Champagne Pool

Thermal source

Champagne Pool is with a diameter of 65 m, a depth of 62 m and an estimated water volume of 50,000 m³ one of the largest hot springs in New Zealand.

The Champagne Pool is one of the thermal area Waiotapu 31 km south of Rotorua. The State Highway 5 leads west past near the lake.

The approximately 75 ° C hot water is supersaturated with the metalloid orpiment ( As2S3 ) and stibnite ( Sb2S3 ) which precipitate and form an orange- colored sediment.

The name " Champagne Pool " is derived from the continuous stream of gas bubbles that rise to the surface, similar to gas bubbles in a champagne flute. The escaping gas mixture consists mainly of carbon dioxide (CO2), a small proportion of nitrogen ( N2 ), methane (CH4 ), hydrogen ( H2), hydrogen sulfide ( H2S) and traces of oxygen (O2).

The Champagne Pool is found the only known occurrence of the bacterium Venenivibrio stagnispumantis.