Yellowstone National Park: Mammoth Hot Springs Terraces

Yellowstone National Park is an iconic wilderness preserve, the first National Park, and one of the largest on the roster. A must-see feature of the park is Mammoth Hot Springs, one of the many geothermal features of the park but one that is quite different from the others. Mammoth Hot Springs is composed of limestone, a relatively soft rock. The limestone allows travertine formations to grow quite quickly, and those formations are what create the terraces at the springs. As for the process, the terraces form by hot water rising through underground fissures. The water interacts with hot carbon dioxide gas, creating a carbonic acid solution. The hot, acidic solution dissolves large quantities of limestone on its way up through the rock layers to the hot springs on the surface. Above ground and exposed to the air, some carbon dioxide escapes from the solution, soon reforming into the solid white, chalky mineral that forms the ghostly terraces. To capture the unique, almost eerie appearance of Mammoth Hot Springs, Anderson Design Group collaborated with talented digital painter Mary Withers Kirkland. Mary’s unique interpretive stylization amplifies the beauty of Yellowstone National Park. This original illustration and National Park art is available as a poster, print, canvas, mini canvas, notecard, postcard, or metal sign. To learn more about Yellowstone or to plan your trip, check out the information resources at Yellowstone Forever.

 Our gorgeous note cards are made-to-order on high-fidelity printing presses, using sturdy, gallery-grade card stock. Each card is folded, and paired with an envelope. All of our cards feature an original illustration by the talented, award-winning artists of Anderson Design Group.