Saturday, March 27, 2010

TOROWEEP (TUWEEP) OVERLOOK AND PARK CRITIQUE

EARTH SCIENCE postings from www.googleearth.com are reported in blogsites in: www.PorOgle.blogspot.com for other locations.
THE BELOW TRIP TO TOROWEEP VALLEY AND OVERLOOK- AT THE GRAND CANYON (NORTH) IS DESCRIBED FOR HIKERS, IN THE 2ND BLOG- SCROLL DOWN TO THE INTRODUCTION.


NOTICE THE CIRCULAR PATTERN OF EXTRUSIONS AND VENT LOCATIONS ABOVE, LOOKING AT A LARGE-SCALE MAP (BELOW THAT, THE MAP TURNED 90 DEGREES IN ORDER TO EXPAND IT). THEN LOOK BELOW AT THE EXPANDED VIEW OF A SECTION OF CRUST WHICH HAS AN OBVIOUS ARCUATE PRESENTATION:

THERE ARE TWO KINDS OF FAULTS RUNNING THROUGH THE TOROWEEP VALLEY: 1. WELL-KNOWN IS THE NORMAL DOWN-TO-THE WEST FAULT WHICH CROSSES THE GRAND CANYON, AND WHICH CREATES THE 500 OR SO FEET DOWN-DROP FROM EAST TO WEST;
2. LATERAL FAULTING WHICH CREATES THE EROSIONAL WEAKNESSES FOR THE GRAND CANYON AND WHICH MAKES THEM ORIENTED IN ROUGHLY AN E-W PATTERN. THIS FAULT CAN ONLY BE INFERRED FROM THE ROTATIONS OR SHEAR ALONG THE CANYON WALLS, BY LOCATIONS WHERE VULCANISM EXTRUDES, FROM SLICKENSIDES TRACING LATERALLY, OR BY INDICATIONS OF SHEAR OR LARGE-SCALE LENGTHY FRACTURING.


VULCAN'S THRONE IS LOCATED ON THE NORTH SIDE OF THE GRAND CANYON, ABOUT 1/2 KM FROM THE GORGE. ITS LOCATION IS DETERMINED BY THE SHEAR ALONG THE TOROWEEP FAULT, AS IS A VENT ON THE SOUTH SIDE. THESE BASALT VENTS ARE EMPLACED BY THE LATERAL DISPLACEMENT OF THE GREAT FAULT (SHEAR, SINCE IT CREATES THE BRITTLE-FRICTION HEAT IN THE CRUST) AND NOT SO MUCH BY THE VERTICAL DISPLACEMENT:


SO WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE VARIOUS MOVEMENTS OF LATERAL AND NORMAL FAULTING NEAR THE COLORADO RIVER- MOVING ITS PATH BY SHEAR OF THE BRITTLE ROCKS THROUGH TIME? BELOW ARE SHOWN SOME OF THE ROTATIONS, DISPLACEMENTS, AND SHIFTS OF THE RIVER IN TH LAST 3 MILLION YEARS, ASSUMING THAT THE SHIFT IS 70 KM, AND THAT THE COLORADO PLATEAU IS MOVING AT A RATE OF ABOUT 24 MM/YEAR (FROM MY OTHER CALCULATIONS- SEE 2ND PHOTO BELOW):
DATA ABOVE ARE FOUND BY ANALYZING THE SHIFT OF THE COLORADO RIVER OVER TIME, FINDING THAT BOTH DIVERSIONS TO THE SOUTH OF THE RIVER ARE ABOUT 70 KM IN EXTENT. ALTHOUGH THE RIVER PATH HAS ROTATED SOUTHWARD, ITS GENERAL PATH IS WESTWARD, UNTIL REACHING THE HENDERSON, NV AREA. THEN THE RIVER DRAINS SOUTHWARD, WHICH IS THE LATEST PATH CREATED SOME 3 MILLION YEARS PRIOR. BEFORE THAT, THE RIVER EITHER DRAINED TO THE ATLANTIC BASIN THROUGH PASSAGES SUCH AS THE RIO GRANDE, BUT NOT INTO THE LITTLE COLORADO BASIN- SINCE NO SEDIMENTARY ROCKS OF THE APPROPRIATE AGE HAVE BEEN FOUND THERE:
Colorado River course changes in Tertiary Time
A glance of the map pattern of the great river of the West shows that the general drainage is westward into the Pacific Basin. There are a couple of significant departures from this trend, before reaching a south drainage into the Sea of Cortez, namely the southward rotations in the Grand Canyon- correlating with the great down-dropping faults on the western edge of the Colorado Plateau, CP. These are generally ignored, for interpretation of the historical development of the great river. However the great faults have lateral movement which is smaller than the vertical displacement for a small time interval, but on the scale of millions or years the lateral movement is much more important for Structural Geology understanding.


