Run For The Hills!, The flight to Winter Quarters... |
Run For The Hills!, The flight to Winter Quarters... |
Feb 28 2006, 05:17 PM
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#1
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Member Group: Members Posts: 136 Joined: 13-October 05 From: Malibu, CA Member No.: 527 |
It seems it might be time to start a post about the run to the hills... there are few days left to get Spirit to a winter-friendly spot somewhere up there - with all those tempting spots that we ~might~ be able to stop by on the way. That is - if we don't dally too long at each!
A discussion of what the best spot would be, and why it would be the best spot seems in order - along with what the best targets on the way would be interesting. I'm looking forward to the possibility that we'll have a chance to see several outcrops that appear to have layers, maybe similar in some respects to HP. Or will they be? I'm also looking forward to the possibility that we might get a look from the top of these hills, off to the South as winter ends, before we descend from the hills and head to the "Promised Land." Later I'll post some snips of locations I'm hoping to see up-close... thought I'd get it done on posting - but, just had an 'emergency' that demands quick departure! |
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Mar 6 2006, 09:01 PM
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#2
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 2998 Joined: 30-October 04 Member No.: 105 |
Wow is right. This is what I think we're seeing: the prevailing/local wind direction is from the NW, so the "Gibson" side of HP is being eroded face-on to the section so it shows the layering quite well. The wind at this current exposure blows more parallel to the laminations so it shows the bedding surfaces better, although the view cuts across.
I'm thinking that the volcanic ash here did blanket this area and those wonderful outcrops on McCool Hill will be related and will show lateral changes. As Phil suggests, Spirit may gather enough data, as well as providing another image viewpoint, to reduce the necessity to return to HP, although the "cinder cone" at Pitchers Mound calls for a closer look. --Bill -------------------- |
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Mar 6 2006, 09:09 PM
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#3
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 2488 Joined: 17-April 05 From: Glasgow, Scotland, UK Member No.: 239 |
Wow is right. This is what I think we're seeing: the prevailing/local wind direction is from the NW, so the "Gibson" side of HP is being eroded face-on to the section so it shows the layering quite well. The wind at this current exposure blows more parallel to the laminations so it shows the bedding surfaces better, although the view cuts across. I'm thinking that the volcanic ash here did blanket this area and those wonderful outcrops on McCool Hill will be related and will show lateral changes. As Phil suggests, Spirit may gather enough data, as well as providing another image viewpoint, to reduce the necessity to return to HP, although the "cinder cone" at Pitchers Mound calls for a closer look. --Bill Yes - Mitcheltree Ridge looked like not a lot until we saw these views, though it'd still be great to circumnavigate HP and have a look at Pitcher's Mound. Baby Mound, though, looks just like a mound - whatever is there seems well hidden. Anyway, the bottom line is that the structures we see locally may be part of an overall complex of exposures, and that's got to be good news. Bob Shaw -------------------- Remember: Time Flies like the wind - but Fruit Flies like bananas!
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Mar 7 2006, 02:20 AM
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#4
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Member Group: Members Posts: 166 Joined: 20-September 05 From: North Texas Member No.: 503 |
Yes - Mitcheltree Ridge looked like not a lot until we saw these views, Bob Shaw For us non-geologist types... could someone give a best guess to what we are seeing on Mitcheltree Ridge? Is that an igneous dike? Or simply a harder more erosion-resistant layer? Or something else entirely? David |
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Mar 7 2006, 04:09 AM
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#5
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Junior Member Group: Members Posts: 30 Joined: 15-November 05 Member No.: 553 |
For us non-geologist types... could someone give a best guess to what we are seeing on Mitcheltree Ridge? Is that an igneous dike? Or simply a harder more erosion-resistant layer? Or something else entirely? David David: Imo what you are seeing on Mitchelltree ridge are beds equivalent to those we are siiting on at HP. The resistant layer is equivalent to the lower part of HP and is overlain by the lighter colored X-bedded layers. The unconsolidated material at the base is equivalent to the same material we saw at HP. |
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