Finally, with warmer temperatures and extended droughts now expected to increase in the region due to climate change, researchers expect longer intervals between Old Faithful’s eruptions.ĭespite its being one of the most popular and recognizable geologic features on Earth, scientists know surprisingly little about Old Faithful, such as how old it is or what its eruption patterns looked like through prerecorded history.Īs geysers erupt over the course of hundreds to thousands of years, dissolved silicate minerals in the discharged water slowly build up around their bases, forming a slightly elevated landscape known as a sinter mound. They also found that the famous geyser was dormant for several decades during the 13th century due to a megadrought that gripped much of western North America. Scientists studying fossilized wood samples buried and preserved by the geyser have now confirmed that Old Faithful is likely thousands of years old, according to a new study by Hurwitz et al. Yellowstone’s most famous geyser, Old Faithful, has erupted with an unusual degree of regularity since records were first taken, in the 1870s, discharging thousands of gallons of boiling, silica-rich water over 30 meters into the air an average of 16 times a day.
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