Utah Geological Survey

St George 30′ x 60′ 3-D Geologic Map and Virtual Field Trip

map-overlayThrough the use of computers and the Internet, and virtual globes such as Google Earth, we now have a way around the inherent limitations of depicting the third dimension on a standard paper geologic map. To help users gain this 3-D advantage, the UGS created an overlay of the new geologic map of the St. George 30′ x 60′ quadrangle in southwest Utah. This 3-D visualization brings the map to life, dramatically showing the relationship between geology and topography. A virtual field trip for the St. George 30′ x 60′ quadrangle, which uses placemarks to highlight selected geologic features, was also created.

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Utah Geological Survey

Landsliding in Northern Utah, Early 2009

An upslope-facing scarp in the Springhill landslide in North Salt Lake. Additional damage to several of the houses on the landslide has resulted from an increase in the rate of movement in 2009

Local wet conditions in northern Utah have caused some landslides to reactivate along with other types of shallow slope failures. Areas with active landslides in early 2009 include Ogden Valley in eastern Weber County, western Morgan County, southeastern Davis County, and Spanish Fork Canyon in Utah County. Examples include:

1.  reactivation or acceleration of persistently moving historical landslides,
2.  minor movement of landslides in highway cut slopes,
3.  local highway embankment and rock-wall failures, and
4.  local shallow slides on steep slopes in pre-existing landslides.

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Utah Geological Survey

Rock Fall in Provo, April 11, 2009

rock-fall-2009Around 11:30 a.m. on April 11, 2009, a rock fall impacted the area of 1500 North and 1550 East in Provo, Utah.

One rock-fall boulder damaged the outside of a playhouse located at 1522 North 1550 East, and another, larger boulder severely damaged a vacant house at 1496 North 1550 East.

The April 11, 2009 rock fall occurred one lot north of the May 12, 2005 “Y” Mountain rock fall.

The rock fall occurred shortly after a storm on April 8-9 that dropped 1.5 inches of precipitation in less than 18 hours at the Cascade Mountain Snotel site, 3 miles southeast of the rock-fall source area.

Impact craters (bounce marks) evident on the slope above the houses indicate several rocks traveled downslope. The rocks traveled an estimated one mile downslope, and likely achieved high velocities as they bounced and rolled.

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Related Links

2005 Provo Rock Fall

Rock-Fall hazards

Utah Geological Survey

Stimulus Package – American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

The American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was signed into law as of February 17, 2009. Portions of the ARRA energy funds will be directly administered by the Utah State Energy Program (USEP).

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