100 Million-Year-Old Plesiosaur Skeleton Found in Australia

<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuYS_ArkxUXYX5H-pAgJSglKPuRqtX0Qr3q_v6djNWUa2-5SldvZp4xuSQISpvhvwmKXc8uObQ5Q76EoLcpJ72PYXvFgENEULvO-2RJ6q1oMVKzjnzPFFgMz1WsigGWuJg_ZKbrRI2YPxImCRBbF5Ru7jI2jwooKEFBBSPONo2TudRaDLYeobXzrio/s1282/Plesiosaur%20Skeleton%20Found%20in%20Australiav%20(1).jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="100 Million-Year-Old Plesiosaur Skeleton Found in Australia" border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1282" height="450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuYS_ArkxUXYX5H-pAgJSglKPuRqtX0Qr3q_v6djNWUa2-5SldvZp4xuSQISpvhvwmKXc8uObQ5Q76EoLcpJ72PYXvFgENEULvO-2RJ6q1oMVKzjnzPFFgMz1WsigGWuJg_ZKbrRI2YPxImCRBbF5Ru7jI2jwooKEFBBSPONo2TudRaDLYeobXzrio/w640-h450/Plesiosaur%20Skeleton%20Found%20in%20Australiav%20(1).jpeg" title="100 Million-Year-Old Plesiosaur Skeleton Found in Australia" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">100 Million-Year-Old Plesiosaur Skeleton Found in Australia. The skull of the 100 million-year-old plesiosaur found in Queensland, Australia. Photo: Queensland Museum Network<br /></td></tr></tbody></table> <br /></p><p>The complete head and body of an ancient marine reptile with "flippers like a turtle and long neck like a giraffe" has been uncovered in Queensland in what scientists say is a rare discovery.<br /></p><p>The discovery of a giant 100 million-year-old marine reptile’s skeleton in Australia has been hailed by researchers as a breakthrough that may provide vital clues about prehistoric life.<br /><br />The remains of the 6-meter (19 feet) tall juvenile long-necked plesiosaur, also known as an elasmosaur, were found by a trio of amateur fossil hunters on a cattle station in the western Queensland outback in August.<br /><br />Espen Knutsen, senior curator of palaeontology at the Queensland Museum, likened the discovery to that of the Rosetta Stone – the Ancient Egyptian block of granite rediscovered in 1799 that helped experts to decode hieroglyphics.<br /><br />“We have never found a body and a head together and this could hold the key to future research in this field,” Knutsen said in a statement Wednesday that confirmed the discovery, adding it could give paleontologists greater insight into the origins, evolution and ecology of the cretaceous period in the region.<br /><br />“Because these plesiosaurs were two-thirds neck, often the head would be separated from the body after death, which makes it very hard to find a fossil preserving both together,” he said.<br /><br />The discovery was made by amateur paleontologists known as the “Rock Chicks” – Cassandra Prince, her sister Cynthia, and fellow fossil sleuth Sally, who goes only by her first name.<br /><br />Elasmosaurs, which grew to between 8 and 10 meters long, lived in the Eromanga Sea, which covered large parts of inland Australia with waters 50 meters deep about 150 million years ago.<br /><br />Knutsen said that when an elasmosaur died, its decomposing body would swell with gas that made it rise to the water’s surface, and often the head would break off when predators scavenged the carcass – making full-body discoveries rare.<br /><br />He added that because the latest find was a young specimen it would shed light on how the body shape of elasmosaurs changed from youth to adulthood.<br /><br />“We’re going to look at the chemistry of its teeth and that can tell us something about its ecology in terms of habitat as well, whether it was migrating throughout his life, or whether it was sort of staying in the same habitat, and also into its diet,” he said.</p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW0bfbV6GDMwtp1ujMExETQd7jmhcHbH1eheC906uoDryiG19zFOsu9qpRJZt95yb192p2QTCALQv0EqhvchVt8kSOXpFO2oI49CrURGfAByThG7mplP8U22qJawL1S1T7efSTotwT_b4N54Vln7WngLlzgItCJdxzzCB1NsJNjVX76LM18acSfCUD/s1251/Plesiosaur%20Skeleton%20Found%20in%20Australia%20(1)%20(1).jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="100 Million-Year-Old Plesiosaur Skeleton Found in Australia" border="0" data-original-height="634" data-original-width="1251" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW0bfbV6GDMwtp1ujMExETQd7jmhcHbH1eheC906uoDryiG19zFOsu9qpRJZt95yb192p2QTCALQv0EqhvchVt8kSOXpFO2oI49CrURGfAByThG7mplP8U22qJawL1S1T7efSTotwT_b4N54Vln7WngLlzgItCJdxzzCB1NsJNjVX76LM18acSfCUD/w640-h324/Plesiosaur%20Skeleton%20Found%20in%20Australia%20(1)%20(1).jpeg" title="100 Million-Year-Old Plesiosaur Skeleton Found in Australia" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A fully-grown plesiosaur can grow up to 10 metres in length.(Photo: Queensland Museum)<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Ancient marine reptiles like plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs are not classified as dinosaurs even though they lived around the same time. Plesiosaurs evolved from ancestors who lived on land and therefore didn’t have gills and had to surface occasionally for air. It remains unknown how long they could stay underwater.<br /><br />It’s the latest big discovery about prehistory to have been made in Australia in recent years.<br /><br />In June last year, scientists confirmed that the 2007 discovery of a fossilized skeleton in Queensland was the country’s largest dinosaur. The dinosaur, nicknamed “Cooper,” stood about two stories tall, and was as long as a basketball court.<br /><br />Two months later, scientists discovered that there once was a species of flying “dragon” that soared over Australia 105 million years ago. The pterosaur was described by researchers as a “fearsome beast” that snacked on juvenile dinosaurs. </p><p><br /></p>

100 Million-Year-Old Plesiosaur Skeleton Found in Australia

100 Million-Year-Old Plesiosaur Skeleton Found in Australia. The skull of the 100 million-year-old plesiosaur found in Queensland, Australia...

