tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11691469537447276512024-02-19T07:30:11.331-08:00The Great Crater AdventureLPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-977882847435903182012-08-07T06:46:00.000-07:002012-08-14T06:39:50.774-07:00A Brief Look<div style="color: #0c343d;">
<b>Kyle Leaf</b></div>
<br />
<div style="color: #660000;">
SP crater is a cinder cone volcano that exists to challenge climbers.<br />
Getting to the top is a truly difficult task, but from the top the<br />
lava flow is beautifully defined, and very easy to identify. Climbing<br />
is 2 steps up, one step sliding down, but going down is like a<br />
downhill roller-blade trip. The view from the top was amazing, making<br />
SP crater a distinct highlight of the trip.<br />
<br />
The Grand Canyon is big. Really, really big. I was expecting a sheer<br />
cliff that one could look down and see a river at the bottom, with the<br />
other side at most a few hundred yards away. But no, its bigger.<br />
Hiking 3 miles down (and back up) the Bright Angel Trail (2,044 feet/<br />
623 meter elevation change) was a very rewarding few hours.<br />
<br />
I would like to thank Dr. Rice, Dr. Burkhart, and Dr. Shultz for making the experience amazing. Thanks again to Cynthia for putting the entire LPSA program together. And thanks to Aaron and Nicole for being such great staff assistants all summer. If anyone reading this has never had a NASA internship, apply now! The experience is awesome, I hope to have another like it next summer, and you should too!</div>
LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-20239662542031951842012-08-07T06:44:00.002-07:002012-08-07T06:44:26.227-07:00Adventure through the Millennia<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<b style="color: #0c343d;">Tanner Hamann </b></div>
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For something so massive it can be
seen from space, the Grand Canyon has a way of sneaking up on you. My first
sight was hazy blue visible through a gap in the bushes, which took a moment
for me to recognize as rocks. We kept walking and almost in a flash, the Canyon
was laid out before us. Looking at all the rocks and cliffs distorted by shear
distance, I had trouble believing what I was seeing. It seemed unreal,
impossible that I was looking across a gulf miles wide. The blazing sun lit the
canyon walls, making it even harder to distinguish the intricacies of the
terrain. What I did believe was just as suddenly as the Canyon appeared, the
ground ahead of us abruptly ended in a near vertical cliff. To put it mildly,
heights are not my thing. My uncertainty was replaced by awe as our guides
started rattling off facts about the Canyon and then delved into a lecture on
the various layers forming the Canyon walls. So much history encapsulated in
layers upon layer of sediment. I never could have appreciated the age and
change represented by this place had there not been someone how understood this
science, who spoke the language of chemistry and rock. </div>
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<br /></div>
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The Grand Canyon was definitely the
largest natural formation we saw and explored, but it was only one place. As
part of observing Earth analogues to Martian features, we went to multiple
craters and many other sites of geological interest. I especially liked the
trek to Colton Crater, since it was the first cinder volcano that I climbed to
the top. An ancient explosion made that easier by pretty much reducing the
steep north face to a moderate hill. It also blew away the top of the volcano,
so there was an impressive crater left behind. The crater was so deep that the
few people who ventured to the bottom looked barely larger than specks. Standing
at the rim, I did not expect the gusts of wind that rolled over the crater’s
edge. One of them actually sent me scrambling after Cynthia’s and my hats,
desperately trying to grab them before they could fly away. I was not caught
unawares a second time, so my focus fell more on the terrain, the striations in
the crater walls, and the remnants of a miniature cinder volcano at the crater
floor. Fascinating is too mild a word for this place. </div>
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I came to Arizona not sure what to
expect besides sun, hours of field work, and this “dry heat” everyone keep
touting as a good thing. I found all those things, but I also found an
adventure that took me though millennia of history and across a variety of
landscapes. I learned a lot, walked a lot, and got a glimpse into perspective
of geologists, a.k.a. rock people. I doubt I will get as excited about basalt
and limestone as they did, but I can appreciate the intricate story such things
contain and the art of reading that story. The trip is an experience I will always
remember, one of many since the summer began, and I thank Cynthia Cheung and the
Lunar and Planetary Science Academy for making it all possible.</div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-70858613062305529312012-08-07T06:40:00.002-07:002012-08-07T06:40:33.594-07:00The Geologic Record<b><span style="color: #0c343d;">Jordan Hildebrandt</span></b><br />
<br style="color: #660000;" /><span style="color: #660000;">
Interestingly, the Grand Canyon, for all its press, is not terrifically
useful for determining specifics about a particular section in time.
The Redwall Limestone, from the Mississippian period, is about 250
meters of rock representing around 60 million years, or about 4mm of
rock record for every 1,000 years. That's not much to go on, at all.
Now, geologists can still obtain a great deal of information from these
short-spanning outcrops, but it's not very good resolution. There are
sections elsewhere in the world that record much more information per
unit time - a random strat column from Pakistan reveals a section with a
rate of 1m per 1,000 years - 2 orders of magnitude more information
about. It's neat that the canyon samples such a large time frame -
spanning billions of years, but that only means that there are heaps
upon heaps of data gaps.</span><br style="color: #660000;" /><span style="color: #660000;">
Gaps in the geological record are caused by periods of either loss of
material or non-deposition - grains are being removed as or more quickly
as they are being deposited. Such holes in the record are known as
"unconformities," in that one layer does not conform properly with the
adjacent layer - there's not a fluid recording of the flow of time.</span><br style="color: #660000;" /><span style="color: #660000;">
To end on a less lighthearted note, here is a joke I made up on one of the car rides:</span><br style="color: #660000;" /><span style="color: #660000;">
What do you call a volcano in the Vatican?</span><br style="color: #660000;" />
<br style="color: #660000;" />
<br style="color: #660000;" /><span style="color: #660000;">
A cardinal cinder.</span>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-18249634621221161072012-08-02T10:47:00.002-07:002012-08-02T10:47:42.612-07:00Megascopic Processes and Lessons of Continuity<br />
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<b>Jillian E. Votava</b></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">DAY ONE: Drive from
Phoenix to Flagstaff</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqIZH369q4I86lBOKwZdzmGS5Ewhh6eEW5MrBeXn98noLo6pA7h3QUsv1sPmUMuN4qrtpip0FAMTZZKBsiqr2eRWF3nIpbBdNmZDgD9DXuqSAxL_tEq3nPMrWRQIMcg-A7t_xqERtSxnI/s1600/Day_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqIZH369q4I86lBOKwZdzmGS5Ewhh6eEW5MrBeXn98noLo6pA7h3QUsv1sPmUMuN4qrtpip0FAMTZZKBsiqr2eRWF3nIpbBdNmZDgD9DXuqSAxL_tEq3nPMrWRQIMcg-A7t_xqERtSxnI/s320/Day_1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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First impression of AZ: It’s deathly hot and dry. As we
drive out of the airport and head north along the highway though, we see a pleasant
sight: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Carnegiea gigantean</i>>>
Saguaro cacti, the giant trademarks of the desert. The drive from 1,200 ft asl
to 6,900 ft asl is most noticeable through air temperature. 110°F turns
steadily into 79°F as we gain 6,000+ feet in elevation. Along the highway, a
remarkable shift occurs: one moment you are passing an endless sea of Saguaro,
then tufts of yucca amid prickly-pear, followed by shrubs and small trees. The
final leg of the drive from Sedona to Flagstaff holds the largest surprise: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pinus ponderosa</i>>> massive pine
trees dominate and tower over the road. We’ve just driven over a text-book
example of a basin-and-range region that has the added “spice” of regional
uplift (known as the Colorado Plateau). Ending the day with a sunset dinner at