Usually, the geology culture is dissuaded from recognizing that there is lateral motion, because of their measurements of the vertical displacement along the great circular faults. This is the most obvious, observation, since they can easily find the drop along a scarp. But for lateral movement, it is not so obvious, since the shift of a bed or layer along its horizontal axis may go unnoticed. For example, one can look at a road cut in the Mesozoic outcrops along I-15 in St. George, UT and see that there was no vertical displacement along normal faulting. It is more difficult to see the small thrusting laterally along a layer, and it can be surmised that the view is one of lateral pinchout or tapering of sandbars. Bellow is such a case:


A view of the Colorado River map shows that many rotations have occurred along the trench, and only after understanding the Coriolis Force and its daily rotation of weather cells, ocean currents, and finally arcuate presentations of the Crust of the Earth, can one understand the movement trends and departures from normal trends of the river path. Although Coriolis Tectonics is a small effect, on the order of 1 mm/year, it is continual and persistent- creating large movement over the 1 million year time period. One mm/year is equivalent to 1 kilometer per million years, when assessing the result of continual Coriolis rotations. Watching weather cells by satellite observation allows understanding of the circular nature of cloud movement, while scanning Google Earth allows a view of the circular presentation of movements of the Crust.

LOOK AGAIN AT THE PATTERNS OF VENTS MAKING ARCUATE PRESENTATIONS ON A LARGE SCALE, AND AT A RIGHT-ANGLE VIEW (NORTH IS TO THE RIGHT) OF THE CIRCULAR ARRANGEMENT OF THESE EXTRUSIONS (WHICH INFER THAT THERE WAS ORIGINALLY A CONFLICT WITH TWO CELLS ROTATING IN SAME DIRECTION- CCW VS. CCW).

Tripping up to Toroweep, AZ

EARTH SCIENCE postings from www.googleearth.com are reported in blogsites in: www.PorOgle.blogspot.com for other locations.
BELOW IS SHOWN THE CLASSIFICATION OF FORMATIONS FOUND IN THE MESOZOIC:



An interesting drive, using a 4WD vehicle, is that to the Grand Canyon North Rim into the “AZ strip”. This is shown on the location map above, and is a 67 km foray (UT border to Toroweep Point) via the BLM road from Pipe Springs. You are going up in elevation along the way, and the Toroweep Park overlooks the Colorado River in piney woods. The North Rim of the Grand Canyon is remote, but the Toroweep or Tuweep section of the North Rim is 2.5 hours from any kind of civilization. Situated at 4550' the point rarely gets snow. Unlike the North Rim, the BLM 5 road to Tuweep is open year round, but may be impassible if wet. Call the ranger station, before travel, to obtain road conditions: 928-638-7875.
Along the way, we will pass Mt. Trumbull- a late Tertiary extrusion. It is now inactive, but we will try to determine whether the rotation of the Crust near the Colorado river is still active, and WHETHER to anticipate further emissions from the large volcano. The best reference we have now is that the Kaibab Plateau is rising, and therefore rotating CCW. A curve in the river's path which is concave is a sinking path, but there are many and we first must determine the larger event, before using the small gyrations of the river (from one bank or side to the other):
BELOW ARE COMMENTS ABOUT INTERESTING GEOGRAPHIC FEATURES TO BE VIEWED LOCALLY: Mount Trumbull Wilderness
Forests cover the basalt-rock slopes of Mt. Trumbull (8,028 feet), the centerpiece of this 7,900-acre wilderness located northwest of Toroweap. Oak, pinyon pine, and juniper woodlands grow on the lower slopes; ponderosa pine, Gambel oak, and some aspen cover the higher and more protected areas. Kaibab squirrels, introduced in the early 1970s, flourish in the forests. You might see or hear a turkey, too. The 5.4-mile roundtrip climb to the summit makes an enjoyable forest ramble with some views through the trees. From the marked trailhead at an elevation of 6,500 feet on the southwest side of Mt. Trumbull, the wide path climbs around to the south side, with some good views across Toroweap Valley, the Grand Canyon, and the San Francisco Peaks. The trail then turns north and becomes faint, but cairns show the way to the summit, marked by a survey tower and some viewpoints. You can reach the trailhead by County Road 5 from Toroweap, Fredonia, Colorado City, or St. George; you'll know that you're close when ponderosa pines appear. The buildings and trailers across the field belong to a BLM site; if staff are in, they may be able to help with local information.
John Wesley Powell named Mt. Trumbull and nearby Mt. Logan after U.S. senators. Mormon pioneers built a steam-powered sawmill just west of the trailhead in 1870 to supply timbers for the St. George Temple. A historic marker describes the sawmill operation, and you can explore the site for the scant remnants. Water from Nixon Spring, higher on the slopes, once supplied the sawmill. A faucet near the road between the historic site and trailhead usually has water from the spring—a welcome sight for travelers in this arid land. Be sure to treat the water, as it doesn't meet drinking standards.