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Ancestors of 'Veggie' Dinosaurs Actually Feasted on Meat

<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHVmpAZ81iJ4NlT5tk5Dk2iCLzDAUXbM8sN_jePLciem_-nbqgR0nMsYf9E_bs_wfQbLFBa2h9ei11VKbSWyNuJ94E-qK1OYebMfcsC1W-CmRs1zSk98T4ChAy1SQP-n-a7LVZJL5ay9T2H3cYZUIVmkeRszaQAigzLRTUJ9_D7uS4xI86bI51PDge/s1232/Ancestors%20of%20'Veggie'%20Dinosaurs%20Actually%20Feasted%20on%20Meat%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ancestors of 'Veggie' Dinosaurs Actually Feasted on Meat" border="0" data-original-height="821" data-original-width="1232" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHVmpAZ81iJ4NlT5tk5Dk2iCLzDAUXbM8sN_jePLciem_-nbqgR0nMsYf9E_bs_wfQbLFBa2h9ei11VKbSWyNuJ94E-qK1OYebMfcsC1W-CmRs1zSk98T4ChAy1SQP-n-a7LVZJL5ay9T2H3cYZUIVmkeRszaQAigzLRTUJ9_D7uS4xI86bI51PDge/w640-h426/Ancestors%20of%20'Veggie'%20Dinosaurs%20Actually%20Feasted%20on%20Meat%20(1).jpg" title="Ancestors of 'Veggie' Dinosaurs Actually Feasted on Meat" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ancestors of 'Veggie' Dinosaurs Actually Feasted on Meat Photo Credit: Reuters/Eduardo Munoz</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p>A comprehensive new study has examined the diets of the earliest dinosaurs and found that, unsurprisingly, they included carnivores, herbivores and omnivores. But what is surprising is that the ancestors of many of the most famous herbivores – like Triceratops and Brachiosaurus – originally ate meat.<br /></p><p>The earliest dinosaurs included carnivorous, omnivorous and herbivorous species, according to a team of University of Bristol palaeobiologists.<br /><br />By looking at the tooth shapes of the earliest dinosaurs and simulating their tooth function with computational modelling, experts were able to compare them to living reptiles and their diets. Their findings, published today in Science Advances, show that many groups of plant-eating dinosaurs were ancestrally omnivorous and that the ancestors of our famous long-necked herbivores, such as Diplodocus, ate meat. This ability to diversify their diets early in their evolution likely explains their evolutionary and ecological success.<br /><br />The earliest dinosaurs are enigmatic: they were much smaller than their later relatives and for most of the Triassic they were in the shadow of the crocodile-like reptiles. It is unknown how diverse they were in terms of diets and ecology, but scientists know something must have happened in the Triassic that allowed dinosaurs to endure the Triassic-Jurassic mass extinction and adapt in its aftermath, becoming the dominant group for the rest of the Mesozoic.<br /><br />Lead author Dr. Antonio Ballell from the University of Bristol said "Soon after their origin, dinosaurs start to show an interesting diversity of skull and tooth shapes. For decades, this has made palaeontologists suspect that different species were already experimenting with different kinds of diets. They have compared them to modern lizard species and tried to infer what they ate based on the similarities in their teeth.<br /><br />"We investigated this by applying a set of computational methods to quantify the shape and function of the teeth of early dinosaurs and compare them to living reptiles that have different diets. This included mathematically modelling their tooth shapes and simulating their mechanical responses to biting forces with engineering software."<br /><br />Professor Mike Benton, co-author of the study, said: "With this battery of methods, we were able to numerically quantify how similar early dinosaurs were to modern animals, providing solid evidence for our inferences of diets. Theropod dinosaurs have pointy, curved and blade-like teeth with tiny serrations, which behaved like those of modern monitor lizards. In contrast, the denticulated teeth of ornithischians and sauropodomorphs are more similar to modern omnivores and herbivores, like iguanas."<br /><br />The study is also innovative in using machine learning models to classify the earliest dinosaurs in different diet categories based on their tooth shape and mechanics. For instance, Thecodontosaurus, the Bristol dinosaur, had teeth well adapted for a diet of plants.<br /><br />Professor Emily Rayfield, senior co-author, said: "Our analyses reveal that ornithischians -- the group that includes many plant-eating species like the horned dinosaurs, the armoured ankylosaurs and the duck-billed dinosaurs -- started off as omnivores. And another interesting finding is that the earliest sauropodomorphs, ancestors of the veggie long-necked sauropods like Diplodocus, were carnivores. This shows that herbivory was not ancestral for any of these two lineages, countering traditional hypotheses, and that the diets of early dinosaurs were quite diverse."<br /><br />Dr. Ballell concluded: "It seems that one of the things that made the first dinosaurs special is that they evolved different diets throughout the Triassic, and we think this might have been key for their evolutionary and ecological success."<br /><br />Dinosaurs dominated the land during the Mesozoic era until their extinction 66 million years ago. They included giant veggie groups like the long-necked sauropods and meat-eating species like Tyrannosaurus rex and its relatives. However, their origins were much humbler and date back to the Triassic period, with the first definitive dinosaurs appearing approximately 235 million years ago.</p><p> </p><p><u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The above story is based on Materials provided by <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/news/2022/december/diet-of-first-dinosaurs.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; border-radius: 0px !important; box-sizing: border-box; color: #004276; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" target="_blank">Materials</a><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #333333; display: inline !important; float: none; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span> </span>provided by<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; border-radius: 0px !important; box-sizing: border-box; color: #004276; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" target="_blank"><strong style="border-radius: 0px !important; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold;">University of Bristol</strong></a><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #333333; display: inline !important; float: none; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">.</span></span></span></u> </p>

Ancestors of 'Veggie' Dinosaurs Actually Feasted on Meat

Ancestors of 'Veggie' Dinosaurs Actually Feasted on Meat Photo Credit: Reuters/Eduardo Munoz A comprehensive new study has examined ...