Humphrey’s Peak included the additional surprise of Aspen and Pine
tree-climbing. </div>
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Sound of the day: wind through the tree leaves.</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">DAY TWO: Volcanic
Craters</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7_xAb-Kba5Hi3cHEFKE52FQpdpt8ZPZPMk9i51HlpipLZEpFQzdEcKex8xPWrwjdWFMeG-f0zI4i3b0oMZZSK07qWQ0NgiZ1gMlUZw-fbUkwasX35ZU7ZA2Soo2OSL_74bMKFWGIP-CE/s1600/Day_2A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7_xAb-Kba5Hi3cHEFKE52FQpdpt8ZPZPMk9i51HlpipLZEpFQzdEcKex8xPWrwjdWFMeG-f0zI4i3b0oMZZSK07qWQ0NgiZ1gMlUZw-fbUkwasX35ZU7ZA2Soo2OSL_74bMKFWGIP-CE/s200/Day_2A.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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First impression of SP Crater: simple cones, “fluffy” lava
flows. Classic cone-shaped volcanic hills dot the flat landscape northeast of
Flagstaff and the large lava flow snakes for four miles north of this steep,
rocky hill. </div>
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Sound of the day: wind across bare rocks, “clink-clink”
footsteps across the 70,000 year-old basalts.</div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First impression of
Colton crater: rounded and eroded. Colton is a large cinder-cone volcano that
was explosive and fast-lived. It is known as a hydro-volcanic crater: a rising
body of magma met ground water, creating an extremely volatile mix. The “cone”
part of the volcano is gone, it blew off! 500 feet deep and one mile in
circumference is a large volume of solid rock to expel and one can only image
what such an event would have looked like. </div>
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Fun word of the day: Palagonitic Tuff (pah-lag-on-it-ik).</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">DAY THREE: Crater
comparisons and petrified trees</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkXLN_6bUMa0CE6DgIpTH9ipyuq_29n0w6kWoHrWz0GBsAe5c40HaZaMA9eJ-K6_h7h6r7_ao22a09tMYfaPfVZ975ZUAooIv3ngVGS8PCsYr69gwcfSOxZ0vFxL8Dtv26SUFyNiY8Y0M/s1600/Day_3A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkXLN_6bUMa0CE6DgIpTH9ipyuq_29n0w6kWoHrWz0GBsAe5c40HaZaMA9eJ-K6_h7h6r7_ao22a09tMYfaPfVZ975ZUAooIv3ngVGS8PCsYr69gwcfSOxZ0vFxL8Dtv26SUFyNiY8Y0M/s320/Day_3A.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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First impression of Meteor crater: “striking”, pun only
slightly intended. You look across this flat landscape east of Flagstaff,
seeing only a couple mesas on the horizon, and then <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">WHAM</b>, huge hole in the ground. Thinking about a meteor the size of
a 50m by 50m building makes you panic slightly, feel small and vulnerable. This
feature is a tangible analog to our rocky neighbors in the sky. Both Mars and
(more so) the Moon are covered with impact craters. The “clinkery” rocks of
yesterday’s crater cones are gone. Here the rims are made of loosely
consolidated fragments of the strata seen in beautiful profile that make up the
crater walls. All three rock formations are of sedimentary-type; they formed
from consolidation of pre-existing materials and/or by precipitation in an
aqueous environment. </div>
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The main point: Meteor(ites) can strike ANYWHERE; volcanic-,
sedimentary-, or loose- rocks in a pile, even in the ocean! Volcanic craters
occur in volcanoes, the rim is made of volcanic rocks.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8w6o55ffLzpi4WJ2tSLvoEn-QVwkJbYzroXCfF0eCMNHnD9zgDo80S5Ntxy1FdyVVHaqtB15S0ie1z9NP1xztBxlRQjpMcp_kO6ltA2I3n7x1UzZ7JksI1ckBsJ3xBP7hnCpR-J_Hkcc/s1600/Day_3B.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8w6o55ffLzpi4WJ2tSLvoEn-QVwkJbYzroXCfF0eCMNHnD9zgDo80S5Ntxy1FdyVVHaqtB15S0ie1z9NP1xztBxlRQjpMcp_kO6ltA2I3n7x1UzZ7JksI1ckBsJ3xBP7hnCpR-J_Hkcc/s320/Day_3B.jpg" width="320" /></a>Day 3 ended with a visit to a landscape known as
“bad-lands”. This is when fluvial processes create a deeply incised and heavily
sculpted landscape of loosely-lithified sediments within an arid environment.
The water is long gone but the gullies and channels are preserved in place. The
colorful pink, orange, and purple layers as well as the mud-cracked appearance
of the ground tell you the area is full of clay. “Clay” is a broad category of
many minerals but all have variable amounts of water (H+ and OH-) in their
mineral structure. This is the Painted Desert, located within the Petrified
Forest National Park. Here, large, Cretaceous tree-logs have avoided the usual
route of decay and re-cycle by a sudden burial that removed them from oxygen
and thus allowed their overall structure to remain intact. At some point,
silica-rich waters entered the system and replaced all the carbon with an
amorphous form of quartz. The original cellulose framework remained however,
and today these logs have made their way back to the surface in an impressive
documentation of past life. Seeing these ancient tree remains is quite an
experience. A unique set of conditions tens of millions of years ago had to be
met in order for us tourists to see them now. </div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">DAY FOUR: A natural
wonder of the world</b></div>
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First impression: Brain-freeze…immensity, incomprehensible
dimensions… You ask, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Is that real?”</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your brain does not believe your eyes, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“How CAN it be that big?”</i>15 miles across
and one mile deep… “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">How did it form?” </i>There
is a river over there, partially hidden from view, although it’s hard to
imagine the scale of time and amount of water needed to carry away such an
enormous amount of material. The origin of the Grand Canyon is still debated
and includes postulates of rapid uplift with fluvial incision or even the idea
of a giant, catastrophic sudden release of water from an upstream ancient lake.
</div>
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This calm day was spent hiking down to mile 1.5 with head
up, mouth gaping, and eyes glued to the dramatic canyon walls. Below, the trail
continues across a lower bench of orange strata and then dips down out of sight
to the canyon floor. The most difficult part of this hike is NOT the inclined
ascent but instead, not seeing around the next corner. After all, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">curiosity”</i> is what drives the field of
SCIENCE.</div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">DAY FIVE: Trip’s end
at the “Day’s End”: Sunset Crater</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGS23NIbLbPGDnltc_osTu6yGZso156gzqOuHSuM8yZpq4rGYnwqWUbqiMsPsGpn0nb66eeA8fYy52Al2rs6FXq3ezTSp5BbpIiwsjAxwi9wjslQo__K9SIvuEBInIPH12cW11mZGh4Ts/s1600/Day_5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGS23NIbLbPGDnltc_osTu6yGZso156gzqOuHSuM8yZpq4rGYnwqWUbqiMsPsGpn0nb66eeA8fYy52Al2rs6FXq3ezTSp5BbpIiwsjAxwi9wjslQo__K9SIvuEBInIPH12cW11mZGh4Ts/s320/Day_5.jpg" width="320" /></a>First impression: diverse, dramatic landscape. The final
trip is a pleasant visit to Sunset Crater National Monument. The short trail
walks over small, pebble-sized black gravel known as “cinders”. The larger
(>10cm) cinders produce a pleasing “tink” sound when stepped on. The
“tinkery” noise reveals the glassy nature of these young, volcanic rocks. </div>
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Word of the day: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hornito</i>,
or spatter-cone: these are the smaller vents from which lava flowed out across
the land only 900 years ago! How did the people living here feel at the time of
the eruption? The creation of earth inevitably includes destruction as well.
Today, life has returned in full strength to this now fertile and nutrient-rich
volcanic dust. </div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Final Remarks:</b> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Post-mission debrief</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #660000;">
Geology is largely an observational science and this field
excursion demanded most of these skills and all of my attention. The planetary
analog focus of the trip pushed my observations to the next level: to compare
and hypothesize about similar features millions of miles away on other bodies
in the solar-system. I feel privileged to have participated in such an event
and appreciative of all the planning that occurred to make it happen. Thanks to
Dr. Cynthia Cheung, Aaron Silver, and Nicole Thom for organizing the trip.
