SteamDevils

[Jason Persoff]

Last week I got to enjoy a brief foray to Yellowstone while I was up in Montana giving some medical talks. I'd never been there, and was amazed by it. I was shocked by the sheer devestation the fires of a decade ago had wrought. But I also was tantalized by the beauty of geysers (never having seen one in my life in person). Admittedly, I'd dragged a lot of equipment with me hoping I might get a mid-summer chase in, but that didn't pan out courtesy of exceptionally high ridging.

I got to enjoy an amazing treat while near one of the geysers: wind conditions were just right to allow for steam devils, some about 100 feet tall. They formed one after another in the eddies of light wind dropping into the valley. They were pretty and offered some nice high-contrast vortices to enjoy. The first one below even had a collar. Pretty cool. Just thought I'd share since I've been awfully quiet lately .

http://home.comcast.net/~persoffj/Steamdevil.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~persoffj/Steamdevil2.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~persoffj/Steamdevil3.jpg

Jason

 

[Damon Poole]

Very Nice!

 

[George Kourounis]

Very Cool stuff. Here in Toronto, I get to see steam devils almost every year when cold air overuns the warm Great Lakes. They're tough to capture...You have to out there at the break of dawn and the air temp is usually lower than -17C. Brrrr...

Here's a link to some from a couple of winters ago

http://www.stormchaser.ca/Snow_Blizzards/Jan_2004_Steam/Jan_2004_Steam.html

George Kourounis
www.stormchaser.ca

 

[Oscar van der Velde]

it is also funny to visit a swimming pool with an outdoor section in winter with freezing air temperatures, you will spot them very often and can then play with them (if nobody looks)