Hiking Guide to Norris Geyser Basin Area: Unveiling the Wonders of Yellowstone National Park
Experience the thrill of exploration as you traverse the captivating trails of the Norris Geyser Basin Area in Yellowstone National Park. As one of the world’s most dynamic geothermal areas, it offers a unique panorama of geysers, hot springs, and fumaroles, all set against the stunning backdrop of America’s first National Park. This guide provides everything you need to plan your hiking…
What spooky planet is this? Planet Earth of course, on a dark and stormy night in 2013 at Hverir, a geothermally active area along the volcanic landscape in northeastern Iceland. Triggered by solar activity, geomagnetic storms produced the auroral display in the starry night sky. The ghostly towers of steam and gas are venting from fumaroles and danced against the eerie greenish light. For now, auroral apparitions are increasing as our Sun approaches a maximum in its 11 year solar activity cycle. And pretty soon, ghostly shapes may dance in your neighborhood too.
The Beast of Sulphur. Another member of my geology / volcano monsters. Probably the stinkiest of them all! Inspired by the way sulphur crystals grow on the rocks at steaming vents. Some of it melts there and looks reddish, almost bloody 😲 Painted with acrylic inks.
Fumarole (noun) – A vent that emits volcanic gases.
Fumaroles, such as those found in the two summit craters of Mount Rainier, are volcanic vents that issue steam, hydrogen sulfide, and other gases. The chemically active fluids or gases produced by fumaroles corrode the surrounding rock, eventually changing the rock into crumbling, unstable hydrothermally altered rock. The heated gases from fumaroles also melt the glaciers at the summit, creating the world’s largest volcanic ice cave system, very little of which has been explored. Gases from the summit fumaroles has been studied since the 1980s and the USGS maintains monitoring sites at fumaroles located lower on the mountain. Have you seen fumaroles while climbing the mountain?
NPS Photo of climbers next to fumarole ice caves on the summit, 1956. ~kl
Oggi si parte per Furnas, un importante centro per l'attività vulcanica delle Azzorre: infatti, il paese è situato nel cratere di un antico vulcano dormiente e molti punti del territori sono soggetti a solfatare. Le nostre mete nello specifico sono il Lagoa das Furnas, un lago di origine vulcanica color verde smeraldo, e les fumarolas che si trovano lì vicino.
Le gorgoglianti e fumanti fumarole sono visitabili grazie ad un breve percorso fatto da passerelle. A poco a poco vi abituerete all'odore di zolfo e l'importante è non uscire dal tracciato né avvicinarsi troppo. La nostra attenzione è stata catturata da diverse buche in cui i ristoranti locali cucinano il cozido, il popolare stufato portoghese composto da maiale, manzo, pollo, salsicce, patate, carote e cavoli che vengono cotti lentamente nel terreno per circa 6 ore.
Il tradizionale piatto viene servito nei ristoranti della città ed ovviamente non abbiamo perso l'occasione di assaggiarlo.