Early Sunday morning, Steamboat Geyser in Yellowstone National Park erupted for the fifth time this year. It erupted for the first time in mid-March.
Mike Poland, the director of the Yellowstone Volcano Observatory, said a network of small monitors caught the eruption and will allow scientists to observe subtle signals.
“Maybe there's something in those signals that we can use an indicator of knowing when the geyser is likely to erupt and even possibly peer into the plumbing system of the geyser and really map it out in great detail,” said Poland.
Before this year’s string of activity, Steamboat Geyser last erupted in 2014. Poland said it looks like Steamboat is entering an era of more frequent activity.
“It feels like Steamboat is entering a phase that is similar to what happened in the 1960s," said Poland. “And what happened in ‘82 to ‘84 when it erupted many times…many dozen times in those years.”
Poland added it's important to remember that random activity is normal for geysers and there’s no indication of volcanic activity in the park.
