Morning Glory Pool or Morning Glory Spring, is a mesmerizing hot spring in the Yellowstone Upper Geyser Basin of the United States. Because of its striking resemblance to the flower after which it was named, Morning Glory Pool was a popular hangout for early tourists. The Morning Glory Pool has occasionally erupted as a geyser, usually in response to an earthquake or other surrounding seismic activity. Thermophiles that are yellow and colorless flourish in the warmest water. Thermophiles that are orange, brown, and green flourish in colder waters.
In 1883, Mrs. E. N. McGowan, the spouse of Assistant Park Superintendent Charles McGowan, gave the pool its name. She named it “Convolutus,” which is the Latin word for the bloom that resembles a morning glory. In the park, Morning Glory Pool had a widely used name by 1889. The name Morning Glory Spring has also been applied to the feature. A large portion of the material thrown into it “got buried in the sidewalls and vent of the spring, which impeded the water circulation and hence the water temperature,” since it has been a victim of vandalism.
Perhaps the water is cooling due to natural processes. Warmer temperatures promote the growth of bacteria with orange and yellow hues. The microorganisms that live in the water give the pool its unique tint. Morning Glory Pool has an average pH of 7.6, an average conductivity of 2098 uS/cm, and a temperature of 159.3°F (70.7°C). The Morning Glory Pool is about 23 feet deep. The most prevalent hydrothermal features in Yellowstone are hot springs. There are no restrictions in their plumbing.
When superheated water reaches the surface, it cools, sinks, and is replenished with hotter water from below. Water cannot get hot enough to cause an eruption because of this circulation. Although trillions of thermophiles, “thermo” for heat and “phile” for lover, are too small to view with the human eye, they are clustered together to form color masses. They are fed with energy and chemical building materials. A wide range of microbial mats with various hues and textures can be found in Yellowstone. Many thermophilic species cannot survive in the hottest water temperatures, and the way the water scatters and absorbs light gives the appearance of a clear blue color in the hot spring. Cooler pools can have more color because bacteria can develop there, while hotter pools are typically a vivid blue.
Tourists have thrown debris into some of the entryways, clogging them and limiting the hot water flow, which has changed the pool’s overall appearance. The 1950s nickname for the hot spring—the “junk can”—came from decades of people tossing trash, coins, and rocks into it on a frequent basis. The debris that had gathered at the foot of the vent blocked the flow of hot water into the pool.
In the 1970s, Rangers tried to remove as much rubbish as they could from the hot spring while partially draining it out of worry for the effects of humans on Morning Glory’s color. However, they were unable to stop the alteration. The outcomes of park officials’ multiple attempts to intentionally trigger eruptions in order to empty the debris pool and open blocked entryways have proven inconsistent.
The park staff put up an interpretative sign near the pool that talks about the harm that ignorance and vandalism can do, and it implies that Morning Glory is turning into a “Faded Glory.” The Upper Geyser Basin is home to most of the active geysers on Earth, including Old Faithful, only 5 minutes (1.3 mi) drive via Old Faithful Rd. There are just four other locations on Earth with significant concentrations of hydrothermal features: Iceland, New Zealand, Chile, and Russia’s Kamchatka.
Read More: The Astonishing Strokkur Fountain Geyser