Mount Logan Wilderness
Scenic features of this 14,600-acre volcanic region include Mt. Logan (7,866 feet), other parts of the Uinkaret Mountains, and a large natural amphitheater known as Hell's Hole. Geology, forests, and wildlife resemble those of Mt. Trumbull, a short distance to the northeast. A road climbs the east side of Mt. Logan to within a half mile of the summit; the rest of the way is an easy walk—just continue north along the side of the ridge. On top you can peer into the vast depths of Hell's Hole, a steep canyon of red and white rock. The sweeping panorama takes in much of the Arizona Strip and beyond to mountains in Nevada and Utah. Trees block views to the south.
From County 5, just southeast of the Mt. Trumbull trailhead, turn southwest 4.2 miles on BLM Road 1044, then right 2.2 miles on BLM Road 1064 until it becomes rough and steep at its end. Many fine spots suitable for camping lie along the roads in ponderosa pines.
A rough 4WD road follows a corridor through the wilderness, from which hikers can turn south onto the old Slide Mountain Road (closed to vehicles) or enter Hell's Hole from below. You'll need to follow a map closely, as none of these destinations will be signed; roads also branch off to other unsigned areas, adding to the navigational challenge. Loose rock and erosion of the corridor road require a high-clearance 4WD; it's slow going, but the road continues all the way down to the Whitmore Wash Road 1045, one mile north of the Bar 10 Ranch.

BACK TO THE ANALYSIS, I HAVE SELECTED EXAMPLES OF CORIOLIS ROTATIONS WHICH ARE OBVIOUS (LOOK FOR CIRCULAR CONFIGURATIONS ON THE GOOGLE EARTH PHOTO), CCW FOR ONE AT MT. TRUMBULL, AND CW FOR ONE ON AN UNFORESTED AREA- WHICH IS LOWER IN ELEVATION. THERE ARE MANY CORIOLIS ROTATIONS IN THIS AREA NEAR THE COLORADO RIVER- WHICH IS A PATH FOR LATERAL FAULTING CONTAINING LARGE MOVEMENTS (AND THEREFORE VULCANISM, WHENEVER THE ROTATION IS OUT OF SYNCHRONIZATION WITH NEIGHBORING CRUST):
THE ABOVE EXAMPLE OF A SINK BEING SURROUNDED BY A CIRCULAR FEATURE IS SHOWN BELOW. THIS IS NOT THE BEST EXAMPLE, SINCE THERE IS INTERFERENCE BY ANOTHER CELL TO THE NORTH. THIS DEMONSTRATES THE COMPLEXITY OF GEOGRAPHIC FEATURES WHICH EXIST NEAR AN ACTIVE ROTATING AND LATERALLY-MOVING SEGMENT OF CRUST:
CONTINUING, BELOW ARE MORE PHOTOS FOR SIGHTS AND SITES TO INVESTIGATE:

SOME CLOSEUP PHOTOS ARE SHOWN BELOW:

