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This astronomical photograph captures the Milky Way Galaxy arching over Silex Spring in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. The colorful hot spring, approximately 10 meters across, displays vibrant hues caused by thermophilic bacteria living in the geothermally heated water, while steam rises from the pool due to underground magma from the Yellowstone Hotspot. The 16-image panorama from 2014 juxtaposes this terrestrial geothermal feature with the distant galactic core containing billions of stars.
Why it matters
This image illustrates the connection between Earth's internal heat processes and surface features while providing public engagement with both geology and astronomy. It also reminds viewers that the Yellowstone Hotspot remains geologically active, having produced a supervolcanic eruption 640,000 years ago that could recur with continental-scale consequences.
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Milky Way over Yellowstone
Explanation: The Milky Way was not created by an evaporating lake. The colorful pool of water, about 10 meters across, is known as Silex Spring and is located in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, USA. Illuminated artificially, the colors are caused by layers of bacteria that grow in the hot spring. Steam rises off the spring, heated by underground magma associated with the Yellowstone Hotspot. Unrelated and far in the distance, the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy arches high overhead, a band lit by billions of stars. The picture features a 16-image panorama taken in 2014. If the Yellowstone Hotspot causes another supervolcanic eruption as it did about 640,000 years ago, a large part of North America would be affected.
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| Date | August 16, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Credit & Copyright: | Dave Lane |
| Authors & editors: | Robert Nemiroff, Jerry Bonnell, Cecilia Chirenti, Keighley Rockcliffe |
| A service of: |
ASD at NASA / GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U. |