House Range, Millard County, Utah.
Photographer: Michael Vanden Berg
The Notch Peak quartz monzonite (foreground) was magma during Jurassic times and intruded into Cambrian limestone and dolomite hundreds of millions of years after the Cambrian rock was deposited as sediment in tropical seas.
Silver Island Mountains, Tooele County, Utah
Photographer: Ken Krahulec
Limestone has been enriched with silver and lead from mineral-rich fluids driven by underlying plutons in the Silver Island Mountains, Tooele County.
A pluton is a body of magma that cools and crystallizes deep within Earth’s crust, and is typically granitic in composition. Utah’s wealth of rich ore deposits is in large part due to the plutonic process. During pluton emplacement, minerals form in surrounding rock. Limestone and dolomite in particular are prime host rocks for mineralization and concentrations of ore.
stgeorgeutah.com
Four new paleontological sites were discovered during the Southern Parkway project in Washington County, and 10 previously known localities were surveyed for additional paleontological resources. Paleontologist Andrew Milner shares his findings, some of which may be entirely new discoveries to science.
Granite Peak, Beaver County, Utah
Photographer: Tyler Knudsen
Spectacular granite crags loom high above Ranch Canyon in the Mineral Mountains. An immense aggregation of smaller intrusions, the 18 million year- old (Miocene-aged) Mineral Mountains batholith (large body of intrusive igneous rock) is the largest exposed batholith in Utah.
Zion National Park, Washington
County, Utah
Photographer: Tyler Knudsen
Utah showcases a multitude of canyons as varied as its high mountains and dry deserts. Ranging from V- and U-shaped valleys at the edge of mountains to deep and narrow slot canyons in the south, the shapes result from types of erosion and factors such as precipitation amount and rock type. Erosion can be from powerful rivers and glaciers, forceful flash floods, or winds adding a sculpting touch.
A unique tunnel-like passage sculpted by stream water is called the Subway section in this slot canyon in Zion National Park, Washington
County.
Check out these upcoming events.
Roving the Red Planet: A Field Geologist Explores Gale Crater
Speaker: Dr. Rebecca Williams, Planetary Science Institute
Date: September 24, 2013
Night at the new Natural History Museum of Utah
Join us for a private party at this new, extraordinary museum. The night will include food and beverages, entertainment, private access to all museum galleries, and behind-the-scenes tours of the collections area.
MORE ABOUT THE UTAH GEOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION
video courtesy of David Rankin
After 4 consecutive days of heavy rain, another day of large flash floods strikes southern Utah. Inches of rain have fallen with more in the forecast for the next few days. The 2013 southwest monsoon season has been insane.
video courtesy of David Rankin
Shot on September 9th. We have had subsequent floods one after another in south central Utah for over 3 days now. This was some footage from flooding on the 9th. The water undercuts the banks and causes them to collapse, sometimes with very little warning. Its quite the sight in person. Enjoy!
Orderville, Kane County, Utah
Photographer: Lance Weaver
Utah showcases a multitude of canyons as varied as its high mountains and dry deserts. Ranging from V- and U-shaped valleys at the edge of mountains to deep and narrow slot canyons in the south, the shapes result from types of erosion and factors such as precipitation amount and rock type. Erosion can be from powerful rivers and glaciers, forceful flash floods, or winds adding a sculpting touch.
Southern Utah has a lot of bare rock with little vegetation, so rainwater runoff typically ends up flowing into narrow canyons and producing flash floods with great erosive power. The resulting slot canyons are dry most of the time, such as this one near Orderville, Kane County.
Utahns can once again bring the natural wonders of the state to their walls and desks. The new calendar from the Utah Geological Survey goes on sale Monday.
Utah Geological Survey started publishing the calendar eight years ago.
The Utah Geological Survey (UGS) is a division of the Utah Department of Natural Resources. Several specialized programs comprise the UGS: Data Management, Energy & Minerals, Geologic Hazards, Geologic Information & Outreach, Geologic Mapping, Groundwater & Wetlands, and Paleontology.
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