Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus 

Creek During Calendar Year 2005, Norris Geyser Basin, 

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Scientific Investigations Report 2007–5234

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Department of the Interior

DIRK KEMPTHORNE, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Mark D. Myers, Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2007

This report and any updates to it are available at:

http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2007/5234/

For product and ordering information:

World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov/pubprod

Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS

For more information on the USGS—the Federal source for science about the Earth, 

its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment:

World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov

Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS

Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the 

U.S. Government.

Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual copyright owners to 

reproduce any copyrighted materials contained within this report.

Suggested citation:

Clor, L., Lowenstern, J., Heasler, H, 2007, Systematics of water temperature and flow at Tantalus Creek during calendar 

year 2005, Norris Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigation 

Report 2007-5234.

Cataloging-in-publication data are on file with the Library of Congress (http://www.loc.gov/).

Produced in the Western Region, Menlo Park, California

Manuscript approved for publication, August 28, 2007

Text edited by James W. Hendley II

Layout by David R. Jones

FRONT COVER—Tantalus Creek collects nearly all the thermal water discharged at the Norris Geyser Basin, pictured 

below. The bottom of the photo shows tributaries of Tantalus Creek draining the Gray Lakes (left) and Steamboat-EchinusEmerald hydrologic subbasins. Photo taken from a balloon-mounted camera by B. Graham Wall, September 2005.
Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus 

Creek During Calendar Year 2005, Norris Geyser Basin, 

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

By Laura E. Clor, Jacob B. Lowenstern, and Henry P. Heasler

Scientific Investigations Report 2007–5234

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Department of the Interior

DIRK KEMPTHORNE, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Mark D. Myers, Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2007

This report and any updates to it are available at:

http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2007/5234/

For product and ordering information:

World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov/pubprod

Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS

For more information on the USGS—the Federal source for science about the Earth, 

its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment:

World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov

Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS

Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the 

U.S. Government.

Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual copyright owners to 

reproduce any copyrighted materials contained within this report.

Suggested citation:

Clor, Laura E., Lowenstern, Jacob B., Heasler, Henry P., 2007, Systematics of water temperature and flow at Tantalus 

Creek during calendar-year 2005, Norris Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming: U.S. Geological Survey 

Scientific Investigations Report 2007-5234.

Cataloging-in-publication data are on file with the Library of Congress (http://www.loc.gov/).

Produced in the Western Region, Menlo Park, California

Manuscript approved for publication, October 4, 2007

Text edited by James W. Hendley II

Layout by David R. Jones
iii

Contents

Abstract ..........................................................................................................................................................1

Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................1

Norris Geyser Basin ......................................................................................................................................2

Drainage of Tantalus Creek..........................................................................................................................2

Data Sources..................................................................................................................................................2

Observations...................................................................................................................................................2

Wintertime Systematics ......................................................................................................................2

Summertime Systematics....................................................................................................................6

Springtime Systematics.......................................................................................................................7

Autumn Systematics.............................................................................................................................9

Discussion.....................................................................................................................................................11

Characteristics of Tantalus Creek....................................................................................................11

Wintertime Behavior..........................................................................................................................12

Summertime Behavior........................................................................................................................13

Spring and Autumn Behavior............................................................................................................15

Summary........................................................................................................................................................15

Acknowledgments.......................................................................................................................................17

References....................................................................................................................................................17

Figures

1. Area map of Norris Geyser Basin .........................................................................................................3

2. Daily average air temperatures for Norris Geyser Basin from 

December 2004 through December 2005, measured at the Norris Museum ................................4

3. Air temperature at Norris Museum, and water temperature, stream flow, and 

precipitation at Tantalus Weir for the week of February 22 to March 1, 2005...............................4

4. Correlations between (A) air and water temperature, (B) air temperature and 

stream flow, and (C) water temperature and stream flow for the week 

of February 22 to March 1, 2005 ............................................................................................................5

5. Close-up view of data from February 24, 2005, showing air temperature, 

water temperature, and stream flow ...................................................................................................5

6. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of September 1–8, 2005 ...................................................................................................7

7. Close-up view of September 2, including the last 8 hours of September 1 

and the first 8 hours of September 3 ....................................................................................................8

8. Plot of air temperature versus water temperature for the week 

of September 1–8, 2005...........................................................................................................................8

9. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of August 9 –16, 2005........................................................................................................9

10. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the 8-day period of March 7–15, 2005 ..........................................................................................10

11. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of April 17–24, 2005 ........................................................................................................11
iv

12. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of October 26 to November 2, 2005 .............................................................................12

13. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of October 12–19, 2005 ..................................................................................................13

14. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of November 7–14, 2005 ................................................................................................14

15. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of November 17–24, 2005 ..............................................................................................15

16. Schematic diagram depicting the response of snow cover, and 

hence ground temperature, in the vicinity of Tantalus Creek to varying 

winter air temperatures........................................................................................................................16

17. Comparison of water temperatures of Tantalus Creek at the weir 

and also the Gibbon River at Madison Junction from February 2005 

through January 2006 ...........................................................................................................................16
Abstract 

We analyze data for stream flow and water temperature 

from Tantalus Creek in the Norris Geyser Basin and their relationship to air temperature, precipitation, and geyser eruptions 

during calendar year 2005. The creek is of interest because it 

is the primary drainage of the Norris Geyser Basin and carries a very high proportion of thermal water derived directly 

from hot springs. Two separate diurnal patterns emerge— (1) 

a winter pattern where increases in water temperature and 

stream flow closely track those of air temperature and (2) a 

summer pattern where water and air temperature are closely 

aligned but stream flow declines once water temperature 

reaches its daily maximum. The winter pattern is present when 

the daily average temperature consistently drops below 0°C 

whereas the summer pattern is recognizable when the daily 

average temperature regularly exceeds 0°C. Spring and fall 

systematics are much more irregular, although both summer 

and winter patterns can be discerned occasionally during those 

seasons. We interpret increases in stream flow associated with 

the winter pattern to result from addition of locally sourced 

melt water (both snow and soil-bound ice) that increases in 

abundance once temperatures increase in the morning. Melting 

is facilitated by the warm ground temperatures in the geyser 

basin, which are significantly higher than air temperatures in 

the winter. The summer pattern appears to be strongly affected 

by increased evaporation in the afternoon, decreasing flow 

and cooling the remaining water. Discharge from eruptions at 

Echinus Geyser are clearly visible as peaks in the hydrograph, 

and indicate that water from this geyser reach the Tantalus 

weir in 80 to 90 minutes, reflecting a slug of water that travels 

about 0.4 m s–1.