Thanks to our leaders: Dr. Patrick Burkhart, Dr. Jim Rice, Dr. Charles Shultz,
Dr. Shawn Wright, and Andy Ryan. </div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-37806581040462115642012-07-24T12:05:00.000-07:002012-07-24T12:05:11.094-07:00Looking At Mars through Arizona<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><b>Ryan Jackson</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"> <span style="color: #660000;">The southwest is a beautiful place, not due to the plant
life which can be quite menacing but instead it has a stark beauty because of
the exposed geologic features which abound through the region. This lack of annoying
and obscuring vegetation makes it an ideal place to study geology, and in
addition the southwestern U.S. bares the evidence of numerous large scale
geologic events. This has caused a variety of features from volcanic fields to
ridgebacks, and as a result of sheer luck and the arid environment (which
doesn’t weather features as quickly as would be seen on the East Coast) the
area also plays host to two of the world’s most impressive geologic
features—the Grand Canyon and Meteor Crater. These two features, in addition to
the volcanic fields, make northern Arizona an ideal place to study Martian
analogs.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"> So first off, Martian analogs (or planetary analogs) are
geologic features on Earth that can be used to gain a better understanding of a
feature elsewhere in the Solar System that it corresponds closely to. This
works because of the idea of Uniformitarianism which is at the very heart of
geology, and can be basically summed up as “the present is the key to the past”
and the laws of nature are consistent throughout the Universe. This means that
we can look at the processes we see now (like a volcano erupting) and
extrapolate this back to a similar lava flow which is hundreds of millions of
years old; in addition, because we understand the laws of physics to be uniform
throughout space we can extrapolate this event to another planet (allowing for
changes in composition, gravity, and other considerations) and understand lava
flows there as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"> This was the basic idea for the field trip, the basaltic
Lava Flows of the San Francisco Peaks correlate to basaltic flows all over the
terrestrial bodies of the solar system, but in particular the process is
representative of hot spot volcanism which also created Olympus Mons, the Solar
System’s tallest volcano. Meteor Crater is quite obviously representative of
other impact craters which are ubiquitous across the Solar System, but it is
rare on Earth as it is so well preserved; and the sedimentary layers exposed
within the Grand Canyon could be analogous to the stratigraphy it is hoped the
Mars Science Laboratory will find on Mount Sharp in Gale Crater.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"> After a day of traveling, our first day was spent in the
San Francisco Volcanic Field which is comprised of cinder cones and basaltic
lava flows. Cinder cones are small volcanoes made quickly in eruptions which
shoot out ash (cinders) which fall back down into a pile, kind of like if you
took a handful of sand and poured it out in a stream back onto the ground, the
small mound it would form as it piled up is very similar to the formation of
the cinder cones. The basalt here has a Hawaiian name “Aa” (pronounced ah-ah)
which is named for the sound made when a bare-footed person steps on it—I’m not
joking. It is characterized by the blocky texture and is differentiated from
pahoehoe which has a ropy texture. This area is important as the volcanism was
the result of a hot spot, which aren’t greatly understood, but basically can be
summarized by a large plume of magma coming up from the Earth’s mantle and
spilling out onto the surface and because Mars doesn’t have plate tectonics,
like the Earth does, this is pretty much the only volcanism present there.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"> Hotspots are also responsible for some island chains like
Hawaii where they form shield volcanoes (the largest type of volcano but they
are broad and very gently sloping) which are analogous to Olympus Mons and
other giant Martian volcanoes. Hotspots are more or less stationary; however,
on Earth the tectonic plates above them move so the volcanism moves with the
plate. On Mars, that doesn’t happen so the hot spot continually pumps out lava
making the volcano grow larger and larger until the volcanism dies away.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"> I have been in large lava flows before, but the scene
around our first stop at S.P. Crater (bit of a misnomer as it is a textbook
cinder cone) still awed me. The flows stretched out all around us; basalt is my
favorite rock and this was a good as Disney Land for me; needless to say my
pack was weighed down by samples by the end of the day. The next stop was the
apply named Colton Crater, the geology here was very important as this was a
volcanic crater which can be at times be very hard to distinguish from impact
craters. Colton Crater was once a cinder cone like S.P. but at some point the
magma underneath it had come into contact with ground water and turned into a
maar. I always imagine maars as giant steam bombs because they kind of are;
this giant explosion blew off the top of Colton and left a giant crater there.
The coolest part though was the tiny cinder cone within the crater.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"> The next day we went to Meteor Crater, the best preserved
impact crater on the Earth, to compare the features here to what we saw at
Colton. But besides the conspicuously missing slopes we saw at Colton the two
sites pretty much looked the same. While we wouldn’t get the chance to observe
enough of the crater to see this ourselves, we soon learned that impact craters
can be identified by the inverted stratigraphy around the crater. Stratigraphy
refers to the different horizontal layers of rock and common sense should tell
you the oldest is at the bottom and the layers become progressively younger
towards the surface; however, the layers which have been penetrated by the
impact are tossed out and flip over past the rim, so that suddenly there are
older rocks on top of younger. This set up is a dead giveaway for impact
cratering and once it was discovered at Meteor Crater, inverted stratigraphy
was used to identify numerous other such impacts all over the world. This
concept is highly important for planetary science because on places, like Mars,
which has had volcanoes in the past it cannot just be assumed that every crater
is from impacts because then it would be easy to miss an important part of the
picture. In addition, if maars would be found, it could tell geologists about
the ground water present on the planet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"> The last large sight we saw was the Grand Canyon, which
was an amazingly beautiful sight, it actually took my breath away when I first
saw it. When geologists are feeling poetically they will often compare the rock
layers to pages within a book, and talk about “reading” them, if that is the
case, then the rock layers would have to be War and Peace. A massive amount of
Earth History has been laid bare by the Colorado River, and it is beyond words
to describe the phenomenal sight. We hiked down a trail into the Grand Canyon,
but as we were limited on time my group only made it about 2.5 miles down the
trail akin to just opening the book and skimming the first few pages, but it
was still amazing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="color: #660000; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"> The Grand Canyon’s stratigraphic layers do serve as an
analog for Mount Sharp on Mars, in a rough way. The stratigraphic layers in the
Grand Canyon were deposited in a variety of different environments, while the
depositional environment for Mount Sharp was probably mostly uniform throughout
its history. However, the Grand Canyon does provide great practice for reading
stratigraphic layers, which will be extremely valuable when the Mars Science
Laboratory lands in Gale Crater and begins exploring Mount Sharp. The amazing
idea about Mount Sharp is that it is larger than the crater it is in, which
means it is impossible for it to have formed during the impact, and must have
been built up over time by other process. And like geologists can read Earth
history from the stratigraphic layers within the Grand Canyon (or a road cut or
just wherever they are exposed) Martian history should be exposed by studying
the rock layers exposed within Gale Crater.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 150%;"><span style="color: #660000;"> The trip was absolutely amazing, and the opportunity to
learn about planetary analogs from numerous scientists who study them was
basically a dream come true. The geology we saw are some of the most amazing
sites I have ever seen, and being able to connect them to geology across the
solar system reminds me why I decided to pursue planetary geology.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-20178574048484944612012-07-10T08:27:00.000-07:002012-07-10T08:28:01.595-07:00Arizona Ramblings<div style="color: #0c343d;">
<b>Hayley Williamson</b></div>
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I am not a geologist. I will start by throwing that out
there. So only with many, many morning
lectures, I have managed to absorb the order of rock layers (Hermit,
Coconino, Toroweap, Kaibab, Moen-Kopi, Basalt! See, I got this). Despite that,
Arizona was truly eye-opening for an East Coaster like myself. I have rarely been somewhere quite so dry
(which caused the oh-so-memorable episode of pink eye) and brown. I thought the
lack of green would detract from the beauty, but the starkness of the desert
made it all the more beautiful. The sites we went to were places of awing
grandeur, from volcanic craters to the Grand Canyon. I can honestly say that
every place we went to filled me with a sense of wonder… and made me feel very,
very small.</div>
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For a brief summary
of my perspective on the trip… Even from
the first day, I was awed. Like some others have said, we drove through what
Dr. B called “the most beautiful stretch of highway in the country.” And boy,
was it. Huge bluffs of sandstone towered over our caravan, making me want to
stare out the window with my mouth open. Which I promptly did. It made the
attitude of the Sedona residents seem quite silly. I’m still not sure how
anyone could live under those massive rocks and think crystals and fairies are
affecting their lives. However, the
beautiful scenery was far more interesting and certainly the highlight of the
first day. Well, that and the sunset on the slope of Humphreys Peak. I enjoyed that dinner immensely.</div>
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Day two was volcano day, and a close favorite for me. I
don’t know if I’ve ever done that much hiking in one day, and I didn’t even do
as much as others! While I didn’t make it to the interestingly named SP Crater,
I enjoyed Colton Crater immensely. That was definitely my second favorite natural
site, after the Grand Canyon. It was so massive! And to think, that and Meteor
Crater are tiny compared to the planetary objects we are studying. Day three
was Meteor(ite) Crater and the Painted Desert, neither of which we got to spend
a lot of time at, but that didn’t matter. We still had a great time, and were
able to finish the day off with a night trip to the incredible Lowell
Observatory, a huge highlight for me. I can’t believe I saw where Pluto was
discovered! While my school has a small observatory, it is nothing at all like
Lowell. I have to say thank you to
Cynthia for organizing that, because it was spectacular. </div>
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</tbody></table>
<span style="color: #660000;">Day four was, of course, the Grand Canyon. Like Allison said, I went down with
the spectacular Flying Lunar Llamas. I’ll be honest, that day started out
pretty miserable because I woke up sick. But the awesome beauty of Nature
quickly made up for that. Dr. Jim Rice told us to record our first reactions to
the Grand Canyon, and I wrote mine down in my field journal. Briefly, my very
first reaction was “It’s… huge.” But as I took in the size of it, I started to
feel like I shouldn’t be there, like this was a place where I was an intruder,
because it was too big, too… grand. This was a place where humans should have
no power because we are simply too tiny, flies on its walls. That sounds silly,
I know, but it induced a sense of reverence in me. Pictures don’t accurately
capture that feeling, no matter how many shots I took. I could go on and on,
but this post is already pretty long so I should wrap it up. While I enjoyed
the last day as well, this was truly the highlight for me. Hiking down inside
the maw of the canyon, I felt as though the Grand Canyon was some cohesive
thing that I was getting to know. And I will never forget that.
