Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Wednesday Wonder: A Fly Geyser

Today's wonder is a fly geyser in Black Rock Desert in Nevada. It is, according to Friends of Black High Rock, human-made, the result of test drilling for water in 1964. The geothermal test well was not capped properly; calcium carbonate deposits left behind when scalding water issued forth then built up over the years. The colors are from algae on the deposits.

The video was taken from the sky, because the geyser is on private property. Even though is not a natural phenomenon, it's impressive and beautiful.



(My thanks to my friend Randall David Tipton for the links to the video and additional photos. A long version of a video of the geyser is available on YouTube. The Snopes site indicates the formation is five feet high and 12 feet wide.) 

Terrell Johnson, "The World's Most Amazing Places: Fly Geyser", Weather, June 18, 2013

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