By: Brennon Jorgensen Intro to Geology

MOAB FIELD REPORT

Fins and Things

Page 1 The geology of this area has a lot of sandstone formations which are mostly Jurassic Entrada Sandstone and Navajo Sandstone. There is a lot of reddish brown sandstone which has sand grains that are easy to dislodge. The area is almost all sand with sandstone formations. The environment is made up of plants that need little water to survive. In the rock there are many holes and indents. These are caused by chemical and mechanical weathering. Water and wind blow or run along the sandstone formations wearing out the softer sandstone faster than the harder sandstone. Leaving the indents and holes. There have been many landslides in the area you can see that rock falls are a common occurrence in the area. Rock falls happen often because the sandstone gets worn out quickly and harder parts of the sandstone take longer to erode forming rocks. When the rocks of harder sandstone are eventually detached from the larger mass they often tumble down hills. There are many hoodoos in the area. Hoodoos are formed in areas where there is a thick layer of soft rock, like sandstone or mudstone. These hoodoos are formed from rainwater and frost wedging. The rainwater is able to chemically weather the limestone with its slightly acidic carbonic acid. The hoodoos are formations with a top that is bigger than the body. Sometimes hoodoos look like stacked rocks. Hoodoos have a large top because the rock layer on the top is harder that the rock layers underneath so the top dissolves slower. The rock underneath is protected by the rock on top. You can see that the rock gets worn out underneath where the rain can hit it and that the top of the hoodoo acts as a sort of umbrella to the rock underneath. The hoodoos that look like stacks of rock are when there are harder and softer layers that are worn away at different rates leaving the harder layers rounded out looking like stacks of rocks. Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock which is

Page 2 usually formed from quartz and/or feldspar. There are arches in the area which are weather eroded arches. The arches would usually start formation from a crack that penetrates into the sandstone. Erosion occurs within the cracks making them larger. When the cracks get bigger they form fin in the rock. Fins can be worn to create hoodoos as well as arches. Arches can be formed from a mix of the elements. Frost and thawing can flake away the sandstone. Also wind and rain can wear away the sandstone. Eventually the sandstone may be penetrated creating a hole through the fin. The hole is made larger from the elements that are now able to run through it. When an arch is formed from water that runs through it, it is called a bridge. Streams running through canyons can erode their way through sandstone creating a hole which the stream will run through making it bigger. Bridges can be formed from caves which go from sinkhole to sinkhole. Arches will eventually collapse forming buttresses that will eventually erode away. There is a fault running down the middle of Moab known as the Moab fault. The two sides of the faults are a symmetrical. There are different rock formations on each side of the fault. On one side of the fault you see the darker brown Dewey Bridge and Entrada Sandstone. And on the other you see Pennsylvanian Sandstone and Wingate Sandstone cliffs. Sources 1. http://www.gly.uga.edu/railsback/VFT/VFTMoabFault.html
2. http://www2.nature.nps.gov/geology/education/foos/moab.pdf 3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoodoo_(geology) 4. The Field Guide to Geology David Lambert and The Diagram Group

Page 3

Page 4

This picture shows the different sides of the fault that are asymmetrical.

Page 5

This picture shows a hoodoo.

Page 6

This is a picture of some sandstone formations

Page 7

This picture is of a natural cave formation.

Page 8

This picture shows some fins that are forming.