</span>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-16704173831443033302012-07-10T08:15:00.000-07:002012-07-10T08:15:05.529-07:00Treasured Moments<div class="MsoNormal">
<span><b style="color: #0c343d;">April Frake </b></span></div>
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<span> </span>“Give me the splendid
silent sun, with his beams full-dazzling…Give me nights perfectly quiet, as on
high plateaus west of the Mississippi, and I looking up at the stars…”</div>
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~Walt Whitman "Give me the Splendid, Silent Sun"</div>
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This is Arizona for me: a
collection of sweet moments bound together with a common thread of love and
admiration for the masterpieces of our dynamic planet. While the lessons I
learned, facts I recall, and visuals I sketched in my field guide all paint a
picture of the educational value of the trip—there were moments, the sweetest
and my most treasured moments, where all the science behind the landscapes was
pushed aside and I simply existed, marveling, at the landscape. </div>
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And how do I articulate those
moments properly? How do I do them justice- The feeling of total peace felt
sitting atop the Grand Canyon listening to the whispers of the Earth,<span> </span>the awe-inspiring radiance of a sunset
viewing over a distant mountain ridge, the sensation of the sun on my skin, or
the overwhelming desire to dance in celebration of the beauty of creation? <span> </span></div>
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For me, science is a calling: A
calling to explore; to be passionately curious. And in this curiosity, this
yearning to better understand the physics and geography of my surroundings, I am
always brought back to the same place: a place of wonder. It is this wonder
that propels me, pushes me, drives me to continue discovering, - to continue
questioning and amassing knowledge of the physical world in order that my
experiences in and as a part of nature are broadened. </div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #660000;">So this is Arizona for me: a
playground of wonder and a beckoning to continue seeking, journeying, and
exploring.</span><span></span></div>
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<span><br /></span></div>
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<span><br /></span></div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-48266273717272855372012-07-09T16:37:00.005-07:002012-07-10T08:10:51.378-07:00Nature Hunt 2012<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPUo9Tod6FrrFm4Hxr6g483Q62Z6oUjY-fN-f0J4gQ3tKmAyk712HoCEG6pA11AmM1SWPIguc1PFIkcM2U0EVOKK80-Z0EH0oi8ZT1p3ylrZ26u9hEbP16F1FpMjMQ5ykiHgByEmaVzOU/s1600/pic1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPUo9Tod6FrrFm4Hxr6g483Q62Z6oUjY-fN-f0J4gQ3tKmAyk712HoCEG6pA11AmM1SWPIguc1PFIkcM2U0EVOKK80-Z0EH0oi8ZT1p3ylrZ26u9hEbP16F1FpMjMQ5ykiHgByEmaVzOU/s320/pic1.png" width="240" /></a><span lang="DE"></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white;"><b style="color: #0c343d;">Chet Gnegy </b></span></div>
<br />
<div style="color: #660000;">
<span style="background-color: white;">Hey kids!</span></div>
</div>
<div style="color: #660000;">
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span lang="DE">This is the
German that I decided I was going to learn when I was on space vacation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="DE"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="DE">Ich habe unseren
Urlaub nach Arizona genossen. Ich habe im Grand Canyon wandern und den Sonnenaufgang
beobachten die beste gemocht. Ich ging auf viele fantastischen Abenteuer. Mein
Abenteuer nach Phoenix war erfreulichen, weil Breana mir einen Rundgang durch ASU gab. Die Eichkatzen am Grand Canyon waren sehr zahm. Die Natur war gut. Die
Natur war sehr gut.</span><span lang="DE"> </span></div>
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<span lang="DE"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="DE">Chet out.</span></div>
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<br />LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-23050834871297234652012-07-09T08:57:00.002-07:002012-07-09T09:01:20.108-07:00Lessons from the Canyon<b style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #073763;">Nick Perlongo</span></b><br />
<br />
<span style="color: #660000;">The universally obvious reaction to seeing the grand canyon is undoubtedly sheer awe in its immensity and <span style="background-color: white;">apparent timelessness. While I was struck with some sense of this feeling, I couldn't help but think about how this assessment is merely the resultant of my experiences and is nearly a misnomer considering the sum of the universe. If a member of a 10 billion year old civilization with the capability of intergalactic travel visited the grand canyon, they would likely draw the conclusion that it is simply a tiny recent geological feature carved in a barely bigger spec of dust on the rim of the milky way. I think this is a rather instructive conclusion to make in that it proves that reality beyond our own perception and understanding can be even more awesome that we have the ability to imagine. This observation gives further depth and excitement to the study of space physics and exploration. Perhaps one day, humans will be that space faring civilization unimpressed by a similar feature on some other infinitesimal rock. While this feat may be unachievable to its full extent, the possibility is exhilarating. A project this far reaching will require an unwavering commitment to global teamwork and tolerance intertwined with a deep understanding of the earth and ourselves. This future starts now with us, and NASA is leading the way. </span></span>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-30330943710801147712012-07-09T07:38:00.002-07:002012-07-09T16:40:36.701-07:00Notes from a Native<b><span style="color: #0c343d;">Breana Branham</span></b><br />
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As someone who grew up in Arizona, I have visited many sights in
Northern, AZ since childhood. It was a new experience and quite
interesting to see them as an adult and through the eyes of a scientist.
I have always appreciated the desert for its beauty, as one can easily
gather from a trip through the Painted Desert or the Grand Canyon, but
one can easily forget the history that surrounds them in the form of
geology. </div>
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The highlight of the trip for me was visiting the Grand Canyon.