Introduction 

Streamflow monitoring is an important means for tracking geological activity in hydrothermal areas (Ingebritsen and 

others, 2001; Hurwitz and others, 2007; Friedman and Norton, 

in press). Changes in stream discharge, water temperature, and 

chemical composition may be linked to a variety of causative 

factors ranging from increases in hydrothermal activity or 

magma intrusion, to earthquakes, ground deformation, or 

climate variations. In and around Yellowstone National Park 

(YNP), 14 stream gages are operated by the U.S. Geological 

Survey state water districts of Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming 

(http://mt.water.usgs.gov/, http://id.water.usgs.gov/, http://

wy.water.usgs.gov/ (all accessed on September 27, 2007). The 

data are archived as part of the National Water Information 

System (NWIS, http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/rt (accessed on 

September 27, 2007)). 

One hydrothermal area of intense interest is the Norris 

Geyser Basin, which is highly dynamic and contains the hottest measured temperatures within any geothermal reservoirs 

at Yellowstone (238°C in the Y12 research well; White and 

others, 1988). Friedman (in press) estimated that 98 percent of the surface hydrothermal discharge from the Norris 

Geyser Basin is channeled through Tantalus Creek. A stream 

gage, currently in place on Tantalus Creek, therefore, has 

the potential to provide information on the overall behavior 

of the geyser basin, as well as transient hydrothermal disturbances (anomalous changes in discharge or heat flow) that 

are occasionally observed (White and others, 1988; Fournier 

and others, 2002). Currently, the stream gage is deployed with 

instrumentation to determine water flow, water temperature, 

and precipitation. The data are transmitted by satellite uplink 

to NWIS. Nearby instrumentation at the Norris Museum 

(collected on data loggers) provides information on barometric pressure and air temperature. By analyzing the combined 

data, one can characterize the behavior of Tantalus Creek on a 

variety of timescales.

This report presents an analysis of the hydrologic and 

climate data collected at the Tantalus Creek stream gage and 

the Norris Museum to evaluate correlations among these data 

with the purpose of understanding diurnal, monthly and annual 

cycles in water flow and temperature. Lessons learned may 

be of use in defining thermal disturbances by discriminating 

between normal variations associated with meteorological 

phenomena from those due to changes in hydrothermal discharge related to subsurface dynamism. 

Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus 

Creek During Calendar Year 2005, Norris Geyser Basin, 

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

By Laura E. Clor, Jacob B. Lowenstern, and Henry P. Heasler
2 Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus Creek, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Norris Geyser Basin

Norris Geyser Basin is located approximately 20 miles 

south of Mammoth Hot Springs and just outside the northwest 

rim of the Yellowstone Caldera, which formed 640,000 years 

ago by the youngest of three caldera-forming eruptions at the 

Yellowstone volcano (Christiansen, 2001). The basin sits at 

the intersection of three regional landscape features—the 640 

ka caldera, the Norris-Mammoth corridor (a zone of faulting, 

thermal activity, and volcanic vents that trends north from the 

caldera rim to Mammoth), and the eastern end of the east-west 

trending Hebgen Lake Fault system (White and others, 1988). 

A subsidence feature aligned along the Norris-Mammoth corridor allowed for the accumulation of thick deposits of Lava 

Creek Tuff during the 640 ka eruption. Today, the corridor 

hosts some of the region’s youngest volcanism and abundant 

thermal activity (Christiansen and others, 2007). Norris itself 

contains more than 700 thermal features that are continually 

evolving, at least 70 of which have erupted as geysers (White 

and others, 1988), including Steamboat Geyser, the tallest 

active geyser in the world. Such dynamics generate highly 

complex hydrologic patterns.

Drainage of Tantalus Creek

Jaworowski and others (2006) divided the Norris Geyser 

Basin into nine hydrothermal sub-basins—Porcelain, One 

Hundred Spring Plain, Steamboat-Echinus-Emerald, Gray 

Lakes-Porkchop, Reservoir-Upper Tantalus, Lower Tantalus, 

Gap, West Gap, and Sulfur Dust (fig. 1). The basins represent distinct tributaries of sections of Tantalus Creek. The 

majority of these are drained by Tantalus Creek, which flows 

northward through Norris, collects the runoff of numerous 

thermal features, passes through a 0.58 ha pond (the Reservoir) and empties into the Gibbon River on the northwest 

side of the geyser basin. The Gap/West Gap and Sulfur Dust 

subbasins are exceptions to this drainage pattern and flow 

directly into the Gibbon River. The catchment area above 

the weir is 3.34 km2 (334 ha), and the length of the stream 

course between the source and the gaging station is 3,300 

meters. The headwaters rise to 8,064 feet in elevation (2,460 

m), and the catchment is snow-covered, on average, from 

November through April. At the Tantalus gaging station 

the elevation is 7,460 feet (2,270 m) and the channel is 5.2 

m wide. Chloride concentrations are very high in the creek 

(400 –550 ppm during base flow in August and September), 

suggesting the water is mostly derived from hot springs 

(Norton and others, 1989; Ball and others, 2001; Ball and 

others, 2002). Tantalus is a very small creek relative to other 

rivers in Yellowstone Park, with a maximum springtime flow 

of less than 10 cfs (cubic feet per second, each of which is 

equal to 28.3 l s–1). Tantalus Creek flows into the Gibbon 

River, which commonly transmits over 300 cfs in the springtime. The water in Tantalus Creek is almost entirely derived 

from hot springs from Norris Geyser Basin (Jaworowski and 

others, 2006), so that continuous monitoring of the creek 

provides a valuable means for detecting changes to the Norris hydrothermal system as a whole.

