(ORDO NEWS) — Yellowstone National Park covers an area of approximately 5,600 square kilometers. This park is located on top of a supervolcano in the western part of the United States. In the center of the park there is a huge, but shallow lake. It appeared about 640 thousand years ago. Due to the fact that a huge number of earthquakes occur in this area every year, the environment in the lake is constantly changing.
Back in 2017, autonomous sensors were placed at the bottom of the lake by scientists from the University of Minnesota. In three years, the equipment was able to withstand incredibly high pressures, very high temperatures and even acidic water environments. In addition, experts do not exclude that even hydrothermal explosions could have occurred.
The experts talked about their findings, and also described their “incredible discoveries.” It is worth noting that two sensors were installed in the “Deep Hole” – this is the deepest part of Yellowstone Lake. According to scientists, the bottom of the lake is a real pressure cooker, because the water temperature in hydrothermal springs reaches 150 degrees.
Interestingly, the sensors on the bottom recorded a wide variety of temperatures. Some of them remained stable, while others could go down for a long time, and then rise sharply. The scientists also added that some of the sensors were visibly deformed and the PVC melted in some places. Due to this study, it was possible to establish that high temperatures are quite common at the bottom of the lake. Much more often than previously thought.
This effect on the sensors is called “bloodbath”. The reasons for this could be regular hydrothermal explosions, as well as strong seismic activity.
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