It may be hard to believe, but after 21 years of living in Arizona, I
hadn't yet been to the Grand Canyon. I knew of it, I suppose. There's a
picture of it as the background of my driver's license and we watched a
short documentary about its formation prior to leaving for the trip. I
wasn't fully prepared for the massive wonder that lay up in the
northwestern corner of the state. I still can't comprehend its size in
either depth or scope, nor can I fathom its history in both formation
and human usage. It was so full of life with its abundant vegetation,
colorful layers, vibrant tourists from literally all over the world, and
slightly too-friendly squirrels. While the rest of the trip was
brilliant, the Grand Canyon was definitely what put it over the edge and
really piqued my interest in earth science.</div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-87878477503403963262012-07-09T07:34:00.002-07:002012-08-07T06:38:12.759-07:00A Trip in Pictures<div style="color: #0c343d;">
<b>Rose Perea</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">The trip to
Arizona was spectacular, but more than that, it was full of many new
experiences for me. It would be what I actually consider my first time hiking
anywhere, first time seeing a lava flow (let alone climbing up one), my first
time climbing a volcano, and of course my first time seeing the Grand Canyon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Day 1: Arriving
at Arizona, seeing ASU and having dinner on a volcano.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyJu7Wqcgxn6WwB-PtriZdb-OMgbi4xHz93dFuUh7M1IMvwknfnfuBIFgXAQTypd2tmR505Tc2y-dJy77TR2AAGk_K7z-AzNFZsWSy3s87zSWA5ryV_RlZJzPvH9YtBKZiJS9DzuPUXDI/s1600/SunsetOverVolcano.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyJu7Wqcgxn6WwB-PtriZdb-OMgbi4xHz93dFuUh7M1IMvwknfnfuBIFgXAQTypd2tmR505Tc2y-dJy77TR2AAGk_K7z-AzNFZsWSy3s87zSWA5ryV_RlZJzPvH9YtBKZiJS9DzuPUXDI/s320/SunsetOverVolcano.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> This
was our first arrival in Arizona; our first stop was Sedona where we saw the
“red” rocks. The color was very rich, not just in the surrounding landscapes,
but because of the fact that most of the houses where built with the same
material. We where then introduced to sandstone at one of the scenic views. Our
day ended with a dinner on top of one of the San Francisco Peak volcanoes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Day 2: SP and
Colton Volcanic Craters, and Black Point Lava Flow</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7YwHtlFU-kXxLbJ3Gv4LXJrgW8N3LIQAa7BwcN4_tuJD-bEyPNr60OVCN2LFPvwHbLjwpGfh4tckdeGaHKUx5frQx_LP_vvAGCwpp-HvIYWFZYXyj709jumOFvAiXFUnlwWbG-FunwvY/s1600/100_0884.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="105" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7YwHtlFU-kXxLbJ3Gv4LXJrgW8N3LIQAa7BwcN4_tuJD-bEyPNr60OVCN2LFPvwHbLjwpGfh4tckdeGaHKUx5frQx_LP_vvAGCwpp-HvIYWFZYXyj709jumOFvAiXFUnlwWbG-FunwvY/s400/100_0884.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Seeing a volcano
up close was breath taking, and being allowed to climb to the base of one, and top
of the other was awesome. It was this day that I faced some of my fears about
climbing over something that didn’t look stable. I made it over the lava flow,
which at times was difficult for me, fortunately, I had a good friend (Aaron)
that waited patiently and helped me only if I asked. Going through this day
made me more confident in actually climbing the second volcano, and later hiking
down the Grand Canyon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Day 3: Meteor Crater/Petrified
Forest (within Painted Desert):</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOuIbHHFT_vJSp_YsBMe7aXxYee2P0Np_59Zg5B5PqQjBjiAiFybCgivON4jAmoMmpNdz7_zo9od5wVuOi4ogsbQe2Wa2t-Z_QNN1y5goUfruGhMJtaUYK96SpJvJPyl5jIJKP8COo6Fw/s1600/100_0940.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOuIbHHFT_vJSp_YsBMe7aXxYee2P0Np_59Zg5B5PqQjBjiAiFybCgivON4jAmoMmpNdz7_zo9od5wVuOi4ogsbQe2Wa2t-Z_QNN1y5goUfruGhMJtaUYK96SpJvJPyl5jIJKP8COo6Fw/s200/100_0940.JPG" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Although we did
not get the chance to fully explore meteor crater, we did get to walk a part of
it. Seeing meteor crater gave us some insight on how to compare the volcanic
craters to impact craters. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> The Painted Desert was one of my
favorite places (the other being Sunset Crater). The colors of the desert are
beautiful and I felt like I could just sit and look at the landscape
forever. Although it is termed a
“wasteland” and that’s true (one could never grow any sort of crops here), it
still retains my wonder and admiration. All my pictures almost seemed unreal
with the vibrant landscape behind it (see right).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Day 4: Grand Canyon!</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7k4Xpfwaz6r9_HTITMEx7NBsVYcO_aA4P33Mf8TgjcLs3gs3zmmsparoV8yvXG_YaXmsCOhuK8IMazE2g5vzT3mdSdvzo0FEjegl31X7T9jNUCWx0Ur_6NrtC11osimnj_atbopLO_j0/s1600/100_0997.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="103" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7k4Xpfwaz6r9_HTITMEx7NBsVYcO_aA4P33Mf8TgjcLs3gs3zmmsparoV8yvXG_YaXmsCOhuK8IMazE2g5vzT3mdSdvzo0FEjegl31X7T9jNUCWx0Ur_6NrtC11osimnj_atbopLO_j0/s400/100_0997.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Tanner had asked
me at the end of the day, after some hiking within the Grand Canyon to describe
the canyon in three words. My words where: Serenity, historic and GIGANTE! Serenity
because you can easily find a spot away from everyone, stand at the edge and
just look at the landscape, as the wind blows gently past you; its very
peaceful. Historic is for the steps back in time that you take as you walk down
into the canyon. GIGANTE (which needs to be said in a deep, loud announcer type
voice) is self-explanatory, but I would be cheating if I did not mention the
size of it in the description. The walk back up from the Angel Trail was difficult
for me as I had a hard time breathing, but I am glad I did it. Having Dr.
Shultz come up and explain a little of the geology that we were seeing was also
rewarding. Physically seeing some of the geologic layering (rather than in a
schematic) is a much more powerful teaching tool that I will always remember.
The canyon is enormous and there is no way a picture can show that, but I
tried.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">Day 5: Sunset Crater</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCfueH9iGC5Hy3xT2dB4oHM4NIyKup7CE8ygKRGWqHB4xcRtF625WOBfxDGGj56dxqO1wNq2KzlcxliYa7c_TTuR99sLYlj5c6e1QpJ0VBz3c2CTLAl9Sr5PmOAznVGdHZbXIfIOXStQ/s1600/100_1019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCfueH9iGC5Hy3xT2dB4oHM4NIyKup7CE8ygKRGWqHB4xcRtF625WOBfxDGGj56dxqO1wNq2KzlcxliYa7c_TTuR99sLYlj5c6e1QpJ0VBz3c2CTLAl9Sr5PmOAznVGdHZbXIfIOXStQ/s200/100_1019.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";">The last place
that we visited, but another <a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1169146953744727651" name="_GoBack"></a>of my favorites. The reason
that this ended up being one of my favorites is because you really get a feel
of the destruction of the volcano. There are still trees that have been damaged
from the lava flow, yet at the same time there is currently some new wildlife
growing through the lava flow. I felt like this gave both a sense of the
destruction that a volcano can do, but also how the volcano increases the
richness of the land once everything is cooled.</span></div>
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<br /></div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-50084094987390555532012-07-09T06:49:00.005-07:002012-07-09T06:49:37.389-07:00Top 3<div style="color: #0c343d;">
<b>Allison Duh</b></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Friends
ask me, “So, what were you guys doing in Arizona?”
and it is hard to come up with a concise answer that summarizes our five days
there. I guess it's better to pinpoint the lessons and ideas I picked up that
tied the canyons and craters together in my mind. I have never studied geology,
but our trip was a wonderful crash course. It was great learning from trip
leaders and fellow interns about things like cross-bedding and basic
nomenclature, and I came away with a new appreciation for geomorphology and
geology that I hope I can keep working on. Our trip leaders were truly amazing
in sharing their knowledge and making sure we had a safe but exciting trip. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">After
we got home to College Park,
a few of us were trying to think of our 3 top favorite sights of the trip and
it was pretty tough, but here are mine!</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
Grand Canyon</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcLDqlY9ttAtl8tWUHeLh9EFx5zd1pLwhRH40X-9SA15d6mj3oqJc-QOS9BCFTjJSs-23_A3v1yaoDhRzWiuNETw3WxV68itQqQTm-AWrnHxL_QA3ve2gWbLSQOiSZTwi3qTjPHtQraTk/s1600/IMG_5394.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcLDqlY9ttAtl8tWUHeLh9EFx5zd1pLwhRH40X-9SA15d6mj3oqJc-QOS9BCFTjJSs-23_A3v1yaoDhRzWiuNETw3WxV68itQqQTm-AWrnHxL_QA3ve2gWbLSQOiSZTwi3qTjPHtQraTk/s320/IMG_5394.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Dr.
Ann, Jillian, Hayley, Missy and I formed the Lunar Llamas and hiked the first
1.5 miles of the Bright
Angel Trail,
which is supposedly a 1,131 foot elevation drop! We had a lot of fun going
through the layers of the Grand Canyon and took pictures when the path changed
suddenly from a tan color to the deep red (the Mars Level, of course), which we
hope will still make sense to us when we open a photobook in a few years and
wonder to ourselves why Missy is standing grinning in the middle of a pathway
for no apparent reason. Along the trail we spotted: a mule deer, a mountain
goat and several fearless Abert squirrels. Going back up was hard work and took
lots of water breaks, but when we reached the top we were so full of energy and
ran around the trail entrance cheering. Go Lunar Llamas!</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Lowell</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Observatory</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwA41nRA0CMW3NndVCUx0lBbIGhV4LSguzu7DvwBjj4Xc006z0X7Yu_AvaE3j5tnJqd0XV6QMCP8esl5okhRsdKDrm3OKr4MC7RX3ahHbJcrnLRMQl-L8px3ot8LmCXd_z4B1tSn21As8/s1600/IMG_5369.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwA41nRA0CMW3NndVCUx0lBbIGhV4LSguzu7DvwBjj4Xc006z0X7Yu_AvaE3j5tnJqd0XV6QMCP8esl5okhRsdKDrm3OKr4MC7RX3ahHbJcrnLRMQl-L8px3ot8LmCXd_z4B1tSn21As8/s320/IMG_5369.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I looked through 3 telescopes and
saw Saturn, the M5 cluster and the Moon. The view <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>of Saturn wasn't as close as I was hoping for, and furthermore,
Saturn showed up <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span>pure white! But
it was still very exciting to see its entire form with its very distinct<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>rings. The M5 cluster is a cluster about
25000 light years away, and we only saw the<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>brightest
of the stars through the telescope. The cluster filled the entire viewfinder <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span>area and looked like a light blue
snowflake made of pinpricks of light – very pretty. The<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>telescope focused on the Moon let you see it right up close and
you could pick out <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span>the very
distinctly outlined craters in its surface. I also enjoyed Lowell<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Observatory's Children's Exhibit, which is
quite fantastic and is definitely not just for<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>kids.
