(KIDK) – The Steamboat Geyser at Yellowstone National Park is no Old Faithful. The world’s tallest active geyser — whose major eruptions shoot water more than 300 feet into the air — is known to be unpredictable. But if there was ever a year to witness Steamboat’s spectacular surge of water, this might be it. Steamboat has erupted 34 times as of Tuesday, according to the US Geological Survey. That breaks last year’s record of 32 eruptions — the largest number ever recorded in a year.
The record before that was 29 eruptions in 1964. June’s outbursts smashed the record for the shortest interval between eruptions — just over three days. Scientists aren’t sure what’s behind the recent increase inactivity, but the short answer is that this is just how geysers work. “They’re mostly random and experience phases of alternating eruptive activity,” Michael Poland, the USGS scientist-in-charge of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, wrote in an email to CNN. “So while fascinating, it’s not unusual, nor cause for concern.” READ MORE
