| Travertine Hot Springs | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Location | near Bridgeport, Mono County, California [1] |
| Coordinates | 38°14′44″N119°12′19″W / 38.245483°N 119.205383°W |
| Elevation | 6,700 feet |
| Type | geothermal spring |
| Temperature | 180°F |
Travertine Hot Springs are a group of geothermal mineral springs located near the town of Bridgeport, California.
Travertine Hot Springs are located two miles Southeast of Bridgeport, California on several sizeable travertine terraces, overlooking views of the High Sierra mountains. [2] Volunteers have built a series of primitive rock pools and wood-and-concrete enclosures to contain the water, and to control temperature by diverting the flow through stepped channels. [2] The springs are located on California State Park land. [3]
According to David Risley, a geologist with the U.S. Forest Service, the hot springs gets its name from the build-up of calcium carbonate (a form of limestone) that forms the mineral terraces. In the mid-1890s, 60 tons of travertine was mined from the site to build the interior facings of San Francisco City Hall, and other buildings. [1]
For hundreds of years the hot mineral springs were used by local indigenous people and later, early settlers. According to archaeological records, Paleo-Indians used thermal springs in the American west for 10,000 years, based on evidence of human use and settlements. Hot springs provided warmth, healing mineral water, and cleansing. [4] Later, the Paiute people used the hot springs. [1]
In the early 1900s, the first wood-lined pool for dipping sheep was built; some of the wooden planks currently at the site are the original boards. [2]
The hot mineral water emerges from several geothermal fissures in the ground at 180°F (82°C) and are cooled to 115°–156°F as they progress through the travertine terraces. [5] Due to underground movement caused local and regional earthquakes, the temperature fluctuates. [2]
A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma or by circulation through faults to hot rock deep in the Earth's crust.
The geothermal areas of Yellowstone include several geyser basins in Yellowstone National Park as well as other geothermal features such as hot springs, mud pots, and fumaroles. The number of thermal features in Yellowstone is estimated at 10,000. A study that was completed in 2011 found that a total of 1,283 geysers have erupted in Yellowstone, 465 of which are active during an average year. These are distributed among nine geyser basins, with a few geysers found in smaller thermal areas throughout the Park. The number of geysers in each geyser basin are as follows: Upper Geyser Basin (410), Midway Geyser Basin (59), Lower Geyser Basin (283), Norris Geyser Basin (193), West Thumb Geyser Basin (84), Gibbon Geyser Basin (24), Lone Star Geyser Basin (21), Shoshone Geyser Basin (107), Heart Lake Geyser Basin (69), other areas (33). Although famous large geysers like Old Faithful are part of the total, most of Yellowstone's geysers are small, erupting to only a foot or two. The hydrothermal system that supplies the geysers with hot water sits within an ancient active caldera. Many of the thermal features in Yellowstone build up sinter, geyserite, or travertine deposits around and within them.
Mammoth Hot Springs is a large complex of hot springs on a hill of travertine in Yellowstone National Park adjacent to Fort Yellowstone and the Mammoth Hot Springs Historic District. It was created over thousands of years as hot water from the spring cooled and deposited calcium carbonate. Because of the huge amount of geothermal vents, travertine flourishes. Although these springs lie outside the caldera boundary, their energy has been attributed to the same magmatic system that fuels other Yellowstone geothermal areas.
Travertine is a form of terrestrial limestone deposited around mineral springs, especially hot springs. It often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, cream-colored, and rusty varieties. It is formed by a process of rapid precipitation of calcium carbonate, often at the mouth of a hot spring or in a limestone cave. In the latter, it can form stalactites, stalagmites, and other speleothems. It is frequently used in Italy and elsewhere as a building material. Similar deposits formed from ambient-temperature water are known as tufa.
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Diana's Punchbowl, also called the Devil's Cauldron, is a geothermal feature located on a small fault in Nye County, Nevada. The spring is exposed through a cup-shaped depression about 50 feet (15 m) in diameter at the top of a domelike hill of travertine about 600 feet (180 m) in diameter. Hot water in the pool of the bowl is about 30 feet below the rim.
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Frenchman's Hot Springs, also known as Frenchman's Bend Hot Springs or Warfield Hot Springs, is a hot spring located along Warm Springs Creek in the Sawtooth National Forest, 11 miles (17.7km) from Ketchum, Idaho. The springs are composed of three wide, shallow pools. The pools are rock-walled, with sand and gravel covered bottoms. The average temperature of the springs varies throughout the year, but most of the time, water enters the springs at around 124°F (51.11°C). The water in the springs is usually clear.
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