I just wish I could have looked at all of them for a little while longer! </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Colton</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Crater</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #660000; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHh0sYW4O36Tq95hC09vU0LDkseKqL0UizxswqJUgnnHF40U3v0ElGxPyxPcHYh7MyUQhexN6H7bTI7maLSltZOMnypIoMQSjwU7IKWI9sWRvjCg-YhvoTbAsRKunJ_6aJ3uNU_HaIchI/s1600/IMG_5254.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHh0sYW4O36Tq95hC09vU0LDkseKqL0UizxswqJUgnnHF40U3v0ElGxPyxPcHYh7MyUQhexN6H7bTI7maLSltZOMnypIoMQSjwU7IKWI9sWRvjCg-YhvoTbAsRKunJ_6aJ3uNU_HaIchI/s320/IMG_5254.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I hiked down into the bowl of the
crater with Rachel, Adarsh, Zach and Sebastian. It <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span>was incredible standing from the bottom of the crater looking
up and around at the <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span>steep
walls. You could see outcroppings of rock jutting down into the crater from up <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>around the rim, which we were told is how the
cinder volcano builds itself up. It is very<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>humbling
and wonderful to realize how tiny you are in comparison to a relatively tiny <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span>crater on a tiny planet!</span></div>
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<br /></div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-79195891866380155342012-07-05T11:15:00.001-07:002012-07-05T11:16:25.393-07:00Grand Canyon<b style="color: #0c343d;">Lily Mannoia </b><br />
<br />
<div style="color: #660000;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMQ-cJTmImieBpqal8c8yec21aity_YzUsEPzqE2jO7kKxV79f_-8xWm_i0vr0tzPuJRgy4W72B9w9MevSUcWR1AcGQ2Mlwh02qckmfgpgmE_pcz817ptPKBsPeGFfkgTlGp-WiuEDM-8/s1600/Lily.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMQ-cJTmImieBpqal8c8yec21aity_YzUsEPzqE2jO7kKxV79f_-8xWm_i0vr0tzPuJRgy4W72B9w9MevSUcWR1AcGQ2Mlwh02qckmfgpgmE_pcz817ptPKBsPeGFfkgTlGp-WiuEDM-8/s400/Lily.jpg" width="300" /></a>My favorite part of our trip to Arizona was the last day when we went to
the Grand Canyon. I honestly hadn't heard much about the other places
that we went to on Monday and Tuesday, so it was a surprise when I got
to see them because I had no idea what they looked like. Even though
they were all really interesting and pretty in their own way, I was most
excited to see the Grand Canyon because everyone I know who had been
there before told me it was really beautiful. The night before, I met
two people at Lowell Observatory that were also on a geology field trip
and had just gotten back from the Grand Canyon. They told me all about
how much fun they had there so I was even more excited to see it the
next day. When I saw it for the first time, my initial reaction was that
it looked just like it did in pictures. It was much more beautiful in
real life than it was in the documentary we watched at the LPSA house.
As we explored around it, I couldn't believe how huge it was and was
kind of sad that we weren't going to get to see all of it.</div>
<div style="color: #660000;">
</div>
<div style="color: #660000;">
Trying to take pictures of the Grand Canyon was also
hard, especially when you're using a phone camera. I was so happy that I
got to experience it and also learn about the geology behind it. If it
wasn't for this trip, I don't know if I would have ever been lucky
enough to go to Arizona to visit these places.</div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-40416759187407053802012-07-05T08:34:00.001-07:002012-07-05T08:34:28.941-07:00Learning Geology<br />
<div style="color: #0c343d;">
<b>Missy Gaddy</b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj702uRVocahtbGGS0y4LjaR_ZNma6_9rL38wS-4u8idx-bxxaQWwpZPzrncDQkcERQ9ATDxyR5o9VqWe2c6ird9acyeb4XWzDVHFO5U1rCuTkeSonH1fNi0kcmspBG7tmjZrohkqOoyd8/s1600/Missy2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj702uRVocahtbGGS0y4LjaR_ZNma6_9rL38wS-4u8idx-bxxaQWwpZPzrncDQkcERQ9ATDxyR5o9VqWe2c6ird9acyeb4XWzDVHFO5U1rCuTkeSonH1fNi0kcmspBG7tmjZrohkqOoyd8/s320/Missy2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Wow!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What a fantastic
trip to Arizona.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All of us here at LPSA
had a blast and saw some amazing things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I really liked learning the geology of the sites we visited.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Knowing more about the land made me
appreciate those breathtaking landscapes even more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was great having all of the scientists on
the trip with us; their passion for geology was contagious, and their extensive
knowledge of the area inspired me to learn more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At each of the stops along the trip, they
would take out maps and show us things about the topography and how the
landscapes were formed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t think I
liked geology, but I have learned that is a really neat field.<a href="" name="_GoBack"></a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is a photo of Dr. Shultz talking to us
at SP Crater.</div>
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<![endif]-->My favorite day of the trip was the Grand Canyon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dr. Burkhart and Dr. Schultz talked to us
about the stratigraphy of the canyon – they told us about each of the layers in
the canyon walls and what time periods they were formed in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dr. Rice also told us about the Mars Rover,
Curiosity, which is scheduled to land on Mars in August.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Curiosity is going to land inside Gale
Crater, and it will study the stratigraphy of Mars in order to learn more about
its geologic history.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Next, we broke out
into groups and went on a hike down into the canyon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My group was named the Flying Lunar Llamas
(we’re pictured below).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was so cool
walking down and passing through the layers of the canyon we just learned
about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had a wonderful time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you ever get the chance to go to the Grand
Canyon with a geologist, take it!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL2zzLsNsgWnhxVJqRpN3p5EUTKI3X-f1Ew_U1Q7j14uvnNYpX9082n9v-zzgB2Y8enZmjFpI0G8G85BanB4ApP4i61KYZzsjEnELJ5A_WaOLIbJM6aLm3jl0iBiurBiVRg-rRdPI2tpc/s1600/Missy1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL2zzLsNsgWnhxVJqRpN3p5EUTKI3X-f1Ew_U1Q7j14uvnNYpX9082n9v-zzgB2Y8enZmjFpI0G8G85BanB4ApP4i61KYZzsjEnELJ5A_WaOLIbJM6aLm3jl0iBiurBiVRg-rRdPI2tpc/s400/Missy1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-67916112950645923862012-07-03T16:41:00.000-07:002012-07-05T08:25:41.456-07:00Arizona Adventure<br />
<h3 class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #0c343d;">John Gemperline</span></h3>
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</div>
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Our trip out to Arizona kicked off early in the morning with
a great trumpeting fanfare (courtesy of Kyle).
After landing in Phoenix, we hopped over to Arizona State University for
a tour of the Mars Spaceflight Facility by the group leaders that we just rendezvoused
with. Being back at ASU brought up a lot
of nostalgia from my experience with the Mars Student Imaging project during
middle school. I also enjoyed touring
one of the schools I am interested in attending for graduate studies. The rest of the day consisted mostly of
driving up to Flagstaff, with two brief stops to admire Sedona and some well-preserved
cross bedding on the side of the highway.
The day concluded with a marvelous dinner on the San Francisco Peaks,
which are the remains of an old stratovolcano that now overlooks Flagstaff.<br />
</div>
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On the second day we visited the Flagstaff Volcanic field,
starting with SP Crater. Seeing a cinder
cone volcano in person was like stepping into a text book from one of my geology
classes. I really enjoyed being able to
hike along the old lava flows that oozed out of the base of the volcano as
well. Though it was a short distance, going
up the cinder cone itself was one of the most strenuous hikes I have
undertaken. The view from the top was
superb, and observing all the lava bombs while sliding around on the slopes was
an unforgettable experience. The second volcano
we visited, Colton Crater, offered a great opportunity to see welded tuff,
olivine, quartz, plagioclase phenocrysts, and other interesting volcanic
features. <br />
</div>
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Day three was our trip to Meteor Crater, Petrified Forest
National Park, and the Painted Desert. One
of the projects I am working on at Goddard involves measuring and analyzing
Martian craters. Being able to visit a
well preserved crater on Earth helped me to better understand their morphology
in the context of what I’m working on.
