Giant Geyser
Encyclopedia
Giant Geyser is a cone-type geyser
in the Upper Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park
in the United States
. Giant Geyser is the namesake for the Giant Group of geysers, which includes Bijou Geyser
, Giant Geyser, Giantess Geyser and Mastiff Geyser. Giant Geyser is also the namesake for the Giant Platform, a raised stone structure incorporating all these geysers. Giant is notable for its spectacular, but sporadic eruptions, as well as for its very large cone of geyserite
, which stands about 12 feet tall.
entered the Upper Geyser Basin and observed geysers erupting. During their day and a half explorations, they named seven geysers in the basin, including Giant. Nathaniel P. Langford
in his 1871 Scribner's account described the Giant.
The spectacular scale of a Giant eruption, combined with relatively frequent activity in recent years, has caused the geyser to be the object of much study and much has been learned about its eruptive behavior. Giant steams and splashes even during inactive periods, but eruptions can only happen during so-called "hot periods" when there are changes in the activity of the other springs on the Giant Platform as well as more intense splashing in Giant itself. Hot periods typically last a few minutes, and most do not lead to an eruption. When the hot period ends, activity on the Platform returns to normal, and it may be tens of minutes to hours before the next hot period occurs. When Giant does erupt, the activity can be quite dramatic, lasting about an hour and sometimes reaching over 250 feet.
Geyser
A geyser is a spring characterized by intermittent discharge of water ejected turbulently and accompanied by a vapour phase . The word geyser comes from Geysir, the name of an erupting spring at Haukadalur, Iceland; that name, in turn, comes from the Icelandic verb geysa, "to gush", the verb...
in the Upper Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Giant Geyser is the namesake for the Giant Group of geysers, which includes Bijou Geyser
Bijou Geyser
Bijou Geyser is a geyser in the Upper Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park in the United States.-Eruptions:Bijou erupts nearly continuously reaching a height of . At times, the water fountain turns to a steam phase when Bijou emits a column of steam....
, Giant Geyser, Giantess Geyser and Mastiff Geyser. Giant Geyser is also the namesake for the Giant Platform, a raised stone structure incorporating all these geysers. Giant is notable for its spectacular, but sporadic eruptions, as well as for its very large cone of geyserite
Geyserite
Geyserite is a form of opaline silica that is often found around hot springs and geysers. Botryoidal geyserite is known as fiorite. It is sometimes referred to as sinter.-References:*...
, which stands about 12 feet tall.
History
On September 18, 1870 the Washburn-Langford-Doane ExpeditionWashburn-Langford-Doane Expedition
The Washburn Expedition of 1870, explored the region of northwestern Wyoming that a couple years later became Yellowstone National Park. Led by Henry Washburn, Nathaniel P. Langford and under U.S. Army escort led by Lt. Gustavus C...
entered the Upper Geyser Basin and observed geysers erupting. During their day and a half explorations, they named seven geysers in the basin, including Giant. Nathaniel P. Langford
Nathaniel P. Langford
Nathaniel Pitt Langford was an explorer, businessman, bureaucrat, vigilante and historian from St. Paul, Minnesota who played an important role in the early years of the Montana gold fields, territorial government and the creation of Yellowstone National Park.-Montana Gold Fields:On June 16, 1862...
in his 1871 Scribner's account described the Giant.
"The Giant" has a rugged crater, ten feet in diameter on the outside, with an irregular orifice five or six feet in diameter. It discharges a vast body of water, and the only time we saw it in eruption the flow of water in a column five feet in diameter, and one hundred and forty feet in vertical height, continued uninterruptedly for nearly three hours. The crater resembles a miniature model of the Coliseum.
Eruptions
Giant can go long periods between eruptions. Its activity level varies considerably from year to year. For several years starting in 1955 it was dormant, and from 1963 through 1987 only six eruptions were known to have occurred. By contrast, around 1997 the interval between eruptions averaged as little as four days. The most recent active phase of Giant Geyser started on August 6, 2005 and continued until April 29, 2008, when activity decreased dramatically; there was a single eruption again on August 26, 2008. There were 11 eruptions in 2005, 47 in 2006, 54 in 2007 (the most eruptions for any year since 1955), and 13 in 2008. There were no recorded eruptions in 2009 and 2 in January 2010. The reasons for this variability are unknown.The spectacular scale of a Giant eruption, combined with relatively frequent activity in recent years, has caused the geyser to be the object of much study and much has been learned about its eruptive behavior. Giant steams and splashes even during inactive periods, but eruptions can only happen during so-called "hot periods" when there are changes in the activity of the other springs on the Giant Platform as well as more intense splashing in Giant itself. Hot periods typically last a few minutes, and most do not lead to an eruption. When the hot period ends, activity on the Platform returns to normal, and it may be tens of minutes to hours before the next hot period occurs. When Giant does erupt, the activity can be quite dramatic, lasting about an hour and sometimes reaching over 250 feet.