High-resolution mapping of river-hydrothermal water mixing: Yellowstone National Park

High-resolution mapping reveals that thermal discharges from hydrothermal sources in Yellowstone National Park's rivers are not uniformly mixed with the bulk flow, even after traveling multiple stream widths. This results in significant temperature gradients exceeding 30°C between the thermal plume and surrounding river water. The study utilized airborne (4-meter resolution) and ground-based (centimeter-scale resolution) imaging to document these mixing zones, demonstrating pronounced spatial and temporal variations within plumes. These findings highlight the potential of portable high-resolution sensors for advancing the understanding of non-isothermal mixing processes and thermally-mediated ecological and biogeochemical functions in aquatic systems.

Cardenas, M. B., Neale, C. M. U., Jaworowski, C., & Heasler, H. (2011). High-resolution mapping of river-hydrothermal water mixing: Yellowstone National Park. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 32(10), 2765–2777. https://doi.org/10.1080/01431161003743215