Core Hole into the Hydrothermal System of the Long Valley Caldera

摘要

To investigate the present-day hydrothermal system, the ''Shady Rest'' hole was continuously cored 715m into the southwestern moat of the Long Valley caldera. The hole intersected 100m of glacial till and 300m of postcaldera rhyolite before entering the welded Bishop Tuff and bottoming in that unit. A sharp temperature rise over the upper 350m, and near-isothermal conditions below reflect the presence of approx.200 deg C water moving through open, calcite-lined fractures in silicified Early Rhyolite and Bishop Tuff. The depth to the Bishop is the shallowest encountered in holes in the caldera, and the temperatures measured are among the hottest observed in wells drilled within the caldera. (ERA citation 13:025988)