Old Faithful proves…predictable

If there is one thing Yellowstone National Park is known for, it is Old Faithful.

The geyser is the park’s top attraction and has been since it was established almost 150 years ago. And, for almost 100 of those years, the National Park Service has been collecting data on its eruptions. Rangers meticulously time the length of every eruption.

Based on that data, park rangers can accurately predict its next eruption. As a result, rangers know that if an eruption is longer than 3 minutes, the next eruption will be in 94, plus or minus 10 minutes. If the eruption is under 3 minutes, it will be 66, plus or minus 10 minutes, until the next eruption.“People come from around the world to see Old Faithful and I help facilitate that. It’s a fun part of the job,” said Ranger Phil Officer. “Seeing a person’s reaction to Old Faithful for the first time never gets old.”