Geology Photos from My Travels and Laboratory

These are just a few 35 mm slides that I have scanned from my old collection of places and interesting geological things.

 

Dunes of unique white sand at White Sands National Monument, New Mexico. The sand is made up entirely of crystals of gypsum, a very soft mineral, that is quite different from typical sand made of the mineral quartz. 

 Tracks or trails made by the fission of uranium atoms in the mineral apatite. These "fission tracks" are used to calculate the time at which the apatite grains cooled below about 100 ºC. They have been revealed by etching the apatite briefly in an acid solution. These particular apatite grains come from the Middle Jurassic Carmel Formation of southwestern Utah.

Mafic (dark) inclusions in granite in the Sierra Nevada along the Merced River just outside of Yosemite National Park. The dark inclusions are older rocks that were picked up as the granite magma intruded up into the Earth's crust. They did not completely melt in the liquid, molten granite, however, and you can see how the large dark inclusion cracked and some of the liquid granite oozed up into the crack.

 

Cracks in a solid piece of granite illuminated by a fluorescent dye that was infused into the cracks. The photo is about 3 mm across and shows the pathways for fluid movement in something that appears so solid and impervious as a piece of granite.

 

This photo is of a volcanic mudstone layer in the Green River Formation located in Indian Canyon south of Duchesne, Utah. The cracks are filled with hard silica, which likely dissolved out of the volcanic material (white stuff) around the cracks. The photo is about 2 feet across (0.6 m).

 

A fall scene looking down Pole Canyon toward Provo Canyon near Provo, Utah. The mountain on the right side of the photo is Cascade Mountain. The gray cliffs exposed above the maple covered slopes are composed of limestones and sandstones of the Oquirrh Formation (Pennsylvanian-Permian in age).

View to the east from near Capitol Reef National Park. The low hill in the middle of the picture with the brick red stripe at the bottom is the Morrison Formation (Late Jurassic) capped by some sandstones of the Cedar Mountain Formation (Early Cretaceous). Behind the hill are the gray slopes formed by the Tununk Shale Member of the Mancos Shale (Cretaceous), which are capped by tan sandstones of the Ferron Sandstone (Cretaceous). In the far distance, the Henry Mountains peaks can be seen. The Henry Mountains are composed of diorite porphyry intrusions of Oligocene age.

The Mountain in Our Backyard -- Mount Timpanogos

Here are a few shots I have taken over the years of one of nature's most beautiful mountains: Mount Timpanogos in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah. Even though Timp is only 11,752 feet high, it rises abruptly from Utah Valley, with an elevation difference of over 5,000 feet. The upper parts of the mountain were glaciated during the last ice age, carving the top into its present form.

Most of the mountain is comprised of the Oquirrh Group, a series of Pennsylvanian-Permian age limestones and sandstones that were deposited in the ocean about 300 million years ago when Utah was at the edge of the North American continent. The rocks have since had an interesting history including deep burial, uplift, and erosion to form them into the current spectacular mountain. Several of the photos here were taken from my backyard and others as I have traveled around the mountain.

Red Cliffs, Washington County, Utah - January 2013

When the weather is not so good in northern Utah in January, you can always head south where the sun is usually shining. Here are a few photos I took on my way home from a conference in St. George, Utah at the Red Cliffs Recreation Area and preserve. Also included are a few pictures of the rocks around the Quail Creek reservoir.

 Red Cliffs with Pine Valley Mountains peaking through on the right.

 Narrow underpass under the I-15 freeway to access the Red Cliffs Recreation Area.

 Historic Orson Adams home at Red Cliffs with arch in background.

Historic Orson Adams home. The home was built between 1862 and 1865. Orson Adams was a veteran of the Mormon Battalion. The Adams house is the only intact structure that remains of the short-lived Mormon pioneer settlement of Harrisburg.

Sandstone outcrops near the Red Cliffs campground.

More sandstone outcrops  near the campground.

Pine Valley Mountains, a granite intrusion, in the rear with the Red Cliffs in front. The granite intruded into the area about 20-21 million years ago, warping up the surrounding rock layers. This type of intrusion is called a laccolith.

Map showing the location of the Red Cliffs Recreation Area and campground.

 View of the Pine Valley Mountains in January.

Scattered granite boulders washed out from the Pine Valley Mountains.

Virgin anticline (fold) at the north end of the Quail Creek reservoir. The thin sandstone cliff capping the top of the hills is the Shinarump Conglomerate Member of  the Triassic Chinle Formation. The darker red and lighter striped red and gray rocks below are the Upper Red Member and Shnabkaib Member of the Triassic Moenkopi Formation.