Data Sources

The hydrologic and climate data used in this analysis 

came from several sources. The discharge and temperature 

of Tantalus Creek were measured at a weir constructed in 

1987 and located at the northwest end of the creek, prior to 

its confluence with the Gibbon River at 7,460 feet above 

sea level. A gaging station was operated informally at the 

site from 1987 to 2003, at which time the USGS Montana 

District upgraded the site and added realtime capabilities. 

A precipitation gage was later added and all the data are 

available through NWIS at http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/

uv?06036940 (last accessed on September 27, 2007). All 

three data sets (water temperature, flow, and precipitation) 

are recorded, transmitted, and archived on local time (either 

MST or MDT) at 15-minute increments. Local air temperature was recorded on Mountain Standard Time (MST) by 

a Hobo® H8 temperature logger (Onset Computer Corp.) 

located at the Norris Museum at 7,575 feet (2,310 m), operated by the YNP geology program and measured every 4 

minutes. Eruption times of Echinus Geyser were determined 

from records of water temperature in the geyser’s outflow 

channel, also measured by a Hobo® H8 temperature logger 

on MST deployed by the YNP geology program. Temperature spikes in the channel indicate an eruption, and the date 

and time of these spikes were documented to create a record 

of eruption times for this geyser. All data reported and plotted in this paper have been converted to MST. Together, this 

suite of hydrologic and climate data for 2005 was analyzed 

to evaluate correlations among the datasets. The data are 

available in a supplementary data file (Tantalus2005data.xls).

Observations

Wintertime Systematics

The Tantalus Creek hydrograph displayed characteristic 

patterns during the various seasons of 2005. In this report, 

we define “summer” and “winter” patterns and intermediate behavior evident during the spring and fall. The winter 

pattern is apparent when daily average air temperatures are 

consistently below 0°C (December, January, February for 

2004–2005; fig. 2). 

An example of the winter pattern is shown in figure 3, 

which displays air and water temperature (in degrees Celsius), 

stream flow (in cubic feet per second or cfs), and precipitation (inches, equal to 2.54 cm) from February 22 to March 1, 

2005. During this 7-day period, there was negligible precipi-
Observations 3

Figure 1. Area map of Norris Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, showing geographic features mentioned in the text, 

monitoring sites at Tantalus Weir and Norris Museum, and hydrologic subbasins. Geysers and springs have been simplified 

for clarity. Subbasin codes are: 1 = Sulfur Dust, 2 = Hundred Spring Plain, 3 = Porcelain, 4 = Steamboat-Echinus-Emerald, 

5 = Gray Lakes-Porkchop, 6 = Gap, 7 = West Gap, 8 = Reservoir-Upper Tantalus, 9 = Lower Tantalus. 

Gibbon

River

Tantalus Creek

Norris

Museum

Echinus

Geyser

Tantalus

Gaging

Station

Loop Road Grand

The Reservoir

N

Map Location

Park Boundary

0 0.25 0.5 1

km

Legend

Basin

Geyser

Spring

Temperature Logger

River

Road

6

7

5

4

3

2

1

9

8
4 Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus Creek, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Figure 2. Daily average air temperatures for Norris Geyser Basin from 

December 2004 through December 2005, measured at the Norris Museum. 

Dashed line represents 0°C. Vertical gridlines divide the months.

Figure 3. Air temperature at Norris Museum, and water temperature, stream flow, and 

precipitation at Tantalus Weir for the week of February 22 to March 1, 2005. Dashed line on the 

air temperature graph represents 0°C. Purple dots indicate the average air temperature for that 

day. Red squares on the stream flow graph mark the time of eruptions of Echinus Geyser. The 

lighter orange flow curve is the actual stream flow data, whereas the thicker, darker orange 

curve is a 3-hour average of those data, taken in order to improve the clarity of the diurnal 

pattern. All X-axes are the same. Vertical gridlines are placed at midnight to divide each day.

-30

-20

-10

10

 0

20

30

Air Temperature (°C)

Dec

2004

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

2005

Norris Museum

-25

-20

-15

-10

-5

0

5

10

Air

Temperature (°C)

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

Water

Temperature (°C)

3

4

5

6

Stream Flow (cfs)

0

0.01

0.02

0.03

0.04

0.05

2/22 2/23 2/24 2/25 2/26 2/27 2/28 3/1

Precipitation (inches)
Observations 5

Figure 4. Correlations between (A) air and water temperature, 

(B) air temperature and stream flow, and (C) water temperature 

and stream flow for the week of February 22 to March 1, 2005. 

Correlation coefficients discussed in text are indicated.

Figure 5. Close-up view of data from February 24, 2005, showing 

air temperature, water temperature, and stream flow (there 

was no precipitation on February 24). Symbols are as in figure 

3. The 3-hour average stream flow curve has not been included. 

The times of day of certain hydrologic events are indicated, as 

mentioned in the text. Vertical gridlines mark every 2 hours.

tation, and a clear diurnal signal is shown in the other three 

parameters. Air and water temperature were closely correlated with asymmetric peaks that rose rapidly in the morning 

(~08:30) until early afternoon (~14:00) and then fell more 

slowly until reaching a minimum value the following morning at about 07:00, immediately prior to the next cycle. Figure 

4A illustrates air temperature-water temperature relations for 

this week, which has a correlation coefficient of 0.89. During this week, air temperatures fluctuated between daily lows 

of −15°C to −20°C and highs from 0 to 5°C. Daily average 

air temperatures are shown as small purple dots in figure 3, 

and varied between −5° and −10°C during the 7-day period. 

Tantalus Creek water temperatures at the weir were significantly higher, ranging from daily lows of about 17°C to highs 

around 26°C. Stream flow showed a similar pattern, rising 

abruptly in the morning to a peak in the early afternoon at 

about 13:45 and then decreasing slowly. Stream flow correlated positively with air temperature with a correlation 

coefficient of 0.77, and with water temperature with a correlation coefficient of 0.76 (fig. 4B–C). The flow varied between 

about 4 and 5 cfs each day.