AN INTERESTING FEATURE FROM THE STANDPOINT OF BOTH MECHANICS AND THE GEOLOGY CULTURE, IS THAT OF LAVA FALLS- WHICH SPILLED OVER INTO THE GRAND CANYON. THE USUAL QUESTION IS: WHY DID NOT THE VOLCANO ERUPT IN THE RIVER BED, SINCE THAT WOULD HAVE REQUIRED ABOUT 2000 PSI LESS UPWARD PRESSURE TO EMERGE? THE ANSWER IS FOUND BY THE CORIOLIS SHEAR CIRCLES. MOST OF THE CASES I HAVE ANALYZED HAVE HAD THE LATERAL FAULTING (SHEAR AND ROTATION) OCCUR UNDER THE RIVER BED- WHICH THE RIVER HAS FOUND TO BE THE MOST EASILY ERODED. BUT OCCASIONALLY THERE IS ANOTHER FACTOR, SUCH AS INTERFERENCE FROM A SECONDARY ENTITY- WHICH DIVERTS THE RIVER. AN EXAMPLE OF THIS IS FOUND NEAR ANDERSON JUNCTION (I-15 FREEWAY AT HURRICANE FAULT AND B&R LATERAL FAULT), WHERE THE TWO GREAT FAULTS DIVERGE, WITHOUT EXISTING ALONG A RIVER PATH. IN THIS CASE, LAVA EMERGES FROM THE EXTENSION AT THE DIVERGENCE LOCATION "Y" BECAUSE THE LAVA COULD HAVE BEEN AT A NORMAL TEMPERATURE AT THE DEPTH AT WHICH IT ORIGINATED, AND THEN MERELY EMERGED BECAUSE OF THE OVERBURDEN BEING SHEARED OR WEAKENED. THIS APPEARS TO BE THE CASE FOR LAVA FALLS. THE LAVA TOOK THE PATH OF GREAT FRACTURES OR OPENINGS AND MERELY EMERGED. THIS WAS EVIDENTLY NOT IN THE RIVER BED. THERE IS MOVEMENT, SUCH AS IN THE CASE OF THE MOGOLLON RIM, WHICH MOVES THE PRESENT PATH OF SHEARING WITH TIME- TO THE NORTH. THIS IS BEING INVESTIGATED FOR THE HURRICANE FAULT, WHERE THE FAULT PRESENTS A TALL SCARP, WHICH REPRESENTS A FRICTIONAL ENTITY FOR EARTH TIDES TO MOVE WEST (BY DAILY FRICTION WITH GRAVITATIONAL ATTRACTION FROM THE MOON) RELATIVE TO OTHER LOW ELEVATION FEATURES. Hf MOVES WESTWARD AT THE TOP RELATIVE TO THE BASE, AND PRESENTS AN ALMOST VERTICAL SCARP. THIS IS AIDED BY THE MANTLE- WHICH IS SLOWED BY TIDES LESS THAN THE CRUST. WITH THE MANTLE SHOVING THE BASE OF THE CRUST EASTWARD, AND THE TOP OF THE CRUST AT Hf BEING DRAGGED WESTWARD BY TIDAL FRICTION, THE OVERALL RESULT IS A TILTED Hf, TILTING SUFFICIENTLY TO OFFSET EROSION TRYING TO ROUND OFF OR DEGRADE THE SCARP.
You can REMEMBER ALL THIS BY THE ACRONYM "MADMACS"- MANTLE DRAG, MOUNTAIN AUGMENTED CRUSTAL SHOVE.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Coal Pits Wash hike by Crater Hill

EARTH SCIENCE postings from www.googleearth.com are reported in blogsites in: www.PorOgle.blogspot.com for other locations.
ABOVE IS THE PATH AND VIEW OF A HIKE MADE ALONG THE COAL PITS WASH. THIS IS LOCATED IN ZION NP, AND CAN BE ACCESSED AT THE ROADSIDE OF HIWAY 9 BEFORE ENTERING ROCKVILLE. IT IS AN EASY HIKE, AND IT YIELDS INTERESTING INFORMATION ABOUT THE DAMMING OF THE CREEK BY A LAVA FLOW FROM CRATER HILL. SUBSEQUENTLY, THE DAM HAS BEEN BREACHED, AND THE CONGLOMERATE (PLEISTOCENE, BUT WELL-CEMENTED AND INDURATED, AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE HIKE- BY GATE) REMAINS, SOME 50 FEET IN HEIGHT.

