EPOD - a service of USRA

The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory
captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The
community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and
relevant links.


Opalized Fossil of a Cycad Cone

January 06, 2023


Mila_cycad (003)

Photographer: Mila Zinkova

Summary Author: Mila Zinkova

Shown above is an opalized cycad cone fossil (31 x 11 x 9 mm) that
was found in Lighting Ridge, Australia. Fossil cycads, dating from the
Mesozoic, have been uncovered on every continent. These very
ancient group of seed plants are thought to be a sister group to all
other living seed plants.

Most fossil cycads are called cycadeoids and are classified
scientifically in the order Bennettitales. During the Jurassic,
cycads and their kin, along with conifers and ginkgos, dominated
the plant kingdom. They remain extant and are commonly referred to
as living fossils.

On occasion, cycad fossils are opalized. If a cavity in a rocky
surface resulted when a living organism, such as a shell or pinecone,
was buried in sand or clay and then rotted away, an opalized cast or
fossil replica may form of the object that was buried. Click here
to see a video of this fossil, which also includes clips of a modern
cycad.


Lighting Ridge, Australia Coordinates: -29.4278, 147.9790


Related EPODs

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More...

Geology Links

* Earthquakes
* Geologic Time
* Geomagnetism
* General Dictionary of Geology
* Mineral and Locality Database
* Mohs Scale of Mineral Hardness
* This Dynamic Earth
* USGS
* MyShake - University of California, Berkeley
* USGS Ask a Geologist
* USGS/NPS Geologic Glossary
* USGS Volcano Hazards Program

-
Earth Science Picture of the Day is a service of the Universities
Space Research Association.

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 44 weeks, 5 days, 20 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (21:1/186)

EPOD - a service of USRA

The Earth Science Picture of the Day (EPOD) highlights the diverse processes and phenomena which shape our planet and our lives. EPOD will collect and archive photos, imagery, graphics, and artwork with short explanatory
captions and links exemplifying features within the Earth system. The
community is invited to contribute digital imagery, short captions and
relevant links.


La Scala dei Turchi

February 07, 2023

Scala dei turchi

Photographer: Giovanni Caruso
Summary Author: Giovanni Caruso

Featured above is la Scala dei Turchi along the southwest of
Sicily, Italy. This cliff is composed of nearly pure white marble
(marl), which is particularly dazzling on sunny days. Marble is a
sedimentary rock made up largely of clay and calcium carbonate
and of lesser amounts of magnesium. The marble here is of pelagic
origin, dating from the Pliocene.

It's called Scala dei Turchi because over the centuries the wind and
rain created these natural steps. Some 2000 years ago, this area was
stormed by the Saracens who moored their ships and then used the
cliffs' "steps" to raid and pillage nearby seaside villages. Over time,
it’s become a tourist attraction, noted for its clean, crystalline sea
and for the eye-catching, white cliffs. Photos taken on September 7,
2021.

Realmonte, Sicily, Italy Coordinates: 37.1723 -13.2822


Related EPODs

La Scala dei Turchi Atacama Lagoon and Sagittarius Arm of the
Milky Way The Snake River’s Formidable Hells Canyon Joggins
Fossil Cliffs Salt Pans of Torre Nubia Glacial Striations in
Victoria, British Columbia
More...

Geography Links

* Atlapedia Online
* CountryReports
* GPS Visualizer
* Holt Rinehart Winston World Atlas
* Mapping Our World
* Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection
* Types of Land
* World Mapper

-
Earth Science Picture of the Day is a service of the Universities
Space Research Association.

https://epod.usra.edu

--- up 49 weeks, 1 day, 21 minutes
* Origin: -=> Castle Rock BBS <=- Now Husky HPT Powered! (21:1/186)