The Rotorua area on New Zealand's
North Island is a wonderland of hydrothermal activity ranging
from geysers to boiling mud pools to steam vents. There are so
many interesting sights that I've compiled a collection of some
of my favorites here.
Along side the scalding hot
thermal "Champagne Pool" at Wai-O-Tapu, New Zealand.
The shoreline contains colonies
of extremophile bacteria that thrive in the hot water which is
laced with minerals such as antimony, gold, silver, mercury and
arsenic.
An overview of Champagne Pool.
It is possible that life on Earth began in pools similar to this
one.
The water here is a scalding
70C.
Pohutu Geyser erupting.
Getting up close to film a scene
for Angry Planet.
Pohutu and Prince of Wales'
Feathers Geysers.
Te Puia Hydrothermal Area.
Bubbling mud pool.
Bubbling mud pool.
Lady Knox Geyser. It erupts
every day at 10:30.
This geyser is triggered each
day by dropping 300 grams of biodegradable soap into the throat
of the geyser.
Large pools of boiling mud.
Mud bubbles bursting.
Mud bubbles bursting.
More boiling mud.
The Devil's Bath. It gets its
colour from a mixture of sulfur and ferrous salts.
Devil's Ink Pots - Boiling crude
oil with floating deposits of graphite and carbon.