Exposures along the west side of Quail Creek reservoir of the Triassic Moenkopi Formation capped by a thin ledge of Shinarump Conglomerate. The dark brick red rock layers are the Upper Red Member of the Moenkopi and the lighter reddish pink and gray layers are the Shnabkaib Member of the Moenkopi, where the gray layers are mostly gypsum. 

Aspens in Wolf Creek Pass

Photos taken in Wolf Creek Pass, Utah -- Fall 2012

The aspens near the summit of Wolf Creek Pass, Utah were golden with some turning orange in the late afternoon sun. A careful look at the hill in the sunlight shows the swath cut through the trees for the natural gas pipeline.

It's seems to be more common in the mountains these days to see the aspen trees turning not only gold, but also shades of orange and red.

Wolf Creek Pass road winds over the western end of the Uinta Mountains between the small towns of Hanna and Kamas, Utah. It's a beautiful drive any time of the year, but particularly in the fall.

The golds of the aspens were spectacular when contrasted with the dark green of the fir trees.

This last one has been modified as "digital art" using one of the Photoshop filters.

Elephant Toes and other great spots in Dinosaur National Monument

There is more to see in Dinosaur National Monument than the dinosaur bones.

 Elephant Toes, an erosional oddity in the Nugget Sandstone of Dinosaur National Monument along the Cub Creek road.

The Green River at Split Mountain campground and picnic area in Dinosaur National Monument. The red rocks in the middle of the photo are the Triassic Moenkopi Formation. The large white rounded mountain to the left is Permian Weber Sandstone, and the ridge of sandstone on the right above the red beds is the Garta Member of the Triassic Chinle Formation.

Here in the foreground the prominent sandstone outcrops on the left side belong to the Gartra Member of the Chinle Formation. The central reddish saddle is the upper unnamed member of the Chinle Formation (lower half of the saddle) and what we are calling the Bell Springs Formation (upper half of saddle). The prominent sandstone on the right that caps the red beds is the Nugget Sandstone.

Tan Nugget Sandstone contrasts with the whiter Weber Sandstone in this photo taken along the Cub Creek Road in Dinosaur National Monument.

Permian Weber Sandstone outcrops along the Green River at Split Mountain campground and picnic area in Dinosaur National Monument.

Triassic Gartra Member of Chinle Formation along road to Split Mountain campground, Dinosaur National Monument.

These last three photos were taken in 2002 on an earlier trip to Dinosaur and are re-posted here from an earlier blog.

Folded Weber Sandstone as viewed from the Blue Mountain road just south of Dinosaur National Monument.

View of the Green River from Harper's Corner in Dinosaur National Monument.

View of Echo Park, the junction of the Yampa and Green Rivers, from Harper's Corner in Dinosaur National Monument.

Ferry Bluff on the Wisconsin River

Yesterday I visited Ferry Bluff on the Wisconsin River west of Sauk City with assorted nephews, nieces, in-laws, and out-laws. It was a beautiful day and the first time all summer that I have done any hiking (even though it was a fairly short hike). It was good to be able to tag along with the rest of the family and visit a spot that my brother-in-law, Douglas Clark, loved to visit. He would have enjoyed the trip.

David Clark, Julee Kowallis, Steven Clark, Karen Clark, Adrienne Celt, Kimberly Madison, Rachel Robinson, Ryan Clark, Aaron Robinson, Karl Kowallis standing atop Ferry Bluff.

Looking west along the Wisconsin River from Ferry Bluff.

 Sandbar across the Wisconsin River south of Ferry Bluff.

Late summer asters in bloom along the sandstone outcrops of the bluffs.

The Wisconsin River from Ferry Bluff, looking to the east.

Cross-bedded Cambrian sandstones underlie the bluffs and are exposed here because the ice-age glaciers that covered most of Wisconsin did not cover this area, known as the "driftless area."

Bright lichens on a juniper tree atop the bluffs.

Wild grape vines lit by the late summer sun.

Blue harebells grow well in the sandy soil on top of the bluff.

This year's drought has stressed many of the trees including this oak that is trying its best to show its colors for fall even with many of the leaves half dead.

The boardwalk atop the bluff is knotted together with rope.

 Juniper roots are exposed in places along the sandy top of the bluffs.

The vertical tubes on this face of the weathered sandstones of Ferry Bluff were made by ancient animals that burrowed into the sand along the Cambrian sea.

Ferry Bluffs is truly a beautiful place and well worth the time to visit.

Map showing the location of Ferry Bluff with Sauk City to the northeast along the Wisconsin River.