Week 7--Death Valley

Death Valley Curiosities

On a trip to Death Valley, there are so many geological features that spark a curious interest and initiate new questions for research. At the Mosaic Canyon stop, the rocks today move relatively little, but the history of the formation of this area is very dynamic. It is clear that, based on the kind of rocks seen in the layers of the marble making up this canyon, the rock was formed in many different kinds of reincarnations depending on the ecosystem at the time and then underwent chemical changes to become the landscape it is today. This is a perfect example of the push and pull of the building of layers (like the sandstone sediment from an underwater ecosystem turning into hard rock and then solid marble) and then also the wearing down of layers (like the pulling of the landscape due to fault lines and then erosion from rainfall, river movement, and flooding). It is through these kinds of forces that our current landscape looks the way it does. 

Mosaic Canyon, Death Valley (Frank, 2018)

The next feature that I find to be completely fascinating is actually in what is not seen. It is amazing that there is very little remainder of rock from the Mesozoic era because it was such a tumultuous time for this region. The tectonic plates of the earth started to move yet again and the Death Valley area experienced new volcanic activity while underwater areas began to be pushed up as well. This makes me wonder what the current underwater areas that are experiencing tectonic movement will look like in millions of years. I would like to be able to study estimated maps of the Death Valley area as it went through this change and compare it to current maps of tectonic plates to make an estimate for a future map. 

Tom Bean, NPS

One area that really struck me is the Artist's Drive part of Death Valley. As an artist in another life, the colors are very fascinating to me. Although the erosion and tectonic movements created the shape of this chaotic area, the colors are also evidence of all the activity that has taken place. It seems like such an obvious thing once it is said, but before reading about the chemical processes that led to these colors I would not have thought about the colors themselves as being a clue to unraveling the complicated history of these hills. Additional information that would help to understand this area further would be a thorough study and account of all the minerals that come up to the surface in various parts of these rocky hills. 

Source

Frank, D. (2018, September 6). Death Valley National Park Virtual Geology Field Trip. Retrieved December 6, 2018, from https://geomaps.wr.usgs.gov/parks/deva/devaft.html