Hotsprings, A Steamy Subject ...

Where does the spring water come from?
Most of the rain and snow that falls on the slopes of a mountain ends up in rivers and streams. Some of it, however, filters down through the cracks and pores in the mountain rock, pulled by gravity to a depth of three kilometres below the surface. It is this water which later returns to the surface in our hot springs.

Why is it warm?
As it seeps into the ground, the water becomes hotter and hotter — heated by radioactive decay in the earth's core. When the water boils, pressure forces it upward, just like the water in a coffee percolator. The speed at which the water rises, and the degree to which it mixes with cold ground water, causes the temperature to fluctuate.

Where does the odor come from?
As the water heats up, it dissolves minerals in the surrounding rock. When these dissolved minerals break down, they release hydrogen sulphide gas, which smells like rotten eggs. Pyrite and gypsum are two common sulphur-bearing minerals dissolved in the Banff and Miette hot springs. The water at Radium Hot Springs is odorless because of the type of rock in that area.

No two hot springs are the same. Differences in location, often mean differences in the amount, temperature and mineral content of the water. For example, the deeper the water goes, the hotter it gets. Rainfall and snow melt cause water temperatures to fluctuate. The type of rock in the area determines what minerals are dissolved in the spring water.

Water Volume:
 
Miette Hot Springs - Jasper National Park                            1540 Liters per minute
Banff Upper Hot Springs - Banff National Park                      454 Liters per minute
Radium Hot Springs - Kootenay National Park                     1375 Liters per minute

Maximum Temperature:
 
Miette Hot Springs                    53.9 °C
Banff Upper Hot Springs           47.3 °C
Radium Hot Springs                  45.5 °C

This is the most "at-risk" species in park

An inconspicuous little snail, found nowhere else in the world, lives in five hot springs in Banff National Park. In April 1997, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) classified the Banff Springs snail (Physella johnsoni) as a "threatened" species. This means it is the most at-risk species in the park. It also means that if current conditions continue, the species could become "endangered" and face imminent extinction....