Yellowstone. Midway Geyser Basin. Web Sized. HDR.

            Hot springs

Hot springs form when heated water emerges through cracks in the Earth’s surface. Unlike geysers, which have obstructions near the surface (hence the eruptions), the water in hot springs flows unobstructed, creating an unbroken cycle of hot water that rises, cools, and falls. 

The water in the centre of the spring can reach a temperature of 189 degrees Fahrenheit, making it too hot to support most life forms (some life forms exist, but they are limited to organisms that feed on inorganic chemicals like hydrogen gas). Because there is very little life in the centre of the pool, the water appears extremely clear and a beautiful deep blue. But as the water spreads and cools, it creates concentric rings of different temperatures. These distinct temperature rings are critical because each ring creates a very different environment inhabited by different types of bacteria, and it is the different types of bacteria that can be identified by their different colours.

Colour visualisation:
Inside these rings live different organisms, including bacteria that obtain their energy by photosynthesis. The primary pigment of photosynthesis is chlorophyll, which we see in green. But chlorophyll levels can sometimes be overwhelmed by an accessory pigment known as carotenoids. Carotenoids are red, orange, or yellow; the yellow in Synechococcus is the exact same pigment, beta-carotene, which in high concentrations gives the orange we see in carrots.

As you move outward from the yellow band, the temperature of the hot spring begins to cool, and as the temperature cools, a more diverse set of bacterial life can flourish. The orange colour, like the yellow in the ring next to it, comes from carotenoids, which these bacteria produce to protect themselves from the harsh light of the Yellowstone summer sun.

The outermost ring is the coolest, at about 131°F, and hosts the most diverse community of bacteria.

Taken on: November 14, 2022

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