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Earth's North Magnetic Pole Is Heading Towards Siberia

<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs5Cr23rYXUXjIoA2sQRVEAdLAqwd2JoC-RBrCGUT6IquuLz7TpLc4ckHcgYqJMmb5osR-QeUxwhHXVjFH83GhNPEqFcpnsxrcJu6tiC7w-SJg6KyoifS99_hyf1TeIg762gEHL6opxByH7tGXoqZyBpS4VkpXKlyE1NS0unde6YdF4OHD-veWyErf/s1210/Earth's%20North%20Magnetic%20Pole%20Is%20Heading%20Towards%20Siberia%20(1).jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Earth's North Magnetic Pole Is Heading Towards Siberia" border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="1210" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs5Cr23rYXUXjIoA2sQRVEAdLAqwd2JoC-RBrCGUT6IquuLz7TpLc4ckHcgYqJMmb5osR-QeUxwhHXVjFH83GhNPEqFcpnsxrcJu6tiC7w-SJg6KyoifS99_hyf1TeIg762gEHL6opxByH7tGXoqZyBpS4VkpXKlyE1NS0unde6YdF4OHD-veWyErf/w640-h360/Earth's%20North%20Magnetic%20Pole%20Is%20Heading%20Towards%20Siberia%20(1).jpeg" title="Earth's North Magnetic Pole Is Heading Towards Siberia" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Earth's North Magnetic Pole Is Heading Towards Siberia. A new map shows declination and dip pole locations around the northern hemisphere for. (NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information / Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences)<br /></td></tr></tbody></table> <br /></p><p>When you think of the North Pole’s location, you probably imagine it is the centermost point at the top of our planet. However, the North Magnetic Pole has actually been moving gradually since away from the location it was first documented back in the 1830s. <br /></p><p>Thanks, in part, to ESA’s Swarm satellite mission, scientists are now more confident in the theory that tussling magnetic blobs deep below Earth’s surface are at the root of this phenomenon.<br /><br />A new study published in the journal <i>Nature Geoscience </i>suggests that the changes in the North Pole’s location are explained by the movement of molten material in Earth’s interior. This, they say, has caused a titanic shift in the planet’s magnetic field. Essentially, the molten iron at the core of our planet helps to determine where Earth’s magnetic field downs down.<br /><br />The Earth's north magnetic pole was first discovered by an explorer named James Clark Ross back in the 1830s. At that time, it was centered over the Nunavut territory in Canada. Since that time, scientists have kept track of its movement, which, until recently, was very slow. </p><p>But then in the 1990s, it began to pick up speed, moving from Canada toward Siberia in Russia. The movement of the pole has garnered interest in the media because it forces changes to navigational systems and smartphones that use its location as a focal point. In this new effort, the researchers have come up with what they believe is an explanation for the movement of the pole and why it began moving faster.<br /><br />The researchers suggest that there are two large lobes of negative magnetic flux at the boundary of the core and the mantle. They further suggest that changes in molten metal flow in the core result in changes in the magnetic flux in the lobes. The position of the pole is determined by the strength of the two lobes—when one gains strength, the other loses strength resulting in the pole moving in the stronger direction. The result is a constant tug-of-war between the two lobes. The current movement is therefore due to one of the lobes gaining the upper hand.<br /><br />The researchers developed their theory after studying 20 years of satellite data (from the European Space Agency's Swarm) to measure the evolving shape of the Earth's magnetic field. Once they had developed their theory, they built a model that matched historical movement of the pole and used it to predict its future path. It showed the pole continuing toward Russia at its current swift pace before slowing—with the pole eventually settling over a part of Siberia. The model was not able to provide any estimates for a more distant future. </p><p><br /></p><p><i><u>The above story is based on <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41561-020-0570-9" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Materials</a> provided by <a href="http://Swarm." rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Swarm.</a></u></i></p>

Earth's North Magnetic Pole Is Heading Towards Siberia

Earth's North Magnetic Pole Is Heading Towards Siberia. A new map shows declination and dip pole locations around the northern hemispher...

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Fossilized Cockroach Sperm Found Preserved In 30 Million-Year-Old Amber

