Tourists and geologists alike come from all over the world to see and study the magnificent exposures of geologic units displayed in Utah’s Colorado Plateau region. Of particular interest is the Grand Staircase, which is an immense sequence of sedimentary rock layers that stretches south from Bryce Canyon National Park and Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument […]
When most people think about geysers, they picture a Yellowstone- like hot spring where pressure from steam sends a tall column of water into the air. In Utah, however, several “geysers” erupt due to the same process that causes soda pop to shoot out of the can when you hold your finger over t he […]
Although the geology of the Zion National Park includes nine known exposed formations, Zion is predominately the result of one spectacular unit, the Navajo Sandstone. Zion’s formations represent about 150 million years of mostly Mesozoic-aged sedimentation in a large ancient Jurassic basin. The Navajo is part of a super-sequence of rock units called the Grand Staircase, the time exposed […]
(exposed in Arizona’s Grand Canyon) The Vishnu schist is part of the Vishnu complex in the exposed basement rocks of the Grand Canyon region. This metamorphic layer was formed by the intrusion of plutonic masses from under the crust and the deposit of sediment from an eroded mountain chain. The oldest rocks in the Vishnu […]
What is the Zion Virgin River Narrows? (Zion National Park) The Narrows is the narrowest section of Zion Canyon. It is an 18 mile gorge or canyon filled by the Virgin River just upstream from the part of Zion where the roads and trails end. This gorge, with walls a thousand feet tall and the […]
I’m a bit heartbroken as day five in the search for five year old Jerold Williams comes to a close, his body was recovered just hours ago. I spent a good part of days three and four looking for him, and headed home as storms again moved into the area and made the already slim […]
Perhaps because it is covered in detail in Grade School and Middle School curriculum, one of the most asked geologic questions I hear from youth has to do with differentiating between the three types of volcanoes. Three Main Types of Volcanoes* The three main types of volcanoes differ in shape, size, and make-up; the differences […]
Utah’s sandstone units tend to be exposed on the flanks of large gentle uplifts …
The Navajo Sandstone is a geologic formation in the Glen Canyon Group that is spread across the U.S. states of southern Nevada, northern Arizona, northwestColorado, and Utah; as part of the Colorado Plateau province of the United States. The Navajo Sandstone formation is particularly prominent in southern Utah, where it forms the main attractions of […]
