Black Pool, Yellowstone Park

Abstract

The painting depicts the depths of Black Pool, a large hot water spring in the West Thumb area of Yellowstone National Park. The yellow and orange surface on the lower right is cool enough to support thermophiles. The blue depths of the pool are an indication that the temperature is too hot even for thermophiles to survive.The existence of Yellowstone is a reminder that unimaginable forces of nature exist unseen but close by. All the geysers, fumaroles, and hot springs are driven by intense heat from a magma chamber just a few kilometers beneath the surface.