<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEzAmJgWjhrPIDk-_WoLMhrsRQzfjc_WuJ62FGyeuHau1AKsFToFQZl0Xpe8niPIye8EbIVtEbrzTKdW9NFV2qTrP43himkM0IQnFS0ahkTiyq9mjC6fIgunnutdYEr41nEXF3d85kf0NMupk4Ar0sf7vEFycsNtO-w_uAiq6Yl1wfr6DposeO3LkS/s1245/Fossilized%20Cockroach%20Sperm%20Found%20Preserved%20In%2030%20Million-Year-Old%20Amber.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Fossilized Cockroach Sperm Found Preserved In 30 Million-Year-Old Amber" border="0" data-original-height="826" data-original-width="1245" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEzAmJgWjhrPIDk-_WoLMhrsRQzfjc_WuJ62FGyeuHau1AKsFToFQZl0Xpe8niPIye8EbIVtEbrzTKdW9NFV2qTrP43himkM0IQnFS0ahkTiyq9mjC6fIgunnutdYEr41nEXF3d85kf0NMupk4Ar0sf7vEFycsNtO-w_uAiq6Yl1wfr6DposeO3LkS/w640-h424/Fossilized%20Cockroach%20Sperm%20Found%20Preserved%20In%2030%20Million-Year-Old%20Amber.jpg" title="Fossilized Cockroach Sperm Found Preserved In 30 Million-Year-Old Amber" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fossilized Cockroach Sperm Found Preserved In 30 Million-Year-Old Amber. Supella domincana. Image Credit: George Poinar Jr<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p>Fossilized cockroach sperm from 30 million years ago found in Jurassic Park-like discovery <br /></p><p>The cockroach, reviled around the world for its sickness-causing potential and general creepiness, now occupies an important position in the study of amber fossils thanks to research by an Oregon State University scientist.<br /><br />George Poinar Jr., professor emeritus in the OSU College of Science, has identified a new cockroach species. The male specimen, which Poinar named Supella dominicana, is encased in Dominican amber and is the first fossil cockroach to be found with sperm cells.<br /><br />“It is well preserved with a yellow cross bar across the wings and a central, vertical, yellow stripe that appears to divide the body into two parts,” he said. “It has long spines, used for defense, on its legs, especially the hind legs. Also of interest is the sperm bundle containing spermatozoa with dark acrosomes, structures covering the head of the sperm, since fossil sperm are rare.”<br /><br />The specimen, about 30 million years old, is also the only cockroach of its variety, ectobiid, to be discovered in amber from the Dominican Republic, though it has no living descendants in the Dominican or anywhere in the West Indies.<br /><br />As is the case with another Supella cockroach described earlier from Mexican amber, S. dominicana’s closest living relatives are in Africa and Asia.<br /><br />“So what caused these cockroaches to become extinct when it is so difficult to get rid of them today?” wondered Poinar, an international expert in using plant and animal life forms preserved in amber to learn about the biology and ecology of the distant past.<br /><br />There are more than 4,000 species of cockroaches crawling around multiple habitats all over the Earth, but only about 30 types of roaches share habitat with humans, and just a handful of those are regarded as pests. But they are highly regarded as such, Poinar notes.<br /><br />Ancient, primitive and extraordinarily resilient, cockroaches can survive in temperatures well below freezing and can withstand pressures of up to 900 times their body weight, he said – which means if you try to kill one by stepping on it, you probably won’t succeed.<br /><br />Cockroaches are so tough that they can live for a week after being decapitated, he added, and they can scuttle at a lightning pace – their speed to body length ratio is equivalent to a human running at about 200 mph.<br /><br />Since it doesn’t bother cockroaches to walk through sewage or decaying matter, they’ll potentially contaminate whatever surface they touch in your home as they search for food in the form of grease, crumbs, pantry items, even book bindings and cardboard.<br /><br />“They are considered medically important insects since they are carriers of human pathogens, including bacteria that cause salmonella, staphylococcus and streptococcus,” Poinar said. “They also harbor viruses. And in addition to spreading pathogens and causing allergic reactions, just their presence is very unsettling.”<br /><br />Prodigiously reproductive, able to squeeze into tiny hiding places and equipped with enzymes that protect them from toxic substances, cockroaches are not easily evicted once they show up somewhere, he said. There’s also growing evidence that they’re developing resistance to many insecticides.<br /><br />“The difficulty in eliminating them from homes once they’ve taken up residence can cause a lot of stress,” Poinar said. “Many might say that the best place for a cockroach is entombed in amber.”</p><p><br /></p><p><u>The above story is based on <a href="https://today.oregonstate.edu/news/oregon-state-amber-researcher-finds-new-species-cockroach-first-fossilized-roach-sperm" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Materials</a> provided by <a href="https://oregonstate.edu/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Oregon State University.  </a></u><br /></p>

Fossilized Cockroach Sperm Found Preserved In 30 Million-Year-Old Amber

Fossilized Cockroach Sperm Found Preserved In 30 Million-Year-Old Amber. Supella domincana. Image Credit: George Poinar Jr Fossilized cockro...

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Rainbow Lattice Sunstone

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQz75od1E0SOpq95w3VgHYf_yjDCWVivtvkm8gVF12UvssN2lhH29R68jmPWl0FeXPukQNJs8yiGzipLDm3hxMVjabkFJM9vBiachNA-_-jiS0tKmISZ6YLorhxrrqEa1Vh5GxvaLtLsqcM9QaRUjlWajStjKcbVxmoZWnJXFksedbDbPDvBxV7I_q/s1352/Rainbow%20Lattice%20Sunstone.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Rainbow lattice sunstone" border="0" data-original-height="1352" data-original-width="1352" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQz75od1E0SOpq95w3VgHYf_yjDCWVivtvkm8gVF12UvssN2lhH29R68jmPWl0FeXPukQNJs8yiGzipLDm3hxMVjabkFJM9vBiachNA-_-jiS0tKmISZ6YLorhxrrqEa1Vh5GxvaLtLsqcM9QaRUjlWajStjKcbVxmoZWnJXFksedbDbPDvBxV7I_q/w640-h640/Rainbow%20Lattice%20Sunstone.jpeg" title="Rainbow lattice sunstone" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rainbow Lattice Sunstone</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br />This phenomenal gem is filled with gorgeous iridescent inclusions that look like confetti! Rainbow lattice feldspar is doubly phenomenal, containing hematite crystals that give it aventurescence and magnetite crystals that give it a rainbow lattice effect.<br /></p><p>Rainbow Lattice Sunstone is a unique variety of Orthoclase Feldspar with its basket-weave pattern of iridescent Hematite and Magnetite platelet crystals is only found in Mud Banks, the Harts ranges, Northern Territories, Australia.<br /><br />There is only one place on Earth where it is found — the tiny Utnerrengatye mine in Harts Range, Northern Territory, Australia. Rainbow lattice feldspar was discovered there in 1985 and acknowledged as a new gem material in 1989. Rainbow lattice sunstone is produced from a remote part of the Australian desert known as the Mud Tank Zircon Field. It is an area consisting of dry plains with rocky outcrops that lies in the Harts Range north-east of Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia.</p><p></p><p>Rainbow lattice sunstone is a feldspar comprised of 75 percent orthoclase and 25 percent albite.<br /><br />Rainbow lattice sunstone is a type of orthoclase feldspar that exhibits a rare combination of aventurescence, adularescence, and a distinctive iridescence lattice pattern. The iridescence lattice pattern consists of <a href="https://www.geologyin.com/2017/01/types-of-mineral-inclusions-with-photos.html" target="_blank">inclusions</a> that are the result of crystallographically oriented exsolution crystals within the feldspar crystal. Sunstone refers to its physical appearance instead of its chemical composition.<br /><br />Sunstone inclusions may be composed of hematite, ilmenite, magnetite, native copper or goethite. The appearance of the aventurescence phenomenon depends on the size of the inclusions. Small particles produce a reddish or golden sheen, while larger inclusions create an attractive, glittery appearance.<br /></p><p>It originally was believed that the black blades and triangle inclusions were ilmenite, but improved technology over the last three decades has shown them to be magnetite.</p><p>It was found that the host mineral is orthoclase, as previously reported in the literature and the inclusions causing the aventurescence are hematite. This research also discovered that the lattice patterns consist of orangey brown platelets of hematite and the black platelets consist of magnetite.</p><p><b>See also: </b><br /><a href="https://www.geologyin.com/2015/01/killer-minerals-worlds-10-most-deadly.html" target="_blank">The World's 10 Most Deadly Minerals <br /></a><a href="https://www.geologyin.com/2020/05/thunderegg-ordinary-rocks-with-crystal.html" target="_blank">Thunderegg: Ordinary Rocks With Crystal Surprise Inside! </a><br /></p>

