https://youtu.be/ARJJGufScTw Before I even finished my first geology class, I jokingly said I was going to be a Spanish-speaking geologist at Walt Disney World. While the rocks at Disney may not exactly be real, Walt Disney World can actually be a great place to learn about geology. In particular Disney's Animal Kingdom celebrates the intrinsic… Continue reading The Geology of Disney’s Animal Kingdom
Tag: volcanism
Iridescent tephra
Tephra with iridescent blue colors from the Pinacate Volcanic Field in Sonora, Mexico Image by author
Meteorite Impact or Maar?
Looking at the two images above, they appear quite similar: both are of very large (~1 mile wide), nearly perfectly circular craters in the ground. However, one was formed by a meteorite impact and the other is a maar formed by an explosive volcanic eruption. Think you can figure out which one is which? From just… Continue reading Meteorite Impact or Maar?
The geology behind Disney/Pixar’s “The Good Dinosaur”
The trailer for the new Disney/Pixar movie “The Good Dinosaur” begins by asking the simple question, “What if the asteroid that destroyed the dinosaurs missed?” As a geologist, my immediate answer to the question was, “Well, the dinosaurs still probably would have died out.” Most public knowledge of the End-Cretaceous mass extinction 65 million years ago involves… Continue reading The geology behind Disney/Pixar’s “The Good Dinosaur”
Volcanism on Mars
Mars is home to Olympus Mons (pictured above), the largest volcano in the solar system. Rising 21-24 km from the surrounding area, Olympus Mons is the dominant spot in the Tharsis region, which is the largest topographic feature on the planet. The Tharsis volcanic province covers close to 25% of the planet’s surface and houses… Continue reading Volcanism on Mars
Emily Zawacki, Ph.D. 