Hot-water fountains in the earth
On a bare, rocky patch of land sits a cone-shaped hump of rock with a
hole in its top. Suddenly, with a hiss, a great, silvery spray of steam
shoots up out of the hole. A geyser has erupted.
Geysers are the earth’s hot-water fountains. Some geysers shoot out
steam every few months. Others go off several times an hour. Some of the
most famous geysers shoot steam more than a hundred feet (30 meters)
into the air.
Geysers are found in groups in several parts of the world. They are near
places where cold water from a river or lake drains down into the ground
until it reaches hot rocks below the earth’s crust. The hot rocks turn
the water into steam. The steam pushes up through cracks in the earth
and comes shooting out into the air. Sometimes the steam cools off
before it reaches the surface. Then, hot water comes bubbling up out of
the ground.
Grotto Geyser, Wyoming