Rainbow Lattice Sunstone

Rainbow Lattice Sunstone This phenomenal gem is filled with gorgeous iridescent inclusions that look like confetti! Rainbow lattice feldspa...

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Ancient ‘Cooked Bone Mystery’ That’s 300 Million Years Old Finally Solved

<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEDICp8dWATTeUPkygCizxT7V7vEeZAVLR_O9PmvsHbTioF7Hqn14ie4VaBjG86uVFlsqZYbMt86sSaHNFndML3eUxvlsZK8zhq0btAti5-kOTIl92e7_MeGEWyf-SMWeCi7NofUZzyE89igBTzom3LUQQ2LXABPmaazLqm8fMh78RNq-iOtlbvXl1/s1210/Ancient%20%E2%80%98Cooked%20Bone%20Mystery%E2%80%99%20That%E2%80%99s%20300%20Million%20Years%20Old%20Finally%20Solved%20.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Ancient ‘Cooked Bone Mystery’ That’s 300 Million Years Old Finally Solved" border="0" data-original-height="758" data-original-width="1210" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEDICp8dWATTeUPkygCizxT7V7vEeZAVLR_O9PmvsHbTioF7Hqn14ie4VaBjG86uVFlsqZYbMt86sSaHNFndML3eUxvlsZK8zhq0btAti5-kOTIl92e7_MeGEWyf-SMWeCi7NofUZzyE89igBTzom3LUQQ2LXABPmaazLqm8fMh78RNq-iOtlbvXl1/w640-h400/Ancient%20%E2%80%98Cooked%20Bone%20Mystery%E2%80%99%20That%E2%80%99s%20300%20Million%20Years%20Old%20Finally%20Solved%20.jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ancient ‘Cooked Bone Mystery’ That’s 300 Million Years Old Finally Solved. A tetrapod called Keraterpeton galvani from the Jarrow Assemblage. (Ó Gogáin et al., Palaeontology, )<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p>Warped amphibian-like fossils in Ireland were likely transformed by superheated fluids that were released as ancient continents crashed into one another around 300 million years ago.<br /></p><p>Bizarre, mangled fossils in Ireland were likely deformed by superheated fluids that burst out from below Earth's crust around 300 million years ago. The superhot fluids were released when the planet's ancient continents collided together to form the supercontinent Pangaea, a new study shows.<br /><br />Scientists have solved a decades-long mystery as to why ancient tetrapods -- amphibian-like creatures that lived over 300 million years ago -- preserved in one of Ireland's most important fossil sites seemingly had their bones cooked after they died.<br /><br />The Jarrow Assemblage is one of Ireland's most important fossil sites and preserves some of the oldest amphibians to live in terrestrial environments. These fossils are found in a coal seam in Co. Kilkenny.<br /><br />Fossils from this site have one unique feature: their original internal bone morphology has been altered so that now it is difficult to make out detail from the fossils. The cause of this alteration has baffled scientists, with explanations for this alteration usually thought to be due to acid dissolving the bones when the animals were first buried. That is until now.<br /><br />A team of scientists from Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin, National University of Ireland, Galway, the University of Birmingham and the Gemological Institute of America used a combination of computed tomography, to produce X-Ray images of the fossil, and laser ablation, to analysis the chemistry of the bones to investigate the causes of this alteration.<br /><br />Dr Aodhán Ó Gogáin, from Trinity's School of Natural Sciences, is the lead-author of the study. He said:<br /><br />"Normally in fossil bone we see that the internal original structure is preserved. But when we looked at the X-Ray images of fossils from Jarrow we see that no internal bone morphology has been preserved and that bones have been partially replaced by the surrounding coal."<br /><br />The team also found apatite preserved in the bones. Dr Gary O'Sullivan, a co-author in the study said:<br /><br />"The chemistry of the apatite crystals can tell us a lot about how it formed, whether it grew organically in the animal, formed when the animal was being buried or whether some other factors influenced its growth. Apatite is a major constitute of living bone so it is no surprise we find some preserved in these bones. However, when we look at the chemistry of apatite in the bones from Jarrow we find that this apatite was formed by heated fluids within the Earth<br /><br />Dr Aodhán Ó Gogáin added: "We have also been able to radiometrically date the apatite which shows it formed during a time when all the continents on Earth were coming together and colliding to form the supercontinent Pangaea. As these continents collided, they formed mountain belts with super-heated subterranean fluids flowing of them. It is these super-heated fluids, which flowed throughout Ireland that cooked and melted the bones of these fossils causing the alteration we see today."<br /><br />Trinity's Dr Patrick Wyse Jackson, another co-author said: "The Jarrow assemblage is of major scientific importance and is a significant element of Ireland's geoheritage. It is great that finally the question of what altered the fossil bones of these animals has been resolved."</p><p><br /><br /><u><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The above story is based on Materials provided by <a href="https://www.tcd.ie/news_events/articles/ancient-amphibians-had-their-bones-cooked/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; border-radius: 0px !important; box-sizing: border-box; color: #004276; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" target="_blank">Materials</a><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #333333; display: inline !important; float: none; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><span> </span>provided by<span> </span></span><a href="https://www.tcd.ie/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; border-radius: 0px !important; box-sizing: border-box; color: #004276; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" target="_blank"><strong style="border-radius: 0px !important; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold;">Trinity College Dublin</strong></a><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #333333; display: inline !important; float: none; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">.</span></span></span></u></p>

