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The Science Behind What Makes Yellowstone's Geysers Erupt

Published August 23, 2016 at 10:20 AM MDT
Tourists watch the "Old Faithful" geyser, which erupts on average every 90 minutes, at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming on June 1, 2011. (Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images)
Tourists watch the "Old Faithful" geyser, which erupts on average every 90 minutes, at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming on June 1, 2011. (Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images)

Yellowstone National Park is home to more geysers than any place on Earth, and researchers are still learning about how they work.

Here & Now’s Jeremy Hobson takes a tour of Yellowstone’s geyser basin with a park ranger and a scientist who’s been studying the geology of the park for nearly 60 years.

Hear more from Here & Now‘s national parks tour.

Guests

Dr. Bob Smith, coordinating scientist at the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory and an emeritus professor of geophysics at the University of Utah.

Rebecca Roland, park ranger at Yellowstone National Park.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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