During the period illustrated in figure 3, Echinus Geyser 

was in frequent eruption, averaging 4 hours and 28 minutes 

between eruptions. The signal of the eruption was clearly 

3

4

5

6

-25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10

F maertS low (cfs)

y = 0.0409x + 4.6393

Air Temperature (°C)

correl. coeff. = 0.77

10

15

20

25

30

aW ter Temperature °( C)

y = 0.3434x + 23.076

Air Temperature (°C)

correl. coeff. = 0.89

-25 -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10

F maertS low sfc( )

y = 0.1051x + 2.1827

Water Temperature (°C)

correl. coeff. = 0.76

3

4

5

6

15 20 25 30

A

B

C

-20

-15

-10

-5

0

5

10

Air Temperature (°C)

07:44

Water Temperature (°C)

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

Stream Flow (cfs)

3

4

5

6

00:00 04:00 08:00 12:00 16:00 20:00 24:00

13:04

15:20

08:15

13:30

09:00

13:45
6 Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus Creek, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

peratures fluctuated between daily lows of −1°C to 5°C and 

highs from 21°C to 26°C. Daily average air temperatures are 

shown as small purple dots in figure 6 and varied between 

11°C and 15°C during the 7-day period. Tantalus Creek 

water temperatures at the weir were significantly higher, 

ranging from daily lows of about 22°C to highs around 

31°C. Stream flow showed a completely different pattern, 

rising in the afternoon (around 17:00) and reaching a broad 

plateau that lasted overnight and into the next morning (from 

around 22:30 to 10:00) and then decreasing to a minimum 

value in the afternoon (about 16:30), immediately prior to 

the beginning of the next cycle. Stream flow varied from 

minima ~3 cfs to maxima ~3.6 cfs. At this time, Echinus 

was dormant.

Figure 7 displays data from September 2, 2005, plus the 

last 8 hours of September 1 and the first 8 hours of September 3. On September 2, air temperature began to rise rapidly 

at 05:08, followed 37 minutes later by the same behavior 

in water temperature, at 05:45. Air temperature plateaued 

by 10:25, with the absolute peak temperature for the day at 

12:24. At 16:12, the air began to cool gradually, falling to 

a minimum at 05:20 the next morning. The water reached 

its maximum temperature at 10:15 and then began to drop, 

slowly at first, but more quickly after 12:00. It fell to a 

minimum at 18:15 but then began to climb again to a secondary peak at 21:15. At 22:00, water temperature fell again to 

another minimum at 6:45 the next morning, slightly after air 

temperature had begun to rise. On September 1, stream flow 

sharply began to increase at 18:45, the same time that water 

temperature began rising to its secondary maximum. Stream 

flow reached a plateau at 20:45 and maintained generally 

constant values until 12:00 on September 2, at which point 

flow dropped off abruptly until 14:45. A trough of low values 

persisted until 17:30, when the next cycle began, and flow 

increased to the next plateau at 22:00.

Figure 8 displays the relationship between water and air 

temperature for the week of September 1– 8, 2005, which has 

a correlation coefficient of 0.76. On this plot, the data points 

that fall below 14.5–15°C in air temperature are tightly 

clustered and have a slope of ~0.13. The data points above 

14.5–15°C in air temperature are more scattered and have 

a slope of 0.76. This implies that as the air heats up, water 

temperature seems to be more sensitive to air temperature. 

Summertime correlations between flow and both water and 

air temperatures are very poor (coefficients are –0.06 and 

–0.51, respectively).

There was a significant precipitation event on August 

10, 2005, between 12:15 and 14:15, when 0.34 inches (8.6 

mm) of rain fell (fig. 9). During this time, air temperature 

dropped precipitously from 26.7°C at 10:52 to 10.2°C at 

11:32. Water temperature dropped from 35.9°C at 11:45 to 

20°C at 12:45. Stream flow spiked abruptly from 3.6 cfs at 

12:15 to 11 cfs at 13:45.

Echinus Geyser erupted occasionally during the period 

from August 9–16, 2005 (fig. 9). There was no apparent 

regular interval between eruptions. The signal of the erupevident in the stream flow data, resulting in small spikes of 

~1,170 cubic feet and lasting approximately 70 minutes. The 

spikes followed Echinus eruptions by 85 minutes, implying 

that the water traveled at ~0.40 m/s to travel the ~2,000 m 

from Echinus to the weir. Concurrent with the obvious spikes 

in flow were smaller, less pronounced bumps in the water temperature curve, indicating that a slight increase in water temperature was also associated with eruptions of Echinus Geyser. 

These bumps are discernable for the entire week of February 

22–March 1, 2005, but are only noticeable in close-up view, as 

in figure 5.

Figure 5 displays a detailed view of data from February 24, 2005, in order to examine more precisely the timing 

of events that occurred during the course of a typical day 

during the week shown in figure 3. Air temperature abruptly 

increased at 07:44, followed 46 minutes later by the same 

increase in water temperature. The rise in air temperature 

became more gradual around 13:00 and by 14:00 it reached a 

more or less steady plateau that persisted for the next several 

hours. The maximum air temperature for the day occurred at 

15:20, after which it fell gradually. Water temperature, however, reached its maximum at 13:30 and immediately began to 

fall again, resulting in a sharper peak. It is interesting to note 

that water temperature fell while air temperature remained 

steady. Stream flow, which began climbing rapidly at 09:00, 

reached its maximum (excepting the periodic spikes due to 

eruptions of Echinus Geyser) at 13:45 and then fell more 

gradually for the rest of the day. 

To summarize, in the winter, stream flow increased 

steeply up to a defined peak in the mid-afternoon, and then 

gradually decreased through the rest of the day, down to a 

minimum point that took place in the early morning. Minor 

precipitation did not seem to alter this general pattern.

Summertime Systematics

Summertime hydrologic conditions were defined by 

daily average air temperatures that were consistently above 

0°C (May, June, July, August, September for 2005; see fig. 2). 