Ancient ‘Cooked Bone Mystery’ That’s 300 Million Years Old Finally Solved

Ancient ‘Cooked Bone Mystery’ That’s 300 Million Years Old Finally Solved. A tetrapod called Keraterpeton galvani from the Jarrow Assemblage...

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Minnesota Couple Unearths 1.9 Carat Diamond at Arkansas State Park

<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNMI3yHtA5ZfeliFd5h0uImDQzt0-isCZg81ssWh67XCTgXqpI2Vt6UHc7lKwTSIN9E_82-DZ9sRtZGbLGwwnhRtKchwfXWixw1aq4cvEv3ZSpA66glqX0uYmUDi3fc8FvGL4uq5qgjECQIVeDuDv0h4S2EQNsgDZZliJxNal2CJPnsSQmnBxbbSr/s1229/1.90%20ct.%20brown%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Minnesota Couple Unearths 1.9 Carat Diamond at Arkansas State Park" border="0" data-original-height="922" data-original-width="1229" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNMI3yHtA5ZfeliFd5h0uImDQzt0-isCZg81ssWh67XCTgXqpI2Vt6UHc7lKwTSIN9E_82-DZ9sRtZGbLGwwnhRtKchwfXWixw1aq4cvEv3ZSpA66glqX0uYmUDi3fc8FvGL4uq5qgjECQIVeDuDv0h4S2EQNsgDZZliJxNal2CJPnsSQmnBxbbSr/w640-h480/1.90%20ct.%20brown%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 1.90-carat diamond found by the Ericksons.<br />Photo: Arkansas State Parks</td></tr></tbody></table> <br /></p><p>A Minnesota couple vacationing for their 10th anniversary found a 1.90-carat diamond at Arkansas's Crater of Diamonds State Park on Friday.<br /><br />Jessica and Seth Erickson, of Chatfield, were visiting the United States' only public diamond mine while road-tripping through 11 states for their anniversary. Arkansas State Parks said the two were sifting through the dirt when Seth found the gem in the bottom of his screen after about an hour of searching.<br /><br />The diamond's estimated value isn't known at this time.<br /><br />According to park interpreter Tayler Markham, the couple arrived early Friday morning and were "wet sifting" at the North Washing Pavilion in the park's 37.5-acre diamond search area around 11 a.m.<br /><br />"Although most diamonds are found after flipping gravel onto a flat surface, Seth first spotted a metallic-looking gem in the bottom of his screen after an hour of wet sifting. He knew right away it was a diamond and excitedly showed Jessica," Markham said.<br /><br />The 1.90-carat diamond found by the Ericksons.<br /><br />Park staff registered the discovery as a 1.90-carat brown diamond, "about the size of a pony bead."<br /><br />Wet sifting is the most common way to search and find diamonds, according to Markham.<br /><br />“Two screens are used to wet sift. The top screen has a bigger mesh size, one-quarter of an inch, while the bottom screen is smaller, about 1/16 of an inch. Guests submerge screen sets in water to wash away the soil. Once the soil is removed, the gravel is then separated by size and weight to make diamonds easier to find,” she said.<br /><br />Markham said about 75% of all diamonds registered at the Crater of Diamonds are discovered through wet sifting.<br /><br />Arkansas State Parks said many who find diamonds in the area name them. The Ericksons named theirs "HIMO," representing the initials of each of their children.<br /><br />In 2022, the Crater of Diamonds has registered 581 diamonds — an average of 1-2 diamonds being found at the park each day.<br /><br /><b><a href="https://www.geologyin.com/2016/08/the-only-diamond-mine-in-world-where.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Read also:  The Only Diamond Mine In the World Where You Can Be the Miner </a></b><br /></p><p><i><u>The above story is based on Materials provided by <a href="https://www.arkansasstateparks.com/articles/visitor-finds-190-carat-diamond-crater-diamonds-state-park?fbclid=IwAR0-fLIaSaZnyW1MQC3_iKK3p9LQ4jB-4DoOsGojdS_2SKHyOHw6zwvbwDI" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Arkansas State Parks</a></u></i> </p>

Minnesota Couple Unearths 1.9 Carat Diamond at Arkansas State Park

The 1.90-carat diamond found by the Ericksons. Photo: Arkansas State Parks   A Minnesota couple vacationing for their 10th anniversary found...

