Geology Picture of the Week, December 12-18, 2004: Giant's Causeway (Interactive)

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[cogitator]

How this happened: I was thinking of posting a picture of Mount Rushmore before the carvings (free-associated Mount Rushmore because I heard them talking about Rushmore Mall on the Weather Channel) but there aren't any quality pictures of Mount Rushmore before the carvings. Sooo... I started thinking about rock formations, thought about Devil's Tower, remembered the Giant's Causeway, and here we are:

[cogitator]

OK, let's make this an interactive Geology Picture of the Week. Post other nice pictures of columnar jointing! (Devil's Tower, Yellowstone National Park, Devil's Postpile, and the Palisades of New York are some examples, but I'm sure there are more.)

[cogitator]

* ping *

Note the invitation in the leading comment to be interactive on this thread.

[Eva]

bump

[conserv13]

Houses of the Holy

[Slicksadick]

California's version.

[Slicksadick]

More Postplie. The glacial polish across the top is really cool, like walking on a tiled floor.

Photograph by C.D. Miller in 1980

These glacial striations are carved in the top of a columnar-jointed basalt lava flow. The lava flow was erupted between 200,000 and 100,000 years ago in the Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River valley. The lava flow was then eroded during subsequent glacial periods, as shown by the finely polished and deeply striated surface. This exposure is from along the trail at the top of the Devils Postpile in the Devils Postpile National Monument.

[skeeter]

copyright FreeFoto.com

[Slicksadick]

Heres a guy who actually sells the columns for landscaping. Very cool.

Marenakos Columbia River Columnar Basalt

Available forms:	2’ - 19’ columns, and Dish Rock. (Over 19’ special order).
Also available as:	Columbia Premium Landscape
Characteristics:	Natural occurring shapes, mostly hexagonal. Diameter typically 24” - 42” range. Exterior color: Medium to dark brown. Interior color: Black
Uses:	Water source stones, entry way monuments, vertical elements, benches, and small retaining walls. Can be custom cut, custom core drilled.
*NOTE: Typically weighs approximately 1,000 lbs. per linear foot. Special handling may apply to this stone.

[MineralMan]

Devil's Postpile in California:

[cogitator]

I wonder where the quarry(s) for columnar basalt are located. The most picturesque occurrences are probably parks, but there's a lot of basalt out there.

[Chode]

i can't remember sh!t anymore... was it the Who or Led Zeppelin that had the album cover done on Giants???

[Slicksadick]

Zepplin..

[cogitator]

OK, now I understand comment 4 on this thread.

[Chode]

ahhhh yes, it all comes back to me now, from so long ago and far away... thankx

[Cedar]

Thanks....pics are great.

[WSGilcrest]