As my mentor, Dr. Jim Rice has said, “You can look at these features all
you want on a computer screen, but there’s no comparison to going out in the
field and being able to study them first hand.” The Painted Desert also provided an excellent
example of badlands terrain similar to what we might find on Mars, with
canyons, ravines, and gullies eroded in arid environments. The final event for the day was a trip to the
Lowell Observatory, where we were able to look at an open star cluster and
Saturn through the telescope.<br />
</div>
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The fourth day was spent solely at the Grand Canyon, but
really a week, even a month, wouldn’t be enough time to explore everything
there. It was my third time visiting and
it was no less majestic or enjoyable. This
was my first time visiting with any significant understanding of the geologic
setting around me. Looking at the canyon
walls during our hike down the Bright Angel Trail was like flipping through the
pages of a text book. We found more
cross bedding on a grand scale, and beheld transgressive and regressive
sequences recording the advance and retreat of oceans during the
Paleozoic. Dr. Jim Rice, put it this
way, “Every step you take down the trail is equivalent to twenty or thirty
thousand years in Earth history.” My
only regret is that we were only able to hike three miles down the Canyon. Even then we were nowhere near the rim of the inner gorge.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #660000;">
<br />
I’ve always loved traveling out west, and this trip was no
different. There are so many interesting
things to see purely from a geologic perspective and so many opportunities to
learn from the landscapes and rocks around you.
From a planetary science perspective, Arizona is a fantastic place to
study and compare to the other terrestrial worlds in our solar system.</div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-69058726647768161662012-07-03T14:58:00.001-07:002012-07-05T08:27:33.592-07:00An Adventure!<div style="color: #0c343d;">
<b>Amber Keske</b></div>
<br />
<div style="color: #990000;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #990000;">
Day 1:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #990000;">
Day 1 was primarily a travel day. An uneventful plane trip
was followed by a short visit to the ASU Mars Space Flight Facility, where we
were given a tour. We then drove up to Sedona, an area whose geological
features have been deposited shaped by the Colorado River
over millions of years. On the drive up to Flagstaff, large-scale eolian features were
evident in the Coconino Sandstone. That night we had dinner in the San Francisco Peaks where we watched the sunset.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Day 2: </div>
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The majority of this day was spent at the Flagstaff Volcanic
field, where we spent the morning hiking up a cinder cone to SP crater, where
Sebastian honored its namesake. We spent lunch and the afternoon at Colton crater, a cinder
cone within a maar within a cinder cone. The steam explosion that formed the
maar brought up some interesting basement rocks, which were fun to collect. An
unhappy looking sky motivated us to leave somewhat early, however. We drove out
to visit the black point lava flow, then went home after a brief visit to some
well-preserved ripple marks.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #990000;">
Day 3:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #990000;">
An early start and a long drive brought us to Meteor Crater,
where we toured the visitor’s center and walked briefly along a small portion
of the rim. We then drove to the Petrified Forest,
a region where well-preserved fossilized wood (made of silica) is oddly
abundant. We drove through the beautiful Painted Desert, and then headed back
to Flagstaff.
That night, we went up to the Lowell Observatory, where we looked at Saturn and
M5 through their telescopes there. The stargazing was, of course, incredible.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Day 4:</div>
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Day 4 was Grand Canyon day!
After spending some quality time at an overlook, we split up and went our merry
way in the Grand Canyon. A bunch of us went on
the Bright Angel Trail,
which continues to the bottom of the canyon, providing a spectacular view of
the canyon along the way. Going 2 miles before heading back, we progressed
through the Kaibab limestone, Toroweap formation, Coconino sandstone (with
excellent cross-bedding), and Hermit Shale. We ate dinner at another outlook
and watched the sunset.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #990000;">
Day 5:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="color: #990000;">
This was mostly a travel day, except for a brief visit to
Sunset Crater. Unfortunately, we didn’t actually get to see the crater itself,
but we did see some interesting volcanic features, including a spatter cone. </div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-78895339546853579252012-07-03T11:29:00.004-07:002012-07-03T12:16:15.235-07:00Climbing a Crater<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<div>
<span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;"><b><span style="color: #0c343d;">Matt Wyatt</span></b> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: #660000;">
<span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">We
began our adventure early Monday morning at the hotel with breakfast
before we hit the road. As we drove down the northern Arizona roads, I
began to realize the enormous scale of all the geological features
around us. We were all captivated by the scenery and asked Dr. Burkhart
question after question. Before long we were turning off the main road
onto a rough dirt road into the middle of the barren dusty landscape.
The dust began to billow as our convoy of vehicles rolled over the land.
After what seemed forever, we reached our destination, S P Crater. </span></div>
<div style="color: #660000;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="color: #660000;">
<span style="font-size: small; line-height: 115%;">Upon
our arrival we began to gather around to hear the story of the volcanic cinder cone crater
and land surrounding it. As I listened to the geological history of this
place, I couldn’t help but feel like I was traveling back in time
watching it all unfold in front of me. After hearing the history the
only thing left to do was to read the history book for ourselves. We
were given an hour and a half to climb to the top of the 850 foot
crater and back. We didn’t want to waste any time so we filled our
water bottles and began ascending up the crater. I started off at a
very fast pace, but as I increased in altitude the crater began to get
the best of me. After a while it seemed that every two steps forward
meant one step back. This climb quickly became a mental endurance test.
Through encouragement from one another and numerous breaks, the rim of
the volcano became visible. With the rim in sight, we pushed ourselves to
the top to see the spectacular view. The vast amount of geological
history that was visible from the rim was absolutely breath taking, and
it brought to life to enormous scale of the entire area.</span></div>
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<tr style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The view from the top of S P Creator looking out over the lava flow. Taken by me, Matthew Wyatt</span></span></td></tr>
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</div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-83480877896411809532012-07-03T11:22:00.002-07:002012-07-03T11:22:12.431-07:00A Geologic Overview<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<b><span style="color: #0c343d;">Rachel Kronyak</span></b></div>
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Just as Curiosity
is slated to investigate the surface of Mars at Gale Crater, so too have we
explored the San Francisco Volcanic Field as a Martian geologic analog.<span> </span>This extension of young volcanoes straddles the
boundary of the Colorado Plateau in northern Arizona and includes a variety of
cinder cones, strato volcanoes, and shield volcanoes. Covering 1,800 square miles of land
and around 6 million years of geologic time, the volcanic field is also home to
a variety of organisms, as its biomes are quite diverse.<span> </span>The source of the volcanic activity is
believed to come from the complete subduction of the ancient Farallon plate
underneath North America. As mantle material extrudes to the surface, the
volcanoes we now observe are born.</div>
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Our first
stop at this geologic wonderland was SP Crater. This 820-ft cinder cone has one
of the most distinct lava flows in the area. Its last eruption, around 71,000
years ago, resulted in a basaltic andesite flow that can be observed for 4
miles around the cone. Olivine phenocrysts are easily observable in hand
sample, as are secondary minerals such as opal. Hiking up the crater took about
60 minutes, pretty much on all fours, and was quite exhausting due to the
cinders and 33<span>°</span>
angle of repose. Volcanic bombs and flow structures were observed at the rim of
the crater. The hike- rather, the RUN- down the cinder cone was an entirely
different story, seeing as it only took 6 minutes (yes, I timed us). Excuse my non-scientific words, but it was incredible,
hilarious, and unforgettable. A certain rock hammer was lost in the madness,
but if given the chance, I wouldn’t do anything different. </div>
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Next up was
Colton Crater, around 500 ft deep and a mile wide. This one falls into the category
of maar- a crater that started off as a cinder cone but has since been reduced
to a flattened rim due to an explosive eruption as magma came into contact with
the water table. A younger, 10-m high infant cinder cone is present on the
floor of the maar. The composition of Colton differs greatly from that of SP-
no cinders are present except those on the cinder cone at the crater’s floor.
Large outcrops and a dike intrusion can be observed inside the walls of the
crater, and many of the rocks are pelagic tuff, granite, and some basement and
ultramafic material. This hike was much more manageable and laid-back - no grueling
climbing or running down was required. </div>
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Our final
stop of the San Francisco Volcanic field was Sunset Crater. Its last eruption
was in the year 1064, making it the region’s youngest cinder cone. Due to its
status as a national monument, we were confined to walking around a paved path
through its lava field. Much of the area displayed a reddish-yellow tint as a
result of the oxidation of gases following volcanic activity. The aa lava is
mainly composed to blocky, fine-grained basalt with phenocrysts of olivine and
white, glassy feldspars. We also observed several instances of zenolith in the
basalt- regions where magma erupted through wallrock and trapped chunks of
Coconino sandstone in it. One such sandstone clast was measured to be around
150mm in diameter. Another interesting aspect of Sunset Crater is the lichen
that observed to be thriving on the green/black basalt, but not the red basalt.