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The Biggest Mercury Concentration in the World

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizrfBDRQA71s06lCidqeWNhG2V1LTwIfZwA7QHYh46KWxbITnertWMNA4zuF6AI1jC4HZwNkpjuRskDB4-iKLoJYuYJMwB-g3DYkbjfjahXbHJtakWay55m8PxXQa4xh-o4r-E6B5nBhVOYtQpFXsLF0Bpzbm8ACzktjVtCZXcBoR8H9aLYU9J5jlj/s1200/The%20Biggest%20Mercury%20Concentration%20in%20the%20World%20(1).jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Cinnabar ore from Almadén mining district, Spain. Cinnabar (HgS, red mineral) is the dominant ore mineral at the Almadén mine, whereas elemental Hg (Hg0, gray beads) is abundant locally." border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizrfBDRQA71s06lCidqeWNhG2V1LTwIfZwA7QHYh46KWxbITnertWMNA4zuF6AI1jC4HZwNkpjuRskDB4-iKLoJYuYJMwB-g3DYkbjfjahXbHJtakWay55m8PxXQa4xh-o4r-E6B5nBhVOYtQpFXsLF0Bpzbm8ACzktjVtCZXcBoR8H9aLYU9J5jlj/w640-h400/The%20Biggest%20Mercury%20Concentration%20in%20the%20World%20(1).jpeg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cinnabar ore from Almadén mining district, Spain. Cinnabar (HgS, red mineral) is the dominant ore mineral at the Almadén mine, whereas elemental Hg (Hg0, gray beads) is abundant locally. <br />Photo: Luis Carcavilla Urquí. <br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br />The mercury deposits of Almadén account for the largest quantity of liquid mercury metal produced in the world. Approximately 250,000 metric tons of mercury have been produced there in the past 2,000 years.<br /><p></p><p>The geology of the area is characterised by <b>volcanism</b>. Almadén is home to the world's greatest reserves of cinnabar, a mineral associated with recent volcanic activity, from which mercury is extracted. <b>Cinnabar</b> was first used for pigment by the Romans. <br /><br />Cinnabar is a mercury <b>sulfide mineral </b>(HgS). It is one of the few sulfide minerals that lacks a metallic luster (other examples are orpiment & realgar). In its crystalline form, cinnabar has an intense adamantine luster. Massive, fine-grained specimens generally have an earthy luster. Cinnabar has a reddish color reddish streak, 3 different cleavage planes, is quite soft (H = 2 to 2.5), and is heavy for its size (high specific gravity).<br /><br />Cinnabar generally occurs as a vein-filling mineral associated with recent volcanic activity and alkaline hot springs. The mineral resembles quartz in symmetry and in its exhibiting birefringence. Cinnabar has a mean refractive index near 3.2, a <b>hardness</b> between 2.0 and 2.5, and a specific gravity of approximately 8.1. The color and properties derive from a structure that is a hexagonal crystalline lattice belonging to the <b>trigonal</b> crystal system, crystals that sometimes exhibit twinning.<br /><br />The exceptionality of this <b>ore deposit </b>lies in the unique geological characteristics that led to the high concentrations and large accumulations of mercury, which constitutes its own metallogenetic model. The mining and metallurgical complex, together with part of the rest of the museum facilities, currently constitute the Almaden Mining Park, which is open to the public since 2008. The park includes a Visitor Center, the Mining Interpretation Center, and the Mercury Museum. It offers tours in real tunnels in the 16th-century inner mine. Almadén is included into the World Heritage List.<br /><br />The giant Almadén mercury deposit is hosted in the Lower Silurian Criadero Quartzite; in turn this ore-bearing rock unit is cross-cut by the so-called Frailesca unit, a diatreme body of basaltic composition. The Almadén district is the largest mercury geochemical cluster on Earth, having produced one third of the total world mercury. It is a stratabound mineral deposit and is composed of three mineralized levels in the “Cuarcita del Criadero”. Formation that correlates with the Upper Ordovician to lower Silurian. The Silurian intraplate alkaline volcanism developed in submarine conditions, which triggered widespread hydrothermal activity resulting in Hg ore formation and pervasive alteration to carbonates. <br /><br />The deposit consists of impregnated and infilled joints with cinnabar in siliceous sandstone beds. It appears to be linked to the presence of explosive volcanic tuffs (Roca Frailesca). It is located on the southern limb of the Almadén syncline where it appears in a vertical position and with an E-W strike. In addition, the good outcrops of the mine tunnels allow excellent observations of the sedimentology, volcanic petrology, and Variscan tectonic structures, and are classic sites for fossil occurrences, particularly Silurian graptolites. The Almaden deposit has mined out about 7,000,000 flasks (= 241.500 Tm) with an average grade of 3.5% Hg. This is about a third part of all the mercury consumed by humanity.<br /><br /><br /> </p>

The Biggest Mercury Concentration in the World

Cinnabar ore from Almadén mining district, Spain. Cinnabar (HgS, red mineral) is the dominant ore mineral at the Almadén mine, whereas eleme...

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Study: Yellowstone Magma Much Bigger Than Thought

