EBS STAFF
The Echinus Geyser, named in 1878 after sea urchins, has erupted for the first time in five years. The thermal feature is inside the network of pools in the Norris Geyser Basin, and has shown sporadic activity since 1948. But since February, Echinus has maintained an active schedule after laying dormant since 2020, the U.S. Geological Survey’s Yellowstone Volcano Observatory wrote in a March 2 article.
The first eruption happened on Feb. 7, then Feb. 9, 12 and 15. On Feb. 16, eruptions became more frequent and predictable, erupting every two-to-five hours, though recently they’ve begun to slow. Eruptions last between two and three minutes and reach heights ranging from 20 to 30 feet.
This type of activity was last seen in 2017, when regular eruptions occurred for almost two months before slowing to a once-a-year occurrence until eruptions stopped completely in 2020. USGS shared in the article whether summer visitors can expect to see Echinus eruptions.
“It’s probably not too likely given the geyser’s tendency to wake up for a month or two before going back to sleep, and there were no eruptions during the last few days of February so it might already have gone quiet,” USGS stated. USGS recommends looking at graphs of Echinus temperatures, which indicate when eruptions happen, and explained that change is constant in the Norris Geyser Basin.
Echinus is the largest acidic geyser in the world, but its acidity resembles that of vinegar or orange juice.
“Acid geysers are rare because acidic water can break down the rock that makes up a geyser’s plumbing system. At Echinus Geyser, however, the composition is due to mixing between acidic gases and neutral waters, and the acidity is not sufficient to eat away at the rock,” USGS stated. “The somewhat unique water chemistry results in interesting formations and compositions, including the red color [from iron, aluminum, and arsenic] that rims the geyser pool and the silica-covered spiny rocks that give the geyser its name.”
