Entries by Utah Geological Survey

POTD September 5, 2013: Crystal Peak, Millard County, Utah

Crystal Peak, Millard County, Utah Photographer: Matt Affolter Certain rock types weather into curious shapes and patterns by combinations of internal factors such as fractures and sediment grain size and external factors such as frost action and salt crystallization. Sandstone, granite, volcanic rocks, and limestone are all excellent mediums for creating bizarre rockscapes that can […]

Damage, delays in Spanish Fork Canyon after debris flow

ksl.com Leslee Maki says she can’t believe what happened to her property after a storm moved into the area Monday night and a debris flow shut down part of U.S. 6. “We still don’t know where everything is,” Maki said. “Forty-five minutes is all it took.” READ MORE MORE INFO OTHER NEWS deseretnews.com

New Publications: OFR-613, OFR- 616, and OFR-617

Structural architecture of the Confusion Range, west-central Utah: a Sevier fold-thrust belt and frontier petroleum province By: David C. Greene and Donna M. Herring This report (22p., 6pl.) describes the structural geology and petroleum potential of the Confusion Range in west central Utah. Four new balanced and retrodeformable cross sections across the range and adjacent […]

POTD September 4, 2013: Goblin Valley State Park, Emery County, Utah

Goblin Valley State Park, Emery County, Utah Photographer: Keith Beisner Certain rock types weather into curious shapes and patterns by combinations of internal factors such as fractures and sediment grain size and external factors such as frost action and salt crystallization. Sandstone, granite, volcanic rocks, and limestone are all excellent mediums for creating bizarre rockscapes […]

Survey Notes volume 45 number 3

Current Issue Contents: Damaging Debris Flows Prompt Landslide Inventory Mapping for the 2012 Seely Fire, Carbon and Emery Counties, Utah Rock Fall: An Increasing Hazard in Urbanizing Southwestern Utah New Geologic Data Resources for Utah Energy News Teacher’s Corner Glad You Asked: Where is the Coolest Spot in Utah? GeoSights: The Goosenecks of the San […]

POTD September 3, 2013: Fantasy Canyon, Uinta Basin, Uintah County, Utah

Fantasy Canyon, Uinta Basin, Uintah County, Utah Photographer: Jim Davis A sandstone layer within the Eocene-aged Uinta Formation forms a surreal landscape at Fantasy Canyon. Sandwiched between more easily erodible layers of claystone and mudstone, the exposed sandstone has weathered into an intricate rock garden containing over twenty named sculptures, including “Alien Head” in the […]

POTD August 29, 2013: Notch Peak, House Range, Millard County, Utah

Notch Peak, House Range, Millard County, Utah Photographer: Michael Vanden Berg Abundant trilobite fossils, including  Elrathia kingi shown here, can be found  within the Wheeler Shale east of Notch Peak in the House Range. Many of the dry desert peaks of western Utah tell a story of shallow tropical seas. As much as 500 million […]

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New Publications M-261DM and OFR-605

Geologic map of the Johnson Lakes quadrangle, Kane County, Utah, and Coconino County, Arizona, By: Janice M. Hayden The Johnson Lakes quadrangle includes parts of the Chocolate (Shinarump) and Vermilion Cliff steps of the Grand Staircase in the southwest part of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. Reddish-brown Lower Jurassic strata of the Vermilion Cliffs dominate the […]