#ThinSectionThursday Nice cross-twinned plagioclase crystals in this Palaeogene basalt from Allt na Coille Mor, near Ben More, on Mull. Plane polarized light, crossed polars, and sensitive tint illumination. Field of view 2mm wide. #Geology#Feldspar#Basalt#Microscopy#Rocks
Three basalt fins in White Rock Canyon, New Mexico. The big central fin has great petroglyphs, and there's a good cave between the left and central fin — cool in the summer and very cold in winter. The fins themselves are columnar basalt from cooled lava flows. Photo from a few weeks ago.
The Spiral Jetty, a large earthwork sculpture made by Robert Smithson in 1970. It is constructed of basalt rocks and extends into the northern end of the Great Salt Lake. Human for scale, if you can find them (near the center of the spiral).
Yet the supposed "#megalithic structures" are mostly associated with #BasaltColumns - which, however, are a not unusual also naturally occurring phenomenon:
If basaltic #lava cools and solidifies with a certain delay, contraction results in polygonal #basalt columns.
Basalt Lava Rock Construction, Castello Nelson, Bronte, Sicily, Italy
This photo shows the traditional Sicilian building method with Etna’s basalt lava. You will see this everywhere on the east coast of the island. In modern buildings, the basalt is usually cut and finished to a high polish and used as trim for poured-in-place concrete structures with terracotta black inner walls. Our family’s kitchen is fitted with lovely basalt lava counters matched with traditional Sicilian tiles. The muratore (masons), literally translated as wall builders, were skilled craftsmen who could take randomly shaped rock and make beautiful, strong, structures.
Here is a small piece of interesting history about the castle.
“Prior to Italian unification, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the largest of the Italian States, was comprised of the Kingdom of Sicily and the Kingdom of Naples. In 1799, King Ferdinand l, the Bourbon King of the Two Sicilies (aka King Ferdinand IV, King of Naples, aka King Ferdinand III, King of Sicily), in appreciation for the admiral's support in suppressing a French-inspired insurrection in Naples, gave Horatio Nelson a title (Duke of Bronte) and a town (my grandmother's hometown), or, more precisely, "the land and the same town of Bronte, the revenue stamps, the incomes of the vassals, the servitudes, the rents..."
The Castle was a former monastery and, at that time, in total disrepair. Admiral Nelson never had the opportunity to live, let alone visit his property. Nevertheless, from England and with the help of estate managers (who most probably cheated him), Admiral Nelson planned the first of many renovations in the hope that he and Lady Hamilton would retire to Bronte one day and live a peaceful, quiet life away from whispers and gossip. This connection to Bronte was so strong that he had begun to sign his name, Nelson and Bronte.”
Basalt Lava Rock Construction, Castello Nelson, Bronte, Sicily, Italy
This photo shows the traditional Sicilian building method with Etna’s basalt lava. You will see this everywhere on the east coast of the island. In modern buildings, the basalt is usually cut and finished to a high polish and used as trim for poured-in-place concrete structures with terracotta black inner walls. Our family’s kitchen is fitted with lovely basalt lava counters matched with traditional Sicilian tiles. The muratore (masons), literally translated as wall builders, were skilled craftsmen who could take randomly shaped rock and make beautiful, strong, structures.
Here is a small piece of interesting history about the castle.
“Prior to Italian unification, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the largest of the Italian States, was comprised of the Kingdom of Sicily and the Kingdom of Naples. In 1799, King Ferdinand l, the Bourbon King of the Two Sicilies (aka King Ferdinand IV, King of Naples, aka King Ferdinand III, King of Sicily), in appreciation for the admiral's support in suppressing a French-inspired insurrection in Naples, gave Horatio Nelson a title (Duke of Bronte) and a town (my grandmother's hometown), or, more precisely, "the land and the same town of Bronte, the revenue stamps, the incomes of the vassals, the servitudes, the rents..."
The Castle was a former monastery and, at that time, in total disrepair. Admiral Nelson never had the opportunity to live, let alone visit his property. Nevertheless, from England and with the help of estate managers (who most probably cheated him), Admiral Nelson planned the first of many renovations in the hope that he and Lady Hamilton would retire to Bronte one day and live a peaceful, quiet life away from whispers and gossip. This connection to Bronte was so strong that he had begun to sign his name, Nelson and Bronte.”
For #MeerMittwoch this is the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland. Since the myth behind it relates to more than one giant, I think it should be called the Giants' Causeway but that's just me. This was taken in late 2021 when my wife finally visited the island of Ireland for the very first time.
Der Sage nach soll eine Jungfrau einen im Inneren des Scharfensteins verborgenen Schatz behüten. Sie tritt alle sieben Jahre hervor und niest siebenmal; wer ihr siebenmal „Gott helf!“ zuruft, gewinnt den Schatz und die Jungfrau. Einst hörte sie ein Fuhrmann niesen und erwiderte ihr sechsmal „Gott helf!“ Als er aber beim siebten Mal ungeduldig stattdessen einen Fluch ausrief, verschwand die Jungfrau für immer.
( de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scharfen… )
Ich kann das bestätigen. Sie kam nicht. 🙁
Der Philosoph, er weiß es nicht zu fassen,
Da liegt der Fels, man muss ihn liegen lassen. #FaustByGoethe 2, Vers 10113, 10114
The angle of repose on a beach face is directly related to grain size and roundness, with grain size (positive correlation) seemingly more important than roundness (negative correlation). This is perhaps the steepest beach in the Northwest…and maybe with the roundest sediment.
I call this bowling ball beach, because when the waves lift and move the cobbles, it sounds like pins falling at a bowling alley…and because the stones are very obviously shaped.