|
Welcome
to Point of Interest Road
Signs! A
collection of photos of road and trail signs. Click
here for more Wyoming Signs
Yellowstone
National Park - Jupiter's Cycle
Location
of sign - Mammoth Hot Springs area trail at Yellowstone National
Park.
Photo
taken June 2008
Close-up
view of sign
Wide
view of sign
Text
of sign:
Jupiter's Cycle
Jupiter
Spring first bubbled up in a landscape of scattered trees and travertine -
travertine created by older springs.
After
Juniper Terrace grew, hot mineral water streamed downhill, burying the grass
and trees growing there.
By
1872 when William Henry Jackson photographed the formation, the trees were
engulfed by travertine.
Jupiter
Spring flowed abundantly in 1923. Colorful pools adorned its terraces.
By
1998 Jupiter Springs had been dormant for several years. If it remains
inactive, soil will eventually form on Jupiter's
crumbling
travertine, and become home to trees and flowers again.
Changing
Activity
Throughout
a hot spring's life cycle, fluctuations occur.
A
hot spring may become dormant at any time for days, months, or years.
Within
several miles of where you are standing, massive deposits of travertine have
been found, most of it covered by soil.
Evidence
of ancient hot springs, this travertine can be thousands of years old!
Buried
Alive
Flooded
by hot spring water, the trees beside you absorbed calcium carbonate. It
hardened in their "veins" fatally blocking the
absorption
of water and nutrients.
"Rock
solid" from hardened minerals, exposed treetops can stand for decades.
Graphics
on the sign
In addition
to the text there are pictures showing different views of Jupiter Spring from
1872, 1923 and 1998. There is also a
picture
of trees covered in calcium carbonate.
Please help us
out by submitting
a photo!
You
can find more information about the state of Wyoming here and
get an Wyoming
Homepage here
|