Above and below are photos of an outlier basalt cone, which I interpret to be a rejuvenation cone. Recall that on Hawaii, there are late cones which occur on the edge of an island or between two extinct volcanoes- such as Diamond head and Kokohead, or Waikapu on Maui. These I have found are related to HEAT FROM BRITTLE FRICTION, formed long after the initial magma has cooled and shrunk (by noticing settling and rifting). The original rotation of the magma was CCW in the northern hemisphere, but becomes CW when cooling and settling. This happens after a million years or so, when the magma chamber is found to be under an new island in the chain. The cones on Oahu have erupted in Pleistocene time, as has Waikapu on Maui. Now we find a secondary cone near Coal Pits wash, several kilometers from the primary eruption at Crater Hill:

OTHER INFORMATION PERTAINS TO A PREVIOUSLY-INTERPRETED ANTICLINE ON THE EAST SIDE OF THE CREEK ABOUT A MILE NORTH OF THE HIWAY. THIS SLUMP IS SHOWN BELOW AND RELATES THAT IT IS FORMED BY THE EXTENSIONAL REGIME, WHICH OCCURRED WHEN THE VOLCANO WAS COOLING AND ROTATING CW. THIS IS ACCENTUATED BY FINDING THAT THERE IS A H2S STINK FROM A SEEP COMING FROM THE REGION WHERE THE SHEARING OCCURS:
NOW WE FIND THAT THIS IS ALL INTER-CONNECTED. THE REJUVENATION CONE HAS BEEN FORMED AT THE EDGE OF A CIRCULAR CELL, WHICH IS DEFINED BY THE TWO CREEKS WHICH FROM A JUNCTION AT A LOCATION WHERE THERE IS SULPHUR STINK, A WARMER-THAN-USUAL SPRING (50F, COMPARED TO THE 40F WATER TEMPERATURE NEARBY IN THE CREEK), AND AN EXTENSIONAL FEATURE OF SLUMPING TRIASSIC MOENKOPI SANDSTONE:

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Examples of Coriolis rotation may be seen in the field at Sand Mountain

EARTH SCIENCE postings from www.googleearth.com are reported in blogsites in: www.PorOgle.blogspot.com for other locations.


Above photo taken by my digital camera, shows the Sand Hollow Road near the south side of Sand Hollow State Park, and the continual sand which is covering the road. This must be hauled weekly to prevent a roadblock.
To access this road and area, to view Coriolis in action, take Hiway 9 from I-15 freeway, and turn right at the 2nd traffic, or Sand Hollow Road. This road makes a loop around Sand Hollow Lake, running into 3000 South Hurricane road, but stop at the “sand crossing” for photos and then proceed a kilometer further to the east- where there is a sand road to the right, with an unlocked access metal gate. This area is part of the SHSP, and also BLM lands, and is open to the public. There is deep sand on parts of the road toward the sand flow, and this road is made for ORVs. It is better to park just inside the gate (vehicles may NOT park outside the gate, since the SHSP prevents parking on the road shoulder. Proceed by foot to the west, going cross-country to the Jurassic Navajo sand dune crags to the SW. You will see great fractures running N60E, and they are obvious. Drainage traces N-S and the sand flow follows this trend to the north. Jurassic rock fossil dunes orient N-S also, since the wind in those 150 million year days was from the north. Occasionally the dunes will face the east, and this is the first anomaly which is connected with the Coriolis rotation observed. There are arduous treks in some of the deep canyons, and it is best to circle to the south to return in whatever canyon is best for your athletic ability.


Coriolis Force may be seen in action at Sand Mountain
Coriolis rotation (originally noticed by Gaspard Gustave Coriolis, in France) is exerted everywhere on the earth‘s surface. The normal presentation is with weather cells, where any movement of mass in the northern hemisphere causes a spin of moving air -to the right. You have to take the weatherman’s interpretation, where low moisture laden air moves toward a low pressure location, and in so doing rotates counter-clockwise (CCW) as the air always moves rightward of the direct path to the lowest pressure region. The reason for this is that the surface velocity of mass on its south side is greater than that on the north, related to space. This occurs due to the curvature of the earth, where there is zero velocity at the north pole and maximum (900 nautical miles/hour) at the Equator. When you shoot a rocket north-ward from the Equator, it has 900 mph eastward velocity before it is propelled, relative to space. After reaching 1N latitudinal degree, the velocity of the ground surface is about 890 mph (1/90th of the eastward velocity is diminished), but the eastward velocity of the rocket is still 900 mph; consequently, the rocket viewed from the ground surface appears to be going to the right (eastward, where the ground surface has not kept up with the rocket’s eastward component- regardless of the forward velocity of the rocket due to its propulsion).
Although this force and movement occurs everywhere on EARTH, EXCEPT EXACTLY AT THE EQUATOR, it is generally ignored, since it amounts to a small effect. However, for the earth’s crust, the movement is continual and is noticeable on a million year time scale- APPROXIMATELY 1 MM/YEAR. For example, below is shown a river meander, where the movement has a noticeable result (THIS HAS BEEN DATED VIA THE LOCAL VOLCANOES, AT LESS THAN 200 K.YEARS):