Figure 6 displays air and water temperature, stream flow, and 

precipitation from September 1–8, 2005. During this 7-day 

period, there was no precipitation and a clear diurnal pattern is 

shown in the other three parameters. Changes in air and water 

temperature were closely correlated, but the two curves did not 

have identical shapes. Both parameters rose rapidly from early 

morning (~06:00) to mid-day (~11:30) and then fell more 

slowly. However, while air temperature fell constantly until 

reaching a minimum value the following morning (around 

05:00), water temperature fell only until the evening (about 

18:30), at which point a secondary peak appeared. Water 

temperature rose until ~21:00 and afterwards fell until 05:30 

the following morning, immediately before the next cycle. 

Additionally, air temperature displayed generally smooth, 

asymmetric peaks while water temperature displayed more 

irregular, yet symmetrical peaks. During this week, air tem-
Observations 7

tion was clearly evident in the stream-flow data, resulting 

in small spikes of ~1,350 cubic feet of water (38,000 liters) 

over approximately 90 minutes. The spikes followed Echinus 

eruptions by 80 minutes, implying that the water traveled 

at ~0.42 m/s across ~2,000 m from Echinus to the weir. No 

associated water temperature increase was observed at the 

Tantalus gaging station.

To summarize: in contrast to the winter pattern, the 

maxima for flow occurs overnight and does not correspond 

temporally with air and water temperatures, which have 

maxima in the early afternoon. Furthermore, the shape of 

flow curve does not mimic that of the air or water curves. 

Summer flow exhibits broad flat-topped highs, whereas the 

minima are narrow troughs that occur in the late afternoon. 

This characteristic flow curve will be referred to as the 

“summer-type” flow regime. The water and air temperature 

maxima are correlated, but there is a secondary maximum in 

water temperature in the evening. Precipitation events coincide with a marked increase in flow and decrease in air and 

water temperature.

Springtime Systematics

Springtime is characterized by increasing daily average 

air temperatures that fluctuate above and below 0°C (March 

and April for 2005; see fig. 2). During the transition from 

winter to summer, traces of the two distinct hydrologic patterns described above can still be found, but the patterns are 

often obscured by the highly variable weather conditions that 

accompany the change in seasons. Figure 10 displays air and 

water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation from March 

7–15, 2005. During this 8-day period, there was negligible 

precipitation, a moderately strong diurnal pattern in water and 

Figure 6. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation for the 

week of September 1–8, 2005. Symbols as in figure 3.

-2

3

8

13

18

23

28

Air

Temperature (°C)

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

Water

Temperature (°C)

2

3

4

5

Stream Flow (cfs)

0

0.01

0.02

0.03

0.04

0.05

9/1 9/2 9/3 9/4 9/5 9/6 9/7 9/8

Precipitation (inches)
8 Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus Creek, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

air temperature, and a weak diurnal pattern in stream flow. In 

general, signals tend to be irregular and less predictable than 

those of the winter or summer. Air and water temperature 

daily maxima were closely correlated in time with irregularly 

shaped peaks that rose approximately from 07:00 to 13:00. Air 

temperature fell to a minimum value sometime between 04:00 

and 07:00, whereas water temperature tended to display secondary maxima lasting from 19:00 in the evening to 07:00 the 

next morning. Sometimes this was not the case, as on March 

11 when water temperature did not rise to a secondary peak. 

During this period, air temperatures fluctuated between −16°C 

and 9°C, with daily highs and lows varying significantly from 

one day to the next. Daily average air temperatures (purple 

dots in fig. 10) varied between −10°C and 3°C during the 

8-day period. Tantalus Creek water temperatures were significantly higher, ranging from daily average lows of about 18°C 

to average highs around 25°C. Stream flow showed a shifting 

pattern, sometimes rising abruptly in the morning to a sharp 

peak at ~14:45 followed by a slower decrease (as on March 

7, March13, and March 14), and sometimes rising in the 

afternoon at ~16:30, reaching a broad plateau that lasted from 

20:00 to 9:00 the next morning, and then decreasing to a minimum value at noon (as on March 9 and March 10). Stream 

flow varied from minima ~3.7 cfs to maxima ~6 cfs.

The first occurrence of the summer flow pattern for the 

2005 season was on March 9, and it appeared again sporadically on April 2 and April 7 before becoming the normal 

pattern in mid-April. The winter pattern was frequent in early 

March (as in fig. 10 on March 7, March 13, and March 14, for 

example), but happened less often as the month progressed, 

Figure 7. Close-up view of September 2, including the last 8 hours 

of September 1 and the first 8 hours of September 3. Shows air 

temperature, water temperature, and stream flow (there was 

no precipitation during this period). Symbols are as in figure 3. 

The 3-hour average stream flow curve has not been included. 

The times of day of certain hydrologic events are indicated, as 

mentioned in the text. Vertical gridlines mark every 4 hours.

-2

3

8

13

18

23

28

Air Temperature (°C)

05:08

05:20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

Water Temperature (°C)

9/1 9/2 9/3

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

Stream Flow (cfs)

16:00 00:00 08:00 16:00 00:00 08:00

10:25

12:24

16:12

18:45

05:45

10:15

18:15

21:15 22:00

06:45

18:45

20:45

14:45

17:30

22:00

15

20

25

30

35

-5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30

Air Temperature (°C)

Water Temperature (°C)

Figure 8. Plot of air temperature versus water temperature for the 

week of September 1–8, 2005. During cold weather, water temperature increases more slowly with air temperature than during 

warmer weather.
Observations 9

with the last occurrence on March 25. Data from some parts 

of the spring season did not exhibit the easily identifiable patterns of the winter or summer. Instead, there was an apparent 

lack of regular diurnal variation (fig. 11). During the week 

of April 17–24, 2005, for example, stream flow exhibited the 

broad overnight highs associated with summertime on April 

17, April 22 and April 23, but no regular diurnal pattern from 

April 18 through April 21. The alternation of signals (from 

winter pattern to summer pattern and back again) occurred for 

approximately 8 weeks until early May when the transitional 

spring period seemed finally to give way to the summer flow 

pattern. 

