Study shows temperatures rising in Yellowstone Lake vents

Scientists say the amount of heat coming from Yellowstone Lake appears to be much higher than previously thought.

The Billings Gazette reports Rob Sohn with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is leading a $5 million study of the lake. He says his team has used an underwater remote vehicle to measure “ginormous” amounts of heat flowing out of hydrothermal vents from the lake floor.

Researchers are trying to gain a better understanding of how the lake’s hydrothermal system has responded to geological events and changing climate.

The last time similar measurements were taken in Yellowstone Lake was about 40 years ago.

The lake contains the world’s largest known hydrothermal explosion crater in the world. The crater from the explosion, which occurred 14,000 years ago, measures 1 ½ miles across.