The time scale for the Virgin River meander is on the order of 200 k.years, since that is the date at which the last volcanic extrusion filled the old channel of the river. The river has since eroded through the laterally-fracturing basalt to etch a new path somewhat near the old one. Particularly interesting in the above photo is the junction of Gould’s Wash with the Virgin, since the first noticeable rotation occurs at the junction. This has been documented by me, finding slickensides on the canyon walls wherever there is lateral movement of the rotating Coriolis cells against the walls- which are moving at a different velocity. I have found these at the old Power House upstream of Gould’s wash, at vertical basalt beds along the Virgin path, and at locations where significant lateral shearing or scraping occurred.


AFTER YOU HAVE DIGESTED THIS, LOOK AT MY INTERPRETATION OF THE MOVEMENTS AND STRESSES WHICH CREATED THEM, ON THE FOLLOWING PHOTO. NOTICE THE INLET, TAKEN WHEN THE WATER LEVEL WAS HIGHER, OF A SLICE IN THE EARTH (REPRESENTING A FAULT OR MAJOR FRACTURE) ALIGNING WITH THE SPILL OF SAND HEADING NORTH TOWARD THE LAKE. THIS REPRESENTS A LINE OF SHEAR- LIKE THE WASATCH LINE- WHICH SEPARATES TWO ROTATING CELLS OR HILLS (SAND MOUNTAIN):
FINALLY, BELOW IS THE "BIG PICTURE" OF THE SAND MOUNTAIN, SHOWING THE CIRCULAR CONFIGURATIONS SURROUNDING THE UPLIFT. NOTE THE MULTI-ROTATIONS AND ARCUATE CLIFFS, PARTICULARLY THE INDENTATION ON THE SOUTH SIDE- WHICH IS A CANYON SHOWING CONVERGENCE OF TWO OPPOSITELY-ROTATING CELLS:
BELOW ARE SOME SCENES WHICH YOU WILL SEE WHILE HIKING FROM THE EAST, LEAVING YOUR AUTO AT THE METAL GATE AND PROCEEDING SW. THE FIRST PHOTO SHOWS THE WELL-DEFINED N60E FRACTURES, WHICH RESULT FROM THE TORQUE PLACED ON THE LINIATION BETWEEN THE TWO ROTATING CORIOLIS CELLS (THE SO-CALLED "WASATCH LINE": :
THE NEXT FEATURE OF INTEREST IS AN EROSIONAL HOLE, FORMED BY A COMBINATION OF STRESSES: 1. THE LATERAL SLICING ALONG THE N-S DRAINAGE, AND N60E LINES OF SLIP, AND THE SPIRALING OF THE WATER FLOWING THROUGH THE WASH IN WET PERIODS. THE OBVIOUS THING IS THAT THE SAND WHICH SPILLS INTO THE HOLE DOES NOT FILL IT, BUT IS EJECTED FASTER THAN IT SETTLES. YOU CANNOT STAND IN THIS HOLE, SINCE IT IS MORE THAN 2 METERS DEPTH, AND IF YOU DROP INTO IT YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO CLIMB OUT- EVEN WITH A COMPANION GIVING YOU A HAND.
2. THIS DRAINAGE RUNNING N-S IS LOCATED AT THE BORDER OF TWO CORIOLIS ROTATING CELLS, WHICH RESULT FROM THE PROTRUSION OF EACH INTO THE SKY- RESULTING IN CORIOLIS FORCE CAUSING A RIGHT-WARD MOVEMENT FOR EACH (ONE IS RISING CCW, AND THE OTHER IS SINKING CW:


