Fly Geyser

Fly Geyser
Name origin Named after Fly Ranch
Location Fly Ranch, Washoe County, Nevada
Coordinates 40°51′34″N 119°19′55″W / 40.85944°N 119.33194°W / 40.85944; -119.33194Coordinates: 40°51′34″N 119°19′55″W / 40.85944°N 119.33194°W / 40.85944; -119.33194
Elevation 4,014 feet (1,223 m)
Type Cone-type Geyser
Eruption height 5 feet (1.5 m) and growing
Frequency Constant
Duration Constant

Fly Geyser, also known as Fly Ranch Geyser is a small geothermal geyser located on private land in Washoe County, Nevada approximately 20 miles (32 km) north of Gerlach. Fly Geyser is located near the edge of Fly Reservoir in the Hualapai Geothermal Flats and is approximately 5 feet (1.5 m) high by 12 feet (3.7 m) wide, counting the mound on which it sits. In June 2016, the non-profit Burning Man Project announced that they had purchased the Fly Ranch, including the geyser, for $6.5 million.[1][2] The Burning Man Project is planning to provide controlled access to the property in the future and is asking for donations to move the project forward.[3] The geyser is covered with thermophilic algae, which flourishes in moist, hot environments, resulting in the multiple hues of green and red

Location

Fly Geyser is located on the private Fly Ranch in Hualapai Flat, about 0.3 miles (0.48 km) from State Route 34.[4]

History

The source of the Fly Geyser field's heat is attributed to a very deep pool of hot rock where tectonic rifting and faulting are common. Fly Geyser was accidentally created during well drilling[5] in 1964 while exploring for sources of geothermal energy.[6] The well may not have been capped correctly, or left unplugged, but either way, dissolved minerals started rising and accumulating, creating the travertine mound on which the geyser sits and continues growing.[6] Water is constantly released, reaching 5 feet (1.5 m) in the air.[4] The geyser contains several terraces discharging water into 30 to 40 pools over an area of 74 acres (30 ha).[7] The geyser is made up of a series of different minerals,[5] but its brilliant colors are due to thermophilic algae.[6]

Other local geysers

A prior well-drilling attempt in 1917 resulted in the creation of a geyser close to the currently active Fly Geyser; it created a pillar of calcium carbonate about 12 feet (3.7 m) tall, but ceased when the Fly Geyser began releasing water in 1964.[6]

Two additional geysers in the area were created in a similar way and continue to grow.[5] The first geyser is approximately 3 feet (0.91 m) and is shaped like a miniature volcano; the second is cone-shaped and is about 5 feet (1.5 m).[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Fly Ranch - Burning Man Project". burningman.org.
  2. ↑ "We Bought Fly Ranch". Burning Man Journal. Retrieved 2017-11-08.
  3. ↑ "Fly Ranch - Burning Man Project". Fly Ranch - Burning Man Project. Retrieved 2017-11-08.
  4. 1 2 "Fly Geyser". CmdrMark.com.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Jaymi McCann (15 July 2013). "There she blows: The incredible pictures of a man-made geyser in the middle of the Nevada Desert". Daily Mail UK.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Richard Moreno (4 November 2008). Nevada Curiosities: Quirky Characters, Roadside Oddities & Other Offbeat Stuff. Globe Pequot Press. pp. 104–. ISBN 978-0-7627-4682-8. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  7. ↑ "Fly Geyser". FlyGeyser.org.
  • Fly Geyser (in German)
  • "Fly Geyser". Friends of Black Rock High Rock.
  • "Fly Geyser Nevada". All Over the Map.
  • Images and background of Fly Geyser
  • Fly Ranch-Burning Man Project
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