Yellowstone National Park By Anderson Corum

Location & Info Welcome to Yellowstone National Park. In this park, you will find geysers, canyons, mountains, wildlife, and other cool land features. There are many fun things to do, such as hiking, bicycling, camping, and boating. Let’s see more cool things about arguably the most famous park in the world. First, Let’s look at the location.

Country Map *  Birmingham

Topographic Map 

Topographic Map

Relief Map 

History A trapper named John Colter found a wonderland of geysers and hot springs in far out west in present-day Yellowstone, in the early 1800s. Yellowstone National Park was established in 1872 because it had natives and geysers that the government didn’t want disturbed by our filthy industrial revolution. Soon after in 1883, railroads were added for easier transportation. Since the park was almost unvisited in the first around 16 years, it was run by the US Army. Then, in 1915, automobiles were allowed in the park for economical purposes. One year later, in 1916, the National Park Service was created. In 2016, it will be the 100th anniversary of the service.

Environmental Issues Another issue is invasive species. Bark beetles have savaged Yellowstone pine trees, as well as many other western trees. Microscopic parasites render cutthroat trout to not feed normally. The parasite originated in Europe, and somehow ended up in Yellowstone Lake, in the park, where the cutthroat trout are native. An environmental issue with the park is the climate. The temperature has highly increased for 50 years (since the 1960s). The climate can greatly alter ecosystems. The temperature, especially nighttime, is higher than it was 50 years ago.

Special Landforms and/or Features Canyon Village is well – a big canyon. (I bet you could tell that already, but  let’s move on.) Otherwise known as the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, it has many features such as a waterfall running through it, it being 20 miles long, and many amazing view points. If you get stressed from all this sight-seeing, you can sit back, relax, and observe fish on Yellowstone Lake. If it were 1973 or earlier, you could of fished on the lake. But, since the cutthroat trout population has been decreasing, you now can only observe.  Old Faithful Geyser. The heart of the park. Yes, there are over 300 geysers in the park, but there is no other geyser in the park - or maybe in the world – like this one. See this big guy erupt every 65-91 minutes! 

Helpful Technology For the Park A GPS (Global Positioning System) measures its location vertically and horizontally for earthquake activity. InSAR (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar) measures precise vertical changes in the ground.   Seismometers are used in Yellowstone. (No, the image is not in Yellowstone.) They are used to measure earthquakes, which can lead to a volcanic eruption.  Webcams can monitor the weather. 

Rocks/Rock Formations Metamorphic rocks can be found in Yellowstone National Park, designated by the compressed rocks. These rocks include Gneiss, Quartzite, and others. Many igneous rocks are found the park, designated by the volcano. (Yes, it is indeed a volcano. It is a spring, but also a volcano.) These include obsidian, granite, and many others. Sedimentary rocks can be found in Yellowstone, designated by this hillside. These rocks include sandstone, shale, and other sedimentary rocks.

How the Park Was Formed * The park was formed by the Pacific Plate sliding against the North American Plate, forming a huge mountain range. The mountain range spans all the way from the Pacific coast to South Dakota, called the Rocky Mountains, with Yellowstone in the middle. Since the Pacific Plate is Oceanic, and the North American Plate is Continental, the mountains end up being volcanic. That means that the mountains are volcanic in Yellowstone. *  Yellowstone

Changing Yellowstone As this photo shows, Apgar Lookout’s trees have intensely populated since July 29th, 1937. The park is in fact constantly changing, 24/7. Even as you’re reading this, the park is slowly changing. July 29th, 1937 As this photo shows, the rocks of Yellowstone have been slowly rising over time. If you look closely, you will see layers of different rocks, showing different time periods. 2016 (Infrared)

Bibliography (Websites) National Park Service - United States. National Park Service. "Plan Your Adventure (U.S. National Park Service)." National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, 15 Jan. 2016. Web. 21 Jan. 2016. - http://www.nps.gov/findapark/index.htm Wikipedia - Yellowstone National Park - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowstone_National_Park - "Yellowstone National Park." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2016. Yellowstone & Obsidian - http://www.yellowstonegeographic.com/Geology/obsidian.htm - "Yellowstone National Park." , Information on Obsidian Sontes/Rocks, History of Obsidian and More, Uses of Obsidian. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2016. Yellowstone: The Super Volcano Within! - http://yellowstonesupervolcanoblast.weebly.com/how-is-yellowstone-being- monitored.html - "How Is Yellowstone Being Monitored?" Yellowstone: The Super Volcano Within! N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2016.