Foreign Substances Block Discharge Port, Causing Temperature and Color Changes
One of the geysers in Yellowstone National Park, the 'Morning Glory Pool,' is losing its original color due to human greed.
The famous geyser "Morning Glory Pool" in Yellowstone National Park, USA, has lost its original color. [Image source=Cowboy State Daily]
Recently, the New York Post reported that the Morning Glory Pool in Yellowstone National Park, once called the 'Morning Glory Hot Spring' for its deep blue color and distinctive conical shape, has changed to a mix of green, yellow, blue, and orange. This is because it has been polluted with trash, including coins and handkerchiefs thrown by tourists making wishes.
Elisha Murphy, a historian at Yellowstone National Park, said, "(In the past, tourists) did not understand how the hot spring lake worked," adding, "They threw all kinds of things into the pool, thinking the hot spring water would erupt if they did." She also noted that wishing wells are a long-standing tradition, saying, "There is something about the pool that instinctively makes people want to throw things into it."
The famous geyser known as 'Morning Glory Pool' in Yellowstone National Park, USA, was originally a deep blue color. [Image source=U.S. National Park Service]
Mike Poland, head of the Yellowstone National Park Volcano Observatory, estimated that changes in the water temperature of the Morning Glory Pool are the main reason for the color change. He explained, "Temperature is a major factor. Hot water appears bright blue, but cooler water allows bacteria to grow, which can create more diverse colors." He added, "Objects thrown by people partially blocked the hydrothermal vent, lowering the water temperature and allowing various bacteria to grow."
Yellowstone National Park has been trying to preserve the hot spring by regularly cleaning the Morning Glory Pool. They used fire trucks to pump out water, and workers removed foreign objects. Thousands of coins, stones that were not originally there, and items like hats presumed to have been dropped by tourists were found. Fortunately, tourists' awareness is gradually changing, and enforcement has become stricter, so cleaning operations have not been as frequent recently. However, a park official pointed out, "Still, it seems difficult for the already polluted hot spring to return to its former state," calling it "evidence of nature being damaged by human greed."
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