159-7 Hypogene 'Karst' Development within the Geyser Basins of Yellowstone National Park, USA

Session: Hypogene Speleogenesis: An Overview of Research in Memory of Dr. Alexander Klimchouk

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Abstract:

The principal geyser basins of Yellowstone National Park represent rare examples of hydrothermal siliceous karst terranes. These basins overlie a mantle plume, which heats alkaline fluids to form hydrothermal convection cells within fractured rhyolite, consolidated obsidian gravels, and thick deposits of chemically precipitated geyserite. These rocks are mainly comprised of silicate minerals, which become increasingly soluble with increasing fluid temperature and pH. As the hot alkaline fluids ascend along the rising limbs of convection cells, they dissolve and mobilize silicate minerals from within the pores and permeability structures, enlarging them to form conduits for turbulent fluid flow. There is still much that remains unknown about the internal plumbing of these systems, but where physically observed or imaged using remote sensing techniques, many of the features contain morphological signatures indicative of hypogene karst development. The role of hypogene karst development within these basins may be significant as the hot springs are internally modified, enabling the development of internal features such as cupolas which act as steam chambers and facilitate the onset of eruptive mechanisms to become geysers.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Program. Vol. 57, No. 6, 2025

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-11257

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