Hot Creek Hydrothermal System
In hydrothermal systems the circulation of ground water is driven by a combination of topography and geothermal heat sources. The system in the Long Valley Caldera is recharged primarily from snowmelt in the highlands around the western (Sierra Nevada) and southern rims of the caldera. The meltwater infiltrates to depths of a few kilometers-miles, where some is heated to at least 430 °F (220 °C) by hot rock near cooling magma beneath the Inyo craters and domes, 10 miles (16 km) west of Hot Creek. The heated water, kept from boiling by high pressure, still has lower density than cold water, and it rises along steeply inclined fractures to depths of 0.3-1.25 miles (0.5–2 km). It then flows eastward through rock layers to hydrothermal vent discharge points at the surface along Hot Creek and around Crowley Lake. The water temperature declines eastward because of heat loss and mixing with cold water, and in the springs near Crowley Lake temperatures are at only about 125 °F (50 °C).
The springs in Hot Creek all emerge along a stream section between two faults and discharge a total of about 8.5 cubic feet per second (about 240 liters per second) of hot water. This water flow represents nearly 70 percent of the total heat discharged by all thermal springs in Long Valley Caldera. The thermal springs farther east all discharge less water and at lower temperatures.
The larger and more vigorous springs discharge from fractures in the volcanic rock (altered rhyolite) in the gorge. Rock fracturing happens because the thermal area lies within a region of frequent earthquakes and active uplift (deformation) of the ground. When fractures become sealed by mineral deposition, spring discharge and temperature decline. When new fractures develop or sealed fractures reopen, spring discharge and temperatures can increase suddenly.
Read more about this topic: Hot Creek (Mono County, California)
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