Yellowstone+National+Park

 **Eileen Monagle Hannah Medley Tan Class  Yellowstone National Park ** = =


 * Introduction **

Yellowstone is located in Yellowstone National Park Wyoming. It is one of the world's first national parks. At the moment, the park is still vocanicaly active. Lava flows beneath the surface power the many geysers such as, Old Faithful, and water features around the park. Volcanic activity is also responsible for many of the geologic features seen in the park. Yellowstone has over 10,000 thermal features and more than 300 geysers. In addition, Yellowstone is home to one of the largest calderas, and pertrified forrest in the world. It is also home to 405 different animal species including fish, mammals, and birds. There is also a large variety of plant life, with 1,300 different species.  5 

Some of the most visited cites in Yellowstone are: Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone Lake, Mount Everts, The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, and of course, Old Faithful. 5

 Yellowstone is an area of active faults and the location of a caldera and plateau. The plateau of Yellowstone was created by a series of volcanic eruptions from a hotspot. The eruption of the super volcano, which created the caldera, recreated the topography of Yellowstone. Prior to the eruption the plateau use to be mountainous and the mountain ranges to the north and south were once joined. 5


 * Geology of The Park

Yellowstone park is the result of many different natural occurring events. 70 - 140 million years ago, the area was covered by a shallow inland sea. 600,000 years ago, a super-volcano erupted covering the entire area in ash and lava flows. After it erupted, it collapsed forming the large caldera there is today. In addition, the park has withstood erosion and glaciation. Below is a video explaining the super volcano located under Yellowstone today. 5  [|Yellowstone National Park]

//Mammoth Hot Springs //  Is located just outside of the large caldera in a thermally active area. Although it isn't in the vocanically active area, it is still powered by the same system as the other thermal areas. Hot water from Norris Geyser Basin (the hottest geyser basin in Yellowstone) runs to Mammoth along a fault line roughly in the same place as the road to Mammoth from Norris. The shallow circulation lets the superheated water from Norris cool a bit before reaching the surface at Mammoth. As the hot water rises through the limestone it dissolves large amounts depositing a white chalky mineral on the surface. The water at Mammoth is about 170 degrees F. 3 <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; font-weight: normal;">

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//<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Yellowstone Lake //<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;"> Yellowstone Lake is the largest lake in the park. It is the result of an eruption, 1,000 times the size of Mount Saint Helens, that occurred over 600,000 years ago. After the eruption, the magma chamber collapsed forming a large caldera. A large portion of the lake is part of the giant caldera. Within the lake exists volcanic vents. At the moment, they are rising about 1 inch every year. However, they do not have a regular pattern of rising and falling. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;">3

//<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Mount Everts //<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;"> Mount Everts is located on the north side of the park,and has a composition of layered sandstones and shales. These were deposited when the area was covered by a shallow inland sea 70-140 million years ago. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;">3

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//<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone //<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;"> The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone is the result of erosion, faulting, and rhyolitic lava flows. Before the eruption of the super-volcano, the dome of the caldera started to rise causing many faults in the surface of the area. After the eruption, these faults were then filled with rhyolitic lava. Over time, the lava was eroded by possible glaciation. Geologists speculate that there was the possibility of glaciation however the deposites were eroded away. Geologists also speculate that large flooding could have occurred causing v-shape of the valley. Today, there is still a river running through the valley. The colors in the canyon were the result of hydrothermal alteration. The iron compounds in the rock were changing due to exposure to other elements. This created the different layers of color in the rock that is seen today. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;">3

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<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">During the summer, temperatures hover between 70 and 80 degrees. At high elevations, during the night, temperatures may drop below freezing. Thunderstorms are frequent during the afternoons. During the winters, temperatures average between 0 and 20 degrees. Sub - zero temperatures are frequent overnight. Snowfall varies, the average amount of snowfall per year is 150 inches. At higher elevations, snowfall can add up to twice this amount. During the Spring and Fall, temperatures range from 30 degrees to 60 degrees. During the night, temperatures fall in the teens. Snow is common in the Spring and Fall; it can snow up to 12 inches in a 24 hour period. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;">3 ====== <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;"> The most important thing about Yellowstone's climate is that the weather is unpredictable. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;">3

