What is "geyser"

Geyser \Gey"ser\, n. [Icel. geysir, fr. geysa to rush furiously, fr. gj[=o]sa to gush. Cf. Gush.] A boiling spring which throws forth at frequent intervals jets of water, mud, etc., driven up by the expansive power of steam.

Note: Geysers were first known in Iceland, and later in New Zealand. In the Yellowstone region in the United States they are numerous, and some of them very powerful, throwing jets of boiling water and steam to a height of 200 feet. They are grouped in several areas called geyser basins. The mineral matter, or geyserite, with which geyser water is charged, forms geyser cones about the orifice, often of great size and beauty.

1780, from Icelandic Geysir, name of a hot spring in the valley of Haukadal, literally "the gusher," from Old Norse geysa "to gush," from Proto-Germanic *gausjan, from PIE *gheus-, from root *gheu- "to pour" (see found (v.2)).

n. 1 (context planetology geology volcanology English) A boiling natural spring which throws forth at frequent intervals jets of water, mud etc., driven up by the expansive power of steam. 2 (context British archaic English) An instantaneous, and often dangerous, hot water heater. 3 (context South Africa English) A domestic water boiler.

1. n. a spring that discharges hot water and steam

2. v. to overflow like a geyser

A geyser (; or ) is a spring characterized by intermittent discharge of water ejected turbulently and accompanied by steam.

The formation of geysers is due to particular hydrogeological conditions, which exist in only a few places on Earth, so they are a fairly rare phenomenon. Generally all geyser field sites are located near active volcanic areas, and the geyser effect is due to the proximity of magma. Generally, surface water works its way down to an average depth of around where it contacts hot rocks. The resultant boiling of the pressurized water results in the geyser effect of hot water and steam spraying out of the geyser's surface vent (a hydrothermal explosion).

Over one thousand known geysers exist worldwide. At least 1,283 geysers have erupted in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, United States, and an average of 465 geysers are active there in a given year. A geyser's eruptive activity may change or cease due to ongoing mineral deposition within the geyser plumbing, exchange of functions with nearby hot springs, earthquake influences, and human intervention.

Jet-like eruptions, often referred to as cryogeysers, have been observed on several of the moons of the outer solar system. Due to the low ambient pressures, these eruptions consist of vapor without liquid; they are made more easily visible by particles of dust and ice carried aloft by the gas. Water vapor jets have been observed near the south pole of Saturn's moon Enceladus, while nitrogen eruptions have been observed on Neptune's moon Triton. There are also signs of carbon dioxide eruptions from the southern polar ice cap of Mars. In the latter two cases, instead of being driven by geothermal energy, the eruptions seem to rely on solar heating via a solid-state greenhouse effect.

A geyser is a periodic steam hot spring.

Geyser may also refer to:

The Geyser was a steam powered fireboat built for Bay City, Michigan. At the time she was being built, in 1889, it was anticipated that she would be twice as powerful as any other vessel on the Saginaw River.

gross tonnage

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Martian geysers are putative sites of small gas and dust eruptions that occur in the south polar region of Mars during the spring thaw. "Dark dune spots" and "spiders" - or araneiforms - are the two most visible types of features ascribed to these eruptions.

They are unlike any terrestrial geological phenomenon. The reflectance ( albedo), shapes and unusual spider appearance of these features have stimulated a variety of hypotheses about their origin, ranging from differences in frosting reflectance, to explanations involving biological processes. However, all current geophysical models assume some sort of geyser-like activity on Mars. Their characteristics, and the process of their formation, are still a matter of debate.

These features are unique to the south polar region of Mars in an area informally called the 'cryptic region', at latitudes 60° to 80° south and longitudes 150°W to 310°W; this 1 meter deep carbon dioxide (CO) ice transition area—between the scarps of the thick polar ice layer and the permafrost—is where clusters of the apparent geyser systems are located.

The seasonal frosting and defrosting of carbon dioxide ice results in the appearance of a number of features, such dark dune spots with spider-like rilles or channels below the ice, where spider-like radial channels are carved between the ground and the carbon dioxide ice, giving it an appearance of spider webs, then, pressure accumulating in their interior ejects gas and dark basaltic sand or dust, which is deposited on the ice surface and thus, forming dark dune spots. This process is rapid, observed happening in the space of a few days, weeks or months, a growth rate rather unusual in geology – especially for Mars. However, it would seem that multiple years would be required to carve the larger spider-like channels. There is no direct data on these features other than images taken in the visible and infrared spectra.

The Geyser was a steam powered fireboat built for Chicago, Illinois in 1886. Chicago had operated three earlier vessels, as fireboats, but they had all been retrofits. The Geyser was specifically designed as a fireboat, after Fire Marshall Denis J. Swenie visited eastern cities to learn from their purpose-built fireboats.

The vessel was designed to be able to break ice, as necessary, so it could operate in the winter.

When Chicago added the Yosemite to its fleet of fireboats, it was reported to have been the same size as the Geyser, but "...has more power as a waterthrower.".

In 1903 the Geyser was renamed the Denis J. Swenie.