Geysers are some of Earth’s most spectacular sights – created when intense pressure causes a hot spring to erupt, sending jets of water and steam into the air. Some geysers are more powerful than others, however, and in 2023, Utah FORGE’s Dr. Stuart Simmons (our Technical Expert on Geology and Geochemistry) spoke with Geohug about the geological wonder that is the Waimangu geyser. Follow along for some of the takeaways!
Active from 1900 to 1904, the Waimangu geyser is the most powerful geyser in history. It played in an area of hydrothermal activity approximately 20 kilometers southeast of Rotorua on the northern island of New Zealand. It erupted frequently for periods lasting roughly 6 hours within a 36 hour cycle. The geyser pool was 11,475 square meters large and individual eruptions jetted water, steam, rocks and mud up to 400 meters into the air! During these eruptions, the geyser created an estimated thermal output of 500 to 750 megawatts of energy – an output so high, no geysers today can compare. It’s no wonder that the geyser captivated such large tourist interest.
But how did the Waimangu geyser form and become so powerful? The answer lies in the area’s geological history. In 1886, a volcanic eruption on Mount Tarawera created a series of volcanic vents that altered the plumbing of an existing hydrothermal system around Waimangu. The eruption was devastating, creating a landscape devoid of vegetation and killing many Maori people who lived in the area at the time. The subsequent evolution of the geyser and its pressure gradients created a deep boiling and fountaining system that erupted through an extensional fissure that formed a nozzle. Hence, the Waimangu geyser came to be.
Although the Waimangu geyser is no longer active, its evolution and existence remain an example of the awe-inspiring (and sometimes deadly) power of geothermal activity. What a world we live in!
Photo credits:
Top: S. Simmons, Waimangu-Tarawera aerial view
Bottom b&w: Waimangu Geyser, The Greatest Known Geyser, 1903, Rotorua, by A. Cromwell Shepherd, Muir & Moodie. Te Papa (C.016361)
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