<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Period of Record : 8/ 1/1948 to 12/31/2005
<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;"> Above is a summary of the climate averages from 1948 to 2005. It is seen that the weather patterns has not significatly changed. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;">3 <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">
 * || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Jan || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Feb || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Mar || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Apr || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">May || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Jun || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Jul || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Aug || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Sep || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Oct || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Nov || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Dec || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Annual ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Average Max. Temperature (F) || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">29.5 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">34.0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">40.1 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">49.6 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">60.4 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">69.5 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">80.2 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">78.7 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">68.0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">55.5 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">38.8 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">30.6 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">52.9 ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Average Min. Temperature (F) || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">10.2 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">12.9 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">17.8 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">26.0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">34.2 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">41.2 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">47.0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">45.4 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">37.4 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">29.4 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">19.4 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">12.2 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">27.8 ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Average Total Precipitation (in.) || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.05 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0.70 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.05 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.18 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.94 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">2.07 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.43 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.34 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.23 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.00 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.02 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0.96 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">14.97 ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Average Total SnowFall (in.) || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">14.6 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">9.7 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">12.6 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">6.0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1.5 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0.2 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0.0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0.0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0.5 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">3.3 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">9.5 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">13.0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">70.9 ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Average Snow Depth (in.) || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">8 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">8 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">5 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">2 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">4 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">2 ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">Average Snow Depth (in.) || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">8 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">8 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">5 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">1 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">0 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">2 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">4 || <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">2 ||

Because Yellowstone has frequent rain, this affects some of the features. For example, in Yellowstone Canyon, the strips of rock have a rusty looking color. This is caused by oxidation. Oxidation is when the oxygen in the water combines with the iron in the rock and changes the composition. We can see this in the rusty looking color in the canyon.

Yellowstone is also known to have forest fires. For example, on April 23, Grandma wild fire was caused by lightning and was later put out. Many wild fires in the park are caused by the frequent lightning storms that occur in the afternoons. This can impact wildlife and the plant life around the park. It can destroy many animal habitats. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;"> 3


 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 130%;">Biomes **<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">

Yellowstone is in the biome of taiga, this characterizes long cold winters with short summers and growing seasons. Vegetation that is common in Yellowstone are: Needle leaf, with a few coniferous trees, the dominate plants are evergreen spruce, fir, pine, and a few deciduous types-larch or tamarack. Wildlife in Yellowstone include fur-bearing predators-lynxs, members of the weasel family- wolverines, fishers, pine martines, minks, ermines and sables, herbevores-snowshoe (and other kinds) hares, red squirrles, lemmings, and voles, larger animals include elk, and moose, there are also beavers and wolves. The bird population includes wood warblers, finches, sparrows, ravens, evening grosbeak, pine siskin and red crossbills.These trees have adapted to the climate in a multitude of ways. Conical shape of needle leaf trees sheds snow which stops the loss of branches. The needles of needle leaf trees help with their narrowness, the reduced surface area lowers the amount of water that can be lost through evaporation. The needles also have thick waxy coating which is waterproof. Lastly the dark color of the trees helps to absorb the maximum heat from the sun and begin photosynthesis as soon as possible. Animals have adapted to the climate through fur coats, hibernation, or (in birds cases) migration. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;">1 <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;">
 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 130%;">Human Impact **

<span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;"> Human's have influenced the park in many ways, not all of them beneficial to the inhabitants of the park. The Greater Yellowstone area is home to a grizzly bear habitat, but with increased transportation to and in the habitat the risk of the mortality of the grizzlys has risen as well. This also dilutes the effectiveness of the habitat. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;">2 <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%;"> Humans also impact the park through snowmobiles. In the winter people often snowmobile through the park, however the emissions, noise and crowds have a negative effect on the park. The effects include possible air pollution, impact on snowpack chemistry and water quality, and impact on animals. However measuring the impact on animals is problematic, besides observed interactions between snowmobiles and humans-which can cause lots of stress on the animals, there are also long term impacts such as toxins in snow, water, and soil. <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 120%; vertical-align: super;">6


 * <span style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; font-size: 130%;">Cites **

1. "Radford University Home Page." //Radford University Home Page//. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 June 2010. [].

2. "SERC." //SERC//. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 June 2010. [].

3. State.... "U.S. National Park Service - Experience Your America." //U.S. National Park Service - Experience Your America//. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 June 2010. [].

4. Taira, Taka'aki, Robert B. Smith, and Wu-Lung Chang. "U of U Seismology and Active Tectonics Research Group." //U of U Seismology and Active Tectonics Research Group//. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 June 2010. [].

5. "Yellowstone National Park.com - Visit Yellowstone National Park." //Yellowstone National Park.com - Visit Yellowstone National Park//. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 June 2010. <http://yellowstonenationalpark.com>.

6. "eScholarship: University of California." //eScholarship: University of California//. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 June 2010. <http://escholarship.org>.