Pagosa Hot Springs EarthCache
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(other)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
Pagosa Springs is a beautiful mountain town with a lot of recreational possibilities. Ski all day and soak it up in the hot springs, nothing could be better. Coordinates take you to a geological formation in the middle of town with a great view of the river below and the hot springs themselves.
Hot Springs:.
A hot spring is a spring that is produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater from the Earth's crust. There are hot springs all over the earth, on every continent and even under the oceans and seas..
* any geothermal spring.
* a spring with water temperatures above its surroundings.
* a natural spring with water temperature above body
temperature – normally between 36.5 °C (97.7 °F) and 37.5 °C (99.5 °F).
* a natural spring with warm water above body temperature.
* a thermal spring with water warmer than 36.7 °C (98.1 °F).
* a natural spring of water greater than 21.1 °C (70.0 °F) (synonymous with thermal spring).
* a natural discharge of groundwater with elevated temperatures.
* a type of thermal spring in which hot water is brought to the surface. The water temperature of a hot spring is usually 6.5 °C (43.7 °F) or more above mean air temperature. Note that by this definition, "thermal spring" is not synonymous with the term "hot spring".
* a spring whose hot water is brought to the surface (synonymous with a thermal spring). The water temperature of the spring is usually 8.3 °C (46.9 °F) or more above the mean air temperature..
* a spring with water above the core human body temperature – 36.7 °C (98.1 °F)..
* a spring with water above average ambient ground temperature, a definition favored by some.
* a spring with water temperatures above 50 °C (122 °F).
Hot spring in Lassen Volcanic National Park.
The related term "warm spring" is defined as a spring with water temperature less than a hot spring by many sources, although Pentecost et al. (2003) suggest that the phrase "warm spring" is not useful and should be avoided. The US NOAA Geophysical Data Center defines a "warm spring" as a spring with water between 20 °C (68 °F) and 50 °C (122 °F). The water issuing from a hot spring is heated by geothermal heat, i.e., heat from the Earth's interior. In general, the temperature of rocks within the earth increases with depth. The rate of temperature increase with depth is known as the geothermal gradient. If water percolates deeply enough into the crust, it will be heated as it comes into contact with hot rocks. The water from hot springs in non-volcanic areas is heated in this manner. Steam Crepuscular rays at Mammoth Hot Springs.
In active volcanic zones such as Yellowstone National Park, water may be heated by coming into contact with magma (molten rock). The high temperature gradient near magma may cause water to be heated enough that it boils or becomes superheated. If the water becomes so hot that it builds steam pressure and erupts in a jet above the surface of the Earth, it is called a geyser. If the water only reaches the surface in the form of steam, it is called a fumarole. If the water is mixed with mud and clay, it is called a mud pot..
Note that hot springs in volcanic areas are often at or near the boiling point. People have been seriously burned and even killed by accidentally or intentionally entering these springs..
Warm springs are sometimes the result of hot and cold springs mixing but may also occur outside of volcanic areas, such as Warm Springs, Georgia (frequented for its therapeutic effects by paraplegic U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who built the Little White House there)..
Flow rates.
Hot springs range in flow rate from the tiniest "seeps" to veritable rivers of hot water. Sometimes there is enough pressure that the water shoots upward in a geyser, or fountain. .
A very low flow rate hot spring fed the closed resort, Fales Hot Ditch, which is north of Bridgeport, California. There is a huge subterranean lake below Tonopah, Arizona, which provides natural hot mineral waters to several hot springs. These hot springs were used by the seven or more hot spring spas that once operated in Tonopah. The ruins of two such spas are still visible in Tonopah. [edit] High flow hot springs.
There are many claims in the literature about the flow rates of hot springs. Some of the hot springs with high flow rates and high claimed flow rates. It should be noted that there are many more very high flow nonthermal springs than geothermal springs. For example, there are 33 recognized "magnitude one springs" (having a flow in excess of 2,800 liters/second) in Florida alone. Silver Springs, Florida has a flow of more than 21,000 liters/second. .
Therapeutic uses.
Japanese open air hot spring in Nachikatsuura, Wakayama Hammam Essalihine, romain hot spring in Algeria.
Because heated water can hold more dissolved solids, warm and especially hot springs also often have a very high mineral content, containing everything from simple calcium to lithium, and even radium. Because of both the folklore and the claimed medical value some of these springs have, they are often popular tourist destinations, and locations for rehabilitation clinics for those with disabilities..
To log this cache you must:.
1. Have a photo of you/gps/ or both at the site..
2. Tell the exact or estimate the temperature of the water.
3. Tell what minerals created the formation at the site..
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)