During the period illustrated in figure 10, Echinus Geyser 

was in frequent eruption, averaging 4 hours and 52 minutes 

between eruptions. The signal of the eruption was clearly 

evident in the stream-flow data, resulting in small spikes of 

~1,080 cubic feet and lasting approximately 80 minutes. The 

spikes followed Echinus eruptions by 90 minutes, implying 

that the water traveled at ~0.37 m/s across ~2,000 m from 

Echinus to the weir. No associated water-temperature increase 

was apparent at the Tantalus gaging station.

Autumn Systematics

Autumn was characterized by decreasing daily average 

temperatures that fluctuated above and below 0°C (October 

and November for 2005; see fig. 2). Figure 12 displays air 

and water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation from 

October 26 to November 2, 2005. During this 7-day period, 

there was a small but significant precipitation event, a weak 

diurnal pattern shown by air temperature, and a near lack of 

diurnal pattern shown in the other two parameters. Air temperature displayed a strong diurnal signal on October 26 with 

Figure 9. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of August 9–16, 2005. Symbols are as in figure 3.

-2

2

6

10

14

18

22

26

Air

Temperature (°C)

18

22

26

30

34

38

Water

Temperature (°C)

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

Stream Flow (cfs)

0

0.04

0.08

0.12

0.16

0.20

Precipitation

(inches)

8/9 8/10 8/11 8/12 8/13 8/14 8/15 8/16
10 Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus Creek, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

an asymmetrical peak that rose rapidly from −1.1°C at 07:30 

to 12.6°C at 11:30 and then fell more slowly until reaching 

a minimum value at midnight. Later in the week, however, 

the signal weakened as daily average temperatures fell from 

3.8°C on October 27 down to −2.1°C on October 30, and 

then rose again to 4.3°C on November 1. On most days, there 

was a peak in air temperature at about noon, but it was very 

poorly defined. Water temperature also displayed a strong 

diurnal signal on October 26, rising rapidly from 08:00 to 

11:00 and falling more gradually to a minimum at 17:15. 

For the rest of the week, however, water temperature did not 

display any diurnal pattern, generally falling from a high of 

26°C on October 27 to a low of 18°C on October 31 and then 

slowly rising again. The stream flow curve shown in figure 

12 began with a broad, flat-topped flow high ending at 10:15 

on October 26 and falling to a minimum at 16:00. After this, 

the flow signal became irregular and did not display a diurnal 

pattern for the remainder of the week. Flow varied from minima 

~3.7 cfs to maxima ~6.3 cfs

The effect of precipitation events can also be noted 

in the data. Between October 27 at 07:30 and October 28 

at 09:15, a cumulative amount of 0.25 inches of rain fell. 

Concurrently, stream flow rose abruptly from 4.2 cfs to 6.3 

cfs (fig. 12). Water and air temperature did not seem to be 

equivalently influenced by the precipitation event. 

Although in general the autumn flow signal was dominated by precipitation, there were occasional diurnal patterns. 

In the beginning of October, the broad overnight summerpattern highs in flow were frequent, as in figure 13. When 

these existed, water temperature displayed the secondary 

maxima, although more weakly than in the summer. Minimum flow came in the afternoon around ~15:30–16:00. The 

secondary peak in water temperature disappeared over the 

Figure 10. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation for the 

8-day period of March 7–15, 2005. Symbols are as in figure 3.

-20

-15

-10

-5

0

5

10

Air

Temperature (°C)

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

Water

Temperature (°C)

3

4

5

6

7

Stream Flow (cfs)

0

0.01

0.02

0.03

0.04

0.05

3/7 3/8 3/9 3/10 3/11 3/12 3/13 3/14 3/15

Precipitation

(inches)
Discussion 11

course of October, along with the nighttime flow high. The last 

occurrence for the season of the summer flow pattern was on 

October 26 (fig. 12), and this gave way to a non diurnal flow 

signal that persisted until the first appearance of the winter 

flow pattern on November 9 (fig. 14). Here maximum flow 

displayed asymmetrical peaks that rose abruptly in the morning to peak at 14:00 and then decreased slowly. As November 

progressed, rain diminished and a diurnal, winter pattern was 

regularly present (fig. 15). 

During the period illustrated in figure 14, Echinus 

Geyser was in frequent eruption, averaging 4 hours and 55 

minutes between eruptions. The signal of the eruption was 

clearly evident in the stream flow data, resulting in small 

spikes of ~1,170 cubic feet and lasting approximately 80 

minutes. The spikes followed Echinus eruptions by 79 minutes, implying that the water traveled at ~0.42 m/s to arrive 

at the weir, ~2,000 m away. No associated water temperature 

increase was discernible at the Tantalus gaging station.

Discussion

Characteristics of Tantalus Creek

Tantalus Creek is unusual in its relatively low and 

constant flow. Stream flow rarely dips below 2 cfs, and only 

during large storms does it rise above 6 cfs. The numerous 

fractures in the Lava Creek Tuff may provide sufficient permeability to provide relatively constant base-flow conditions 

(see Jaworowski and others, 2006). Similarly, the relatively 

warm stream temperatures reflect the high proportion of water 

sourced from hot-spring discharge and also the warm ground 

temperatures in the streambed (Jaworowski and others, 2006). 

Figure 11. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation for 

the week of April 17–24, 2005. Symbols are as in figure 3.

-10

-5

0

5

10

15

20

Air

Temperature (°C)

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

Water

Temperature (°C)

3

4

5

6

Stream Flow (cfs)

0

0.01

0.02

0.03

0.04

0.05

4/17 4/18 4/19 4/20 4/21 4/22 4/23 4/24

Precipitation

(inches)
12 Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus Creek, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Wintertime Behavior

The typical winter-type flow pattern (fig. 3) was most 

likely related to solar heating and melting of ice and snow in 

the creekbed. The more narrow curve for water temperature 

than air temperature (see for example, fig. 5) seems to indicate 

that solar radiation rather than air temperature is the direct 

influence on water temperature. Though solar radiation was 

not measured at Norris in 2005, more recent data for Yellowstone indicates a tight correlation between solar radiation and 

water temperature at Tantalus Creek (J.B. Lowenstern, unpub. 

data). However, because solar radiation is also a strong influence on air temperature, air and water temperature are closely 

correlated. 

