Tag Archive for: POTD

Utah Geological Survey

POTD August 28, 2013: Notch Peak National Natural Landmark, House Range, Millard County, Utah

Notch Peak National Natural Landmark, House Range, Millard County, Utah
Photographer: Matt Affolter

Cambrian- to Ordovician-aged carbonate rocks (limestone and dolomite) make up Notch Peak, where a 2,200-foot cliff (possibly the tallest carbonate cliff in North America) leads to a deep canyon on the west side of the peak. Pink, Jurassic-aged granite is exposed at the foot of the mountain, and scattered deposits of white, clayey marl deposited in Lake Bonneville during the late Pleistocene are present on the valley floor.

Utah Geological Survey
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POTD August 27, 2013: Dinosaur Tracks near Moab, Grand County, Utah

Near Moab, Grand County, Utah
Photographer: Carole McCalla

During Jurassic time, a sauropod walked across mud, sinking deeply into it. The footprints can be seen preserved in the rock near Moab in Grand County. BLM interpretive site.

Utah Geological Survey
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POTD August 26, 2013: Hanksville-Burpee Quarry, Wayne County, Utah

Hanksville-Burpee Quarry, Wayne County, Utah
Photographer: James I. Kirkland

Not a logjam, but a “legjam” of dinosaur bones left in a channel of Jurassic-aged river is being excavated at the Hanksville-Burpee Quarry in Wayne County. BLM interpretive site.

Utah Geological Survey

POTD August 23, 2013: Poison Strip area, east of Arches National Park, Grand County, Utah

Poison Strip area, east of Arches National Park, Grand County, Utah
Photographer: Don DeBlieux

A geologist examines a sequence of Early Cretaceous-aged paleosols (ancient soils) in the Yellow Cat Member of the Cedar Mountain Formation. Many dinosaur fossils are found in these rocks, and the study of paleosols can provide valuable
information about the environments in which these dinosaurs lived.

Utah Geological Survey

POTD August 22, 2013: Bluffs above Wahweap Bay on Lake Powell, Kane County, Utah

Bluffs of Entrada Sandstone above Wahweap Bay on Lake Powell, Kane County, Utah
Photographer: Lance Weaver

One of the most photographed geologic formations in Utah if not the world, the Entrada Sandstone is the featured rock unit of Arches National Park, Goblin Valley State Park, Kodachrome Basin State Park, and parts of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Variations in the Entrada’s appearance across the state are due to differences in internal structure and composition as well as external stresses.

Utah Geological Survey

POTD August 21, 2013: Kodachrome Basin State Park, Kane County, Utah

Kodachrome Basin State Park, Kane County, Utah
Photographer: Carole McCalla

Sand pipe of Carmel Formation sediment intruded into the overlying Entrada Sandstone. One of the most photographed geologic formations in Utah if not the world, the Entrada Sandstone is the featured rock unit of Arches National Park, Goblin Valley State Park, Kodachrome Basin State Park, and parts of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Variations in the Entrada’s appearance across the state are due to differences in internal structure and composition as well as external stresses.

Utah Geological Survey

POTD August 20, 2013: Temple of the Sun, Capitol Reef National Park, Wayne County, Utah

Temple of the Sun, Capitol Reef National Park, Wayne County, Utah
Photographer: Michael Vanden Berg

Two of Capitol Reef National Park’s popular attractions: Glass Mountain (foreground) and Temple of the Sun (background). Glass Mountain is a large exposed mound of selenite gypsum that formed within the Jurassic-aged Entrada Sandstone. The “gypsum plug” became exposed as the relatively soft Entrada Sandstone eroded away. Temple of the Sun is a large monolith that was also created by erosion of the Entrada Sandstone.

Utah Geological Survey

POTD August 16, 2013: Capitol Reef National Park, Wayne County, Utah

 

Capitol Reef National Park, Wayne County, Utah
Photographer: Michael Vanden Berg

A claret cup cactus is neighbor to a basalt boulder in Capitol Reef National Park. Utah’s impressive topography directly influences temperature and precipitation and consequently shapes Utah’s flora and fauna. The state’s substantial elevation differential—over two vertical miles between the highest and lowest points—contributes to a variety of habitats and a great diversity of species. Mountains force air to flow up in a process called “orographic lifting,” which causes air to cool and humidify, and enhances precipitation.

Utah Geological Survey

POTD August 15, 2013: Lone Peak Wilderness, Wasatch Range, Salt Lake and Utah Counties, Utah

Lone Peak Wilderness, Wasatch Range, Salt Lake and Utah Counties, Utah
Photographer: J. Lucy Jordan

Wildflowers on Lone Peak bloom among quartz monzonite (granitic) boulders of the Oligocene-aged Little Cottonwood stock. Near-vertical cliffs on the skyline form part of the glacier-carved cirque near the summit of the 11,253-foot-high peak.

Utah Geological Survey

POTD August 14, 2013: Snow Canyon State Park, Washington County, Utah

Snow Canyon State Park, Washington County, Utah
Photographer: J. Buck Ehler

Iron  concretions lie on top of the Navajo Sandstone in Snow Canyon State Park, Washington County. Utah’s red sandstone contains an iron-oxide mineral called hematite. When hematite is bleached from the sandstone, the stone appears almost white. When hematite is concentrated in concretions, they can appear almost black.