FILE VIDEO: A hydrothermal feature inside Yellowstone National Park sent rocks and debris flying, damaging a pedestrian boardwalk and forcing the closure of the area.
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK – Christmas came early for geologists at Yellowstone National Park this April when a regularly scheduled survey resulted in finding a new thermal feature at one of the most famous national parks.
The U.S. Geological Survey’s Yellowstone Volcano Observatory said geologists were conducting a routine temperature log at Norris Geyser Basin on April 10 when they located a new pool in the Porcelain Basin. The pool is about 4 meters across, about 109 degrees Fahrenheit, and colored light blue – looking a little like the “blue milk” from Disney’s Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge attraction.
A photo shows the new thermal pool in the Porcelain Basin area of Norris Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, that probably formed in a series of mildly explosive events between late December 2024 and early February 2025. The pool is about 4 meters across.
(U.S. Geological Survey photo by Mike Poland / FOX Weather)
According to the USGS, the new hole was likely caused by hydrothermal explosions between December 2024 and February 2025. The pool was discovered during the first survey since last fall.
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Using satellite observations of the Porcelain Basin, the USGS could see no signs of the pool from October to December. Then, in January, a slight depression was visible. By February, the pool was fully formed, according to satellite images.
An animated GIF of high-resolution satellite images of the Porcelain Basin area of Norris Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park, showing the development of a new thermal pool in the circled area with no development from October 19 to December 19, 2024. A small depression is visible in January 6, 2025 and in the February 13, 2025, image, the pool is fully formed.
(Image processing by R. Greg Vaughan (USGS), data from WorldView satellite system, MAXAR / FOX Weather)
The USGS also used data from a monitoring station that listens for low-frequency acoustic energy to detect hydrothermal activity.
“There were no strong and unambiguous explosion signals during the time over which satellite imagery indicate the feature formed,” the USGS said. “There were, however, several low-level acoustic signals that came from the direction of the new feature. The most obvious such signal was recorded on December 25, 2024, but it was relatively weak, and there was no associated seismic signal—something that would be expected from a significant explosion. Similar acoustic signals were recorded on January 15 and February 11, 2025, but again there were no seismic signals.”
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With all this information, geologists believe the new hole formed over multiple small events beginning on Christmas night. As it turns out, Christmas wasn’t early, but right on time. Scientists just got their gift a few months late.