In 2005 at Norris, within 30 minutes of the daily increase 

in morning air temperature, water temperature at Tantalus Creek 

displayed a similar rise (figs. 3 and 5). This was followed by an 

increase in stream flow that lagged behind by less than an hour. 

The actual air temperature was not a critical parameter, because 

it is lower than the temperature in the streambed where melting 

of snow and ice took place. One can envision the temperature 

of the streambed as balanced by the temperatures of the air, 

the flowing water and the underlying ground. As shown by the 

dataset from the Tantalus weir, the creek water is never below 

freezing temperatures. As such, neither will be the ground in 

contact with the water. Because the ground temperature generally increases towards the center of the creek, a “buffer zone” 

of bare ground forms on the banks adjacent to the creek, inside 

which the ground is sufficiently warmed to prevent both snow 

from collecting on the surface and the wet soil from freezing 

(fig. 16). The ground surface in the geyser basin is generally 

soggy and waterlogged, and this water is subject to the freezing/thawing cycles. Therefore, there is a continuous source of 

ground water available to the creek via subsurface flow, even 

Figure 12. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of October 26 to November 2, 2005. Symbols are as in figure 3.

-6

0

6

12

Air

Temperature (°C)

17

19

21

23

25

27

29

Water

Temperature (°C)

3

4

5

6

7

Stream Flow (cfs)

0

0.01

0.02

0.03

0.04

0.05

10/26 10/27 10/28 10/29 10/30 10/31 11/1 11/2

Precipitation

(inches)
Discussion 13

during times without precipitation. There is a constantly shifting balance between the cold winter air that induces snow and 

ice formation and the heat coming from the ground that causes 

melting. In the early morning when the air is coldest, melting is 

inhibited. This represents the low point in stream flow for the 

day. As the air heats up, the buffer zone grows, moving back 

from the banks of the creek. This allows for melting of ice and 

snow adjacent to the creek and increases stream flow. Interestingly, there is no corresponding decrease in water temperature 

as flow increases. Melting (and hence, flow) tapers off in the 

latter part of the day as air temperatures fall and the buffer zone 

shrinks back in toward the creek. 

Summertime Behavior

At the other end of the spectrum, the typical summer-type 

flow patterns likely reflect evaporation of water from Tantalus 

Figure 13. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of October 12–19, 2005. Symbols are as in figure 3.

Creek in the afternoon. Tantalus Creek is generally 10–20°C 

warmer than the river it flows into (the Gibbon River), due 

to the heavy influence of thermal waters (fig. 17). Further, 

temperature of the water is not measured until it arrives at the 

weir, by which point it is able to cool significantly by exposure to ambient conditions (Wright and Horrall, 1967). Water 

from many of Norris’ thermal features emerges at 70–90°C 

(Fournier and others, 2002; Ball and others, 2002; Ball and 

others, 2001; White and others, 1988). The high air temperature and low relative humidity of the summertime afternoons, 

combined with already elevated water temperatures, could 

be sufficient to promote evaporation, thereby causing stream 

flow to decrease. Wright and Horrall (1967) calculated the 

maximum evaporative heat loss of the Madison River (another 

thermally-influenced Yellowstone river) to occur at 16:00, 

when the water-air-vapor pressure gradient and the wind speed 

were both found to be at their greatest. 

-4

0

4

8

12

16

Air

Temperature (°C)

20

24

28

32

Water

Temperature (°C)

3

4

5

6

Stream Flow (cfs)

0

0.01

0.02

0.03

0.04

0.05

Precipitation

(inches)

10/12 10/13 10/14 10/15 10/16 10/17 10/18 10/19
14 Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus Creek, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

The afternoon drop in the amount of water in the creek 

is apparently not sufficient to alter the water temperature, 

which during the day seems to respond to air temperature (and 

presumably solar radiation more directly). However, when air 

temperature drops off at night, flow increases concurrently. 

This perhaps suggests that during the heat of the day, water 

is lost to evaporation (thereby also removing heat from the 

water), but when the air cools again in the evening and relative 

humidity increases, this process ceases. The smaller secondary 

temperature maximum could be a response to the decrease in 

evaporation. Because the creek is comprised predominantly 

of thermal waters (Ball and others, 2002; Norton and others, 

1989; Jaworowski and others, 2006), simply a reduction in the 

amount of evaporative cooling might be sufficient to generate 

a small rise in water temperature. 

Our primary hypothesis to explain the shape of the summer flow curve is that high water and summer air temperatures 

and the shallowness of Tantalus Creek combine to promote 

evaporation in the afternoon. Other options include transpiration and/or subsurface recharge. Water loss from the system 

by transpiration of plants (resulting in the afternoon trough) is 

ruled out because much of the Norris Geyser Basin is barren (vegetation free) due to the high temperatures, making it 

unlikely that transpiration is a major factor in Norris Geyser 

Basin hydrology. Another option could be increased recharge 

as water temperatures climb in the afternoon, decreasing the 

viscosity of the stream water and allowing it to sink into the 

substrate more easily. This might contribute to the overall 

streamflow dynamics as well; however, the Tantalus typically 

does not have a porous streambed. Instead, the streambed 

is mostly silicified and has formed a hardpan-like interface 

(White and others, 1988), making it improbable that infiltration 

of water through the streambed into the subsurface is a major 

factor in the hydrologic behavior.

Figure 14. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of November 7–14, 2005. Symbols are as in figure 3.