THE NEXT FEATURES OF INTEREST ARE 1. THE SPRING WHICH IS SEEPING ALONG AN OBVIOUS FRACTURE. FRACTURES OR FAULTING MUST BE OPEN OR ACTIVELY MOVING OR WATER CANNOT SEEP ALONG THE PLANE OF THE SLICE. I HAVE MEASURED THE TEMPERATURE OF SEEPS TO DETERMINE WHETHER THEY REPRESENT DEEP WATER OR THAT FROM RECENT PRECIPITATION, THIS ONE HAS NO DEEP CONNECTION- THE TEMPERATURE BEING 40F, THE AMBIENT LEVEL:
2. ANOTHER FEATURE, WHICH INDICATES UPLIFT FROM THE SOUTH IS THE TILT OF THE INTER-DUNAL PLANE (WHICH WAS LAID HORIZONTALLY, EVEN THOUGH DUNES ARE TILTED AND CROSS-BEDDED. THESE DUNES INDICATE THAT THE WIND IN THAT JURASSIC 150 M.YEAR AGE CAME FROM THE NORTH- WHICH OCCURS AT THE LATITUDE ZONE NEAR 20-30 NORTH AS OF TODAY (SUCH AS SAHARA DESERT AND SONORA. NE, ON THIS HIKE YOU WILL FIND THAT SOME DUNES FACE THE EAST OR NE, AND THIS INDICATES THAT YOU HAVE CROSSED A STRESS LINEAR, WHERE ROTATION HAS RE-ARRANGED THE ORIENTATION OF THE ORIGINAL DUNES:

VIEWING LOCAL DETAILS BELOW, WE FIND THAT THERE IS A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF INFORMATION SHOWN ON GOOGLE EARTH- WHERE WE MAY BE ABLE TO SOLVE THE GREATER QUESTION: WHY IS THE GRASS VALLEY CELL (WHICH CONTAINS SAND MOUNTAIN AND INVOLVES THE VIRGIN RIVER, AT ITS EDGE) GENERALLY ROTATING ABOUT THE GRASS VALLEY VOLCANO AND THE IVINS KNOLL- WHICH IS A BIT OLDER AS MEASURED BY RADIO-DATING?

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Loons and Grebes


The Loons have come south
Back in my previous dwelling near Eagle Nest Lake, NM, there would be an occasional stray Loon- off course from his usual habitat in the Northern Waters. But now I find one in the desert- Quail Lake of southern Utah, and he looks quite at home. So long as there are cold water fish, the Loon can adapt.
Do the Loons know something the rest of us “loons” do not? I am conversant with the Western grebe, their having an eye on me, when I beat them- taking the Rainbow trout right out from under their dive. But the loons keep a safe distance from my canoe- their not liking the green color of my “Oldtown”. And the Texas loons give me a wide berth also, since I have the habit of checking my “catch” of 6 or more rainbows, when they approach. They think that I don’t hear their conversation (from their noisy BASS CATCHER) about “I wouldn’t be caught DEAD in that flimsy boat” at which time I casually raise my string to “inspect” the condition of my next meal.
Right about this time, the Texans throw it into high gear, and give me the view of the south end of a Jack, heading north. Plus, I have the last laugh, when I go down to the pier by the Eagle Nest Post Office, to watch them come in with a few, and not a “MESS” as Texans call my haul.
One day, I was watching them come in from my view on the bank, and a Texan backed up to launch his boat, using a big Van with an exhaust pipe to the sky. I wasn’t watching him, because of my interest in the guys coming in, but my wife was more interested in watching the launch. She pointed to the incoming boat for a few minutes, and then turned around to see that the Van was gone. But she then asked “What’s that pipe sticking out of the water, blowing smoke rings”.
It took a minute to determine that both trailer and Van were gone, but not the boat. The boat was launched, and then while the driver was getting it out of the way into the water (having left the motor engaged), the whole rig- Van and trailer- reversed itself into the lake. But the Van continued to do its duty- blowing smoke rings from the vertical exhaust pipe- for a few minutes. All was serene after that- except for the driver, who developed apoplexy.
BUT I DIGRESS! Meanwhile the “snool” or backwards loons, issue their mournful “whood-whood-whood-whood” at me to let me know that they have knowledge not in my grey cells. They are always fat and vigorous-not like the skinny grebes, and they are sleek and solitary. They know that they are related to the regular path of their namesake: LUNA, which lately is also heading south for the summer.

NOW THAT YOU FINISHED, THIS IS SENT OUT ON APRIL 1st, just in time for the annual sojourn back to the cooler northlands!