<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtHjjC_kIQ_Zm3UB3Feqz6NIvB4J82lU4j7SLhHXYlED8svTXQ1UNJIy3qp-YZn3PgVpSrasMrQW3mTPFB8IjtM3p3m8uHIGAsWr7HefQ8RwJxn1oPQbmgVtGs1yvanYAmONghO9Jc7yi314pOmBb7zlwv6V6naJaAHPpOWA6u9eW_MIGW4wpYwSY1/s1306/Yellowstone%20Magma%20Much%20Bigger%20Than%20Thought.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Study: Yellowstone Magma Much Bigger Than Thought" border="0" data-original-height="740" data-original-width="1306" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtHjjC_kIQ_Zm3UB3Feqz6NIvB4J82lU4j7SLhHXYlED8svTXQ1UNJIy3qp-YZn3PgVpSrasMrQW3mTPFB8IjtM3p3m8uHIGAsWr7HefQ8RwJxn1oPQbmgVtGs1yvanYAmONghO9Jc7yi314pOmBb7zlwv6V6naJaAHPpOWA6u9eW_MIGW4wpYwSY1/w640-h362/Yellowstone%20Magma%20Much%20Bigger%20Than%20Thought.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <p>The Yellowstone supervolcano in northwest Wyoming isn't just one of the most fascinating places on Earth, it's potentially one of the most volatile, thanks to the reservoir of magma contained within.<br /><br />A new study by an international team of researchers has determined that there's actually more magma under Yellowstone than was previously thought, adding important details to models that could be used to fine tune our estimates on the next big eruption.<br /><br />In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes analyzing years of seismic data from the site and building supercomputing models. Kari Cooper with the University of California Davis has published a Perspective piece on the work done by the team on this new effort and also outlines the tools that geologists use to predict when a volcano might erupt.<br /><br />The Yellowstone Caldera is located in Wyoming's Yellowstone National Park, and prior research has shown its last major eruption was approximately 640,000 years ago. Prior research has also shown that there are two large magma reservoirs below the caldera—one just below the surface, the other a few kilometers down.<br /><br />The ratio of melted rock to crystals in the top reservoir is a reliable indicator of how close a volcano is to erupting. Previous estimates showed the ratio of rock to crystal in the top reservoir was approximately 9%, suggesting the volcano was nowhere near an eruption point. In this new effort, however, the researchers have taken a closer look at the ratio and have found it is much higher than earlier estimates showed.<br /><br />To learn more about the ratio in the reservoir, the researchers analyzed 20 years of seismic data for the area with a supercomputer, which created a model that simulated the reservoir, showing both the size of the reservoir and its ratios of rock to crystal.<br /><br />They found that the ratio of rock to crystal was much higher than previous estimates—they found it to be 16% to 20%. They also found that the reservoir was approximately twice as large as previously thought, at approximately 1,600 cubic kilometers. They note that their findings do not indicate that an eruption is imminent; the ratio is still well below the threshold believed to be necessary to set off an explosion. </p><p><br /></p><p><i><u>The above story is based on <a href="http://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ade8435" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Materials</a> provided by <a href="https://illinois.edu/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. </a></u></i><br /></p>

Study: Yellowstone Magma Much Bigger Than Thought

  The Yellowstone supervolcano in northwest Wyoming isn't just one of the most fascinating places on Earth, it's potentially one of ...

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Howardite: Rattlesnake Jasper

<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="Howardite: Royal Flamingo Jasper Rattlesnake Jasper" border="0" data-original-height="1224" data-original-width="1224" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqvSiZMLbfQ7fc7lKzfIfVSikXmN0Pf7TZY2NfdocKYKqtxtwvv5Nzbk3mbbc0UMpZSiV1uSzML9h7x_jL6Y9OWnPXCpQLiVo-RfzlBgJoW_hn8H1JRGlb9sTxYjJIaT2vTNIYc8EoBZ3Vhl9hccOnYsl_wbSh6kH9SATnOR72Nf4MJeLjs77IDYEw/w640-h640/Howardite%20Royal%20Flamingo%20Jasper.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Howardite from Nevada. Photo: SilverHill Lapidary/Jeffrey Hill<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><p></p><p><br /><br />Howardite is an Opalised silicate with a distinctive interwoven and banded pattern and is noted for its rich golden yellow and pinkish-brown colours.<br /><br /><b>Howardite</b> also known as "Rattlesnake Jasper" and “Royal Flamingo Jasper” is a rare form of opalized/silicate volcanic tuff from northern <b>Nevada</b>. It is a very unique and beautiful red to brown brecciated jasper interspersed with clear agate and/or opal. <br /></p><p>The specific locality for Howardite appears to be unknown. Howardite is said to have been discovered in a small occurrence/pocket in the 1940's or 1950's, and the locality/deposit was thereafter said to be mined out, lost, or closed to entry for military purposes (depending on which account you hear). From what I have heard it was last dug in the 1970's and the discoverer could not find his way back to the deposit. </p><p></p><p>Rediscovered about 2015-2016 by dominion gems. Four claims were located on the deposit in january 2018 by dominion gems, but not recorded to keep the locality "Private" and to deter poaching and highgrading; shortly thereafter the deposit was rediscovered by others.<br /> </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhifodCZrNDaF9tJ0WQ-KzA17lvFjwVEeq7FstAldGIpLj4k1ER4KI7PUIWZNwmkAzgn2-_7qnv0BVMU77rPrKzuRhtkZq9oiUH7k8xIxonmJftf48LhBH61yVvLHDvuGWiv_QwS-qRMpd1aUT5LKmWlqnuFlZ6y7D6B28yEQ8MLlAWNj0c4bQWRlwD/s1109/silverhilllapidary_79600060_2611110822438205_2654384958112745557_n%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Rattlesnake Jasper" border="0" data-original-height="1109" data-original-width="1109" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhifodCZrNDaF9tJ0WQ-KzA17lvFjwVEeq7FstAldGIpLj4k1ER4KI7PUIWZNwmkAzgn2-_7qnv0BVMU77rPrKzuRhtkZq9oiUH7k8xIxonmJftf48LhBH61yVvLHDvuGWiv_QwS-qRMpd1aUT5LKmWlqnuFlZ6y7D6B28yEQ8MLlAWNj0c4bQWRlwD/w400-h400/silverhilllapidary_79600060_2611110822438205_2654384958112745557_n%20(1).jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rough Red Howardite from Nevada. <br />Photo: SilverHill Lapidary/Jeffrey Hill</td></tr></tbody></table><br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9G9gFZox74o5EMffjk4sSS4425OEM8PU8lwuIu7uxULