown length and didn't mention either discrete pauses or anything in
platform vents.  Maybe this is just what happens after longish marathons;
I've heard that most recent marathons were well under 12 hours, many in the
8-hour range.  Does this bode well for Giant eruptions?  Shrug.  Would I be
surprised if Giant erupted next week?  No.  Nor would I be surprised if it
didn't go for months.  It is definitely NOT in the mode during the last true
long-period dormancy, before 1986.  After all, there aren't flowers growing
on the platform.

 

Final notes - the new visitor center is rather large.  I thought there was
supposed to be an effort to not have it taller than the Inn's East Wing.  I
must have misunderstood that directive because it is indeed taller.  The top
area, which looks like part of a train shed, is remarkable.  It's even
higher than the east and west Old Houses, which themselves are taller than
the Inn's wings.  This means you can see the top of the new Visitor Center
from places as dispersed as Daisy Geyser, Grand, Oblong (while standing on
the platform), Giant, and - of course - the hill, where it looms over the
area.  Somehow they neglected to have it also visible from Fan and Mortar.
It would be an ideal location for fixed webcams pointed at Grand, Giant,
Daisy, etc.  One hopes they have plans for its use - assuming that it will
have windows.  Right now most of the edifice is wrapped in Tyvek, giving it
the impression of a failed Christo performance art effort.

 

My gosh, it's big.

 

Paul Strasser

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