June 11, 2015
Rotorua New Zealand is located within the Taupo Volcanic Zone, known for its geothermal activity in the form of hot springs, geysers and boiling pools of mud. Geysers occur when volcanic heat boils underground water, causing pressure to build. The water is then forced to escape through narrow cracks in the Earth’s surface, shooting hot water and steam into the air. Geysers often erupt in predictable patterns due to steady conditions. In Rotorua, the eruptions of the large Pohutu Geyser are up to 98 feet (30 m) high and typically occur 20 times per day. Often steam will escape through wide cracks, covering the landscape in a foggy mist. These cracks are called “fumaroles.”
Boiling mud pools are created when underground gas and steam rises to the surface and mix with natural rainwater ponds. The acidity of the gas transforms the rocky ground into thick clay, which bubbles from the heat of the steam.
