Yellowstone National Park, National park and biosphere reserve in Wyoming, United States.
The park covers conifer forests, alpine meadows, and over 290 waterfalls across 8,991 square kilometers. Deep canyons cut through the land, while more than 10,000 thermal features including geysers, hot springs, mudpots, and fumaroles appear across the terrain.
President Ulysses S. Grant signed legislation in 1872 to create the first national park in the world. The Army managed the territory from 1886 to 1918, before the National Park Service took over.
Rangers lead daily walks and explain the behavior of wildlife and the workings of thermal pools. Visitors follow wooden boardwalks and stay behind barriers, as stepping off can break through thin ground into boiling water below.
The park is easiest to reach between May and October, with most visitors arriving in July and August. Nine lodges and twelve campgrounds offer places to stay, while visitor centers run education programs.
This territory holds half of all known geothermal features on Earth. Beneath the surface lies one of the largest active volcanic systems on the planet, whose last major eruption about 640,000 years ago formed the caldera now making up the central plateau.
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