-16

-13

-10

-7

-4

-1

2

5

8

Air

Temperature (°C)

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

Water

Temperature (°C)

0

0.01

0.02

0.03

0.04

0.05

11/7 11/8 11/9 11/10 11/11 11/12 11/13 11/14

Precipitation

(inches)

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

Stream Flow (cfs)
Summary 15

Spring and Autumn Behavior

Spring and fall are transitional periods between winter 

and summer and therefore display the characteristics of both 

endmember behaviors, depending upon the daily average air 

temperature. When average daily temperatures are consistently below 0°C, the winter pattern is present. When average 

temperatures are consistently above 0°C, the summer pattern 

emerges. When temperatures hover around freezing, the flow 

curve becomes very irregular and is frequently without regular 

diurnal variation. The flow pattern seems to be able to respond 

very quickly to such changes; even when average temperatures 

drifted above 0°C for just a few days in the spring; for example, the summer-type peaks emerged. This quick response is 

likely due to the small discharge and resulting shallowness of 

Tantalus Creek. 

Summary

In 2005, there were two distinct flow patterns of Tantalus Creek throughout the year. The winter pattern represents 

melting of snow and ice during the warmer afternoon hours, 

causing stream flow to increase during the day, mirroring the 

daytime rises of water and air temperature. The summer pattern apparently reflects evaporation during the warmest hours 

of the day, resulting in an afternoon dip in stream flow that 

returns to its otherwise steady plateau of values once the air 

cools. Water temperature may respond in turn to the rising 

overnight flow pattern with a small increase to a secondary water temperature maximum during the night. Further 

constraints and verification of these ideas could be gathered 

by analyzing variations in stream conductivity (both spatial 

and temporal), taking profiles of soil temperature, assessing 

Figure 15. Air temperature, water temperature, stream flow, and precipitation 

for the week of November 17–24, 2005. Symbols are as in figure 3.

-15

-10

-5

0

5

10

Air

Temperature (°C)

17

20

23

26

Water

Temperature (°C)

4

5

6

Stream Flow (cfs)

0

0.01

0.02

0.03

0.04

0.05

Precipitation

(inches)

11/17 11/18 11/19 11/20 11/21 11/22 11/23 11/24
16 Systematics of Water Temperature and Flow at Tantalus Creek, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Figure 16. Schematic diagram depicting the response of snow cover, and hence 

ground temperature, in the vicinity of Tantalus Creek to varying winter air 

temperatures. Overnight, when air temperatures are low (A), the area of cold ground 

surrounding the creek expands inward, and ice accumulation is increased (snow 

would also be allowed to collect closer to the creek, if it were snowing at the time). 

During the afternoon, when air temperatures are higher (B), melting is favored and 

the area of bare/warmer ground increases along the banks of the creek. The creek, 

proximal bare ground and distal snow-covered regions are shown in (C).

Figure 17. Comparison of water temperatures of Tantalus Creek at the weir and also 

the Gibbon River at Madison Junction from February 2005 through January 2006.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Water Temperature (°C)

Gibbon

Tantalus

Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan

colder

ground

warmer

ground

TantalusCreek

A

colder

ground

warmer

ground

TantalusCreek

B

C
References 17

the spatial variations in water temperature to supplement the 

temporal data now available and by collecting realtime data 

for chloride concentrations and/or conductivity. Simple thermal modeling would also provide important insights. Other 

overall observations within this report include: 1) stream 

flow at Tantalus Creek rarely falls below 2 cfs and rarely 

rises above 5 cfs except during periods of intense rainfall, 

and 2) discharge from eruptions at Echinus Geyser reach the 

Tantalus weir in 80 to 90 minutes, implying that the slug of 

water travels about 0.4 m s–1.

Acknowledgments

We appreciate helpful comments by Deb Bergfeld, 

Sean Eagan, Shaul Hurwitz, Steve Ingebritsen and Cheryl 

Jaworowski. NWIS data was provided by Wayne Berkas of the 

USGS office in Helena, Montana. The manuscript was carefully 

reviewed by Cindy Werner and Deborah Bergfeld. The Tantalus 

weir was in part built and maintained by the late Irving Friedman, whose diligence and passion inspired all of us.

References

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J.M., and Verplanck, P.L., 2002, Water-Chemistry Data 

for Selected Springs, Geysers, and Streams in Yellowstone 

National Park, Wyoming, 1999–2000: U.S. Geological 

Survey Open-File Report 02-382, 103 p.

Ball, J.W., Nordstrom, D.K., McCleskey, R.B., Schoonen, 

M.A., and Xu, Y., 2001, Water-chemistry and on-site sulfurspeciation data for selected springs in Yellowstone National 

Park, Wyoming, 1996–1998: U.S. Geological Survey OpenFile Report 01-49, 42 p.

Christiansen, R.L., 2001, The Quaternary and Pliocene Yellowstone Plateau volcanic field of Wyoming, Idaho, and 

Montana: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 

729-G, 145 p.

Christiansen, R.L., Lowenstern, J.B., Smith, R.B., Heasler, 

H., Morgan, L.A., Nathenson, M., Mastin, L.G., Muffler, 

L.J.P., and Robinson, J.E., 2007, Preliminary Assessment 

of Volcanic and Hydrothermal Hazards in Yellowstone 

National Park and Vicinity: U.S. Geological Survey OpenFile Report 2007-1071.

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Janik, C.J., 2002, Results of weekly chemical and isotopic 

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Yellowstone geoecosystem: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1717.

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system of Yellowstone National Park—Inferences from 

river solute fluxes: Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal 

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and Mariner, R.H., 2001, Time-variation of hydrothermal 

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Geothermal Research, v. 111, p. 1–23.

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2006, Control of hydrothermal fluids by natural fractures at 

Norris Geyser Basin: Yellowstone Science v.14, no. 4.

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R.A., 1989, Monitoring of thermal activity in the northern 

part of Yellowstone National Park and vicinity—Part 1, 

February 1985–June 1988: U. S. Geological Survey OpenFile Report 89-0211, 35 p.

White, D.E., Hutchinson, R.A., and Keith T.E.C., 1988, The 

geology and remarkable thermal activity of Norris Geyser 

Basin, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming: U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1456, 84 p.

Wright, J.C., and Horrall, R.M., 1967, Heat budget studies on 

the Madison River, Yellowstone National Park: Limnology 

and Oceanography, v. 12, no. 4, p. 578–583.