Why? It is believed that the green basalt is younger and provides a fresher
surface on which the lichen can grow. While it proved to be a much more
relaxing hike than previous sites, climbing on the jagged basalt was probably
not the smartest idea- my cut up shins did not thank me.</div>
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While we
visited many other incredible places such as Meteor Crater, the Grand Canyon
and Painted Desert, the San Francisco Volcanic Field was by far my favorite
aspect of our geologic adventure. </div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-64379041098662926742012-07-03T11:07:00.000-07:002012-07-03T11:08:32.302-07:00Mission Success!<div style="color: #660000;">
After our brief update hiatus, we are finally able to document our Great Crater Adventure. We were stuck with a bad internet connection in Flagstaff, and hit by the power outtage when we returned to Maryland, but now we are back on line and ready to share our experiences!</div>
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By all counts it was a successful trip - we learned a ton while having a great time. We did everything from climbing a cinder cone volcano to looking through the telescopes at Lowell Observatory. There are so many highlights from the trip, that they can't be contained to just one post. That's why all of the interns have come up with their own stories to include. I hope you enjoy this highlight reel!</div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-72167401972732576172012-06-13T10:38:00.002-07:002012-06-21T06:20:37.112-07:00Meet Our Guides<div style="color: #660000;">
This field trip has been made possible by the efforts of many different people, several of which who will be with us in Arizona. We will be led on our expedition by a group of talented geologists and planetary scientists. As they are an essential part of our experience, we thought it would be a good idea to introduce them to you now. So here they are (in no particular order).</div>
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<a href="http://www.spacecamp.com/img/hof/rice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.spacecamp.com/img/hof/rice.jpg" width="155" /></a><b>Dr. James (Jim) Rice</b> is an astrogeologist at NASA Goddard. He is a member of the Science Team for the Mars Rover Missions. But his experience with Mars goes even deeper, as he worked on both the Mars Odyssey and Mars Polar Lander missions. He has a long history with working with planetary analog sites, which has taken him to locations across the globe, including the Arctic, Antarctic, Iceland, Hawaii, California, and, most importantly for us, Arizona. In fact, Dr. Rice received his Ph.D. at Arizona State University, so we will have a very knowledgeable guide of the area!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFAl4w-pQRvsgajR3ofGXkMTKG8rgcD6tLOs1lgo0fNvXIst2WtQQi6N-5_SiZ5f6huSkAPtsIRnm_8_CC_VWFOI-aHqmqkX-NkXBFhQoliTOgF-O9OYwM-ZjmZ0WHYlz0t9vbsm-VD-c/s1600/Shawn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFAl4w-pQRvsgajR3ofGXkMTKG8rgcD6tLOs1lgo0fNvXIst2WtQQi6N-5_SiZ5f6huSkAPtsIRnm_8_CC_VWFOI-aHqmqkX-NkXBFhQoliTOgF-O9OYwM-ZjmZ0WHYlz0t9vbsm-VD-c/s200/Shawn.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;"><b>Dr. Shawn Wright</b> is currently a postdoctoral fellow in geology at Auburn University. Like Dr. Rice, Shawn received his Ph.D. at Arizona State. His specialties include the effects of impact cratering, and has done fieldwork at several different impact sites on Earth. He is also interested in the geologic history of Mars, and is a member of the Minerology/Chemistry Team for the Mars Exploration Rovers. Dr. Wright compares field, remote, and laboratory data of <a href="http://www.agu.org/pubs/crossref/2006/2005JE002472.shtml">Meteor Crater</a> and <a href="http://www.agu.org/pubs/crossref/2011/2010JE003785.shtml">Lonar Crater</a>, India (in basalt) to Mars data sets from rovers and orbiters, so he will be able to draw the link to what we observe in the field to what we see on Mars. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiq3Ebx8Z5J2Hh-aZQgFw0JZ4RnAIM6WuVfAtyER_Fr28obRwUhfzq918Y94JK5ngow0emMtik3jgxkDhMgW6ISbq9gUogXmHcV9L6rEtFKF9xrBbdX65SEZiMcZU14sXxAQz0ozVA0dT4/s1600/BurkhartCrop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="157" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiq3Ebx8Z5J2Hh-aZQgFw0JZ4RnAIM6WuVfAtyER_Fr28obRwUhfzq918Y94JK5ngow0emMtik3jgxkDhMgW6ISbq9gUogXmHcV9L6rEtFKF9xrBbdX65SEZiMcZU14sXxAQz0ozVA0dT4/s200/BurkhartCrop.jpg" width="200" /></a><b>Dr. Patrick Burkhart</b> is an alumni of the LPSA field trip program. He traveled along with the 2011 program to the Channeled Scablands in Washington state (more details on that trip can be found here: <a href="http://lpsachanneledscablands.blogspot.com/">http://lpsachanneledscablands.blogspot.com/</a>). Dr. Burkhart will reprise his role again this year by hosting a seminar for all of us interns here at Goddard to get us into the mindset of a geologist. His particular interest is hydrogeology, and he has unfortunately done extensive work in the Black Hills of South Dakota, missing out on the beautiful scenery of its northern neighbor (clearly there is no bias from the author, a North Dakota native). Dr. Burkhart adds a depth of knowledge of the processes that helped to form the features that we will be visiting.</div>
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Another returning guide is <b>Dr. Charles Schulz</b>, Emeritus (lovingly referred to as "Dr. Death"), also from Slippery Rock University. While retired, geology remains in his heart and mind. His main interests include igneous petrology and minerology. As a professor, he was notorious for his classes' difficulty, but he will channel that tough attitude towards making all of this year's interns into adept field geologists.</div>
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<b>Dr. Cynthia Cheung</b> has been the heart and soul of the Lunar and Planetary Science Academy since the program's inception in 2009. Her organizational prowess and dedication to LPSA has made this trip possible. When she is not working on the internship program, Cynthia spends her time working as the Education and Public Outreach lead for the Astrobiology division at Goddard. If that wasn't enough, she is also a member of the Autonomous Nano-Technology Swarm (ANTS) group, and is the project manager for the tetrahedral robotic prototype developed by this group. Her other projects and achievements are too numerous to name, so we are very fortunate to have Cynthia as a member of our expedition.</div>
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The last member of our team is <b>Dr. Ann Parsons</b>. Ann has been a mentor with the LPSA program since 2010. This is her second year joining along in the field research (her first was to the Racetrack Playa in 2010). Ann works more on the instrumentation side of geo- and planetary science, and is currently working on an active neutron and gamma ray instrument that can be used for astrobiology and geochemistry purposes. Ann has a leadership background, heading the Planetary Nuclear Instrumentation Group. The skills she learned by directing that group will undoubtedly come in handy when trying to wrangle our group of 28 students!</div>
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Well, that's the team this year! There is a lot of expertise in this crew, so we are sure to learn a lot this summer. If you want to know more about all of the interns themselves, check out our bio blog at <a href="http://lpsa2012biographies.blogspot.com/">http://lpsa2012biographies.blogspot.com/ </a><br />
<br /></div>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1169146953744727651.post-64055641380973977512012-06-12T07:47:00.000-07:002012-07-03T11:08:58.554-07:00The Adventure Begins<div style="color: #660000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
The LPSA interns have all arrived and are settled into our (fabulously decorated) sorority house. Now that everyone has gotten into the work routine, it's time to shake things up again! We are finalizing our plans for this year's field trip destination - Arizona! </div>
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In only 2 weeks, we will be heading out to explore a wide range of geological features including the Grand Canyon, the sedimentary layers of which are analogs to those in Gale Crater, the landing site of the Mars Science Laboratory. While there, we will also explore the differences between volcanic craters and impact craters, so a trip to each type of crater is on the books. </div>
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Before we leave for the expedition, we have a lot to learn. We will be having a geology crash course from Dr. Pat Burkhart of Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania this Friday. He is coming to Goddard to teach us about the science and geology of the region. We will even get our hands dirty, looking at many different rock samples! </div>
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<span style="color: #660000; font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Overall, we are getting extremely excited to go. The field trips in years past have always been amazing learning experiences (not to mention a ton of fun!). Check back soon for all of the details of our 2012 Arizona Adventure!!</span>LPSA2012http://www.blogger.com/profile/00922459560438043408noreply@blogger.com0