Thermal springs: greetings from the bowels of the Earth

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:40

Thermal springs are widespread on the surface of the Earth. The geysers of Kamchatka, Iceland and the Yellowstone National Park have gained worldwide fame. And many other places where hot and warm waters come to the surface in a more “peaceful” and calm way are well known not only in the countries in which they are located, but also far beyond their borders.

Many thermal springs have healing properties. This is due to the fact that, rising to the surface, hot water dissolves some of the rocks encountered on its way, rich in elements and minerals useful for humans.

Most of these sources are associated with volcanic activity. They are usually located in seismically active areas where underground fire comes close to the surface of the Earth. Often, medical institutions are located in places where hot water comes out. These are Caucasian Mineral Waters, balneological resorts in South China, he alth resorts in Italy and Bulgaria.

Thermal springs, depending on the composition of the water, are used to treat various diseases. Potassium-sodium will help with diseases of the respiratory system, skin or nervous system. And radon sources are good in the treatment of the musculoskeletal system: rheumatism, radiculitis, joint diseases. The composition of hot springs can be different (depending on what rocks prevail at the point where the water comes to the surface).

Water from such sources can be used both for ingestion and for bathing. In most cases, for the correct dosage or for choosing the method of using water, a doctor's consultation is necessary. By temperature, thermal springs are divided into warm (with a water temperature of twenty - thirty-seven degrees above zero Celsius), hot (thirty-seven - fifty degrees) and very hot (above fifty degrees).

Interestingly, some thermal springs are located far from seismically active regions. In these cases, water comes from a great depth. For every kilometer of depth, the temperature of the rocks that make up the earth's crust rises by thirty degrees. Therefore, wherever there are cracks in the earth's crust, going to a depth of more than a kilometer, thermal springs can exist. Tyumen, located in a seismically absolutely inert zone, perfectly confirms this rule. In the Urals and Western Siberia, resorts located in the Tyumen and Yalutorovsk regions are widely known and popular.

The thermal spring can be used not only for he alth purposes. In 1967, the world's first geothermal power plant began operation. It was the Paratunskaya GeoPP in Kamchatka. Now there are power plants of this type (except Russia) in twenty-three countries located on all continents. GeoPPs have a great advantage over other power plants: they do not depend on environmental conditions and do not use non-renewable resources to generate electricity. It would seem: here it is, an ecologically and economically perfect source of energy! But not everything is so simple. Although economically the GeoPP is indeed very profitable, but with the environment often not everything is as rosy as it seems at first glance.

The fact is that the hot water used at the GeoPP often contains various substances that are harmful to humans and animals. In particular, these are s alts of certain metals. Therefore, the used water cannot be discharged into the water bodies of the earth's surface. We got out of the situation by pumping waste water back into the underground aquifer.