This is the Grane Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park. It is the 3rd largest hot spring in the world - Frying Pan Lake is in New Zealand and Boiling Lake in Dominica. I had to find out what make this amazing display. This from Wikipedia:
"The bright, vivid colors in the spring are the result of microbial mats of thermophilic bacteria around the edges of the mineral-rich water. The mats produce colors ranging from green to red; the amount of color in the microbial mats depends on the ratio of chlorophyll to carotenoids and on the temperature gradient in the runoff. In the summer, the mats tend to be orange and red, whereas in the winter the mats are usually dark green.The center of the pool is sterile due to extreme heat.
The deep blue color of the water in the center of the pool results from the intrinsic blue color of water. The effect is strongest in the center of the spring, because of its sterility and depth."
The larger thermal pools/lakes are blue. Well, Dominica's is grey with a lot of cloud vapour. None are this beautiful combination of colours. What's distinctive about these is how hot they are with actively boiling water. It has some of its own magical properties, described by Wikipedia:
"In the 1870s it was deep; after a phreatic eruption nearby in 1880, the lake disappeared and formed a fountain of hot water and steam. Another phreatic eruption lowered the lake level by some 33 feet (10 m) from December 2004 to April 2005; later the lake level rose again, refilling the lake in just one day.The rapid draining and refilling of the lake implies that it is suspended well above the local water table and that a continuous flux of steam or gas generated by an underlying magmatic intrusion drives water up into the lake.A disturbance to the supply of gas can cause the lake to drain through the porous connection that normally allows steam to rise and heat the lake."
So if we look for more of the colourful pools, here's the Icelandic Námaskarð geothermal pool. It has good colours too but it is quite small - pictures with people demonstrate that. The contrast of the earth colours and the water seem splendid to me.
What do you think of this picture of Pamukkale Thermal Pools in Turkey? These are ancient white travertine terraced pools that bear a resemblance to flattened clouds. (Pamukkale actually means "cotton castle.") Dripping slowly down the mountainside, mineral-rich waters collect in and cascade down the mineral terraces, into pools below.
Such wonderful natural wonders to enjoy from afar. Closer to home is the spring ephemeral, Coltsfoot. I had put one in the garden in Toronto, but like a colt, it moved very fast. I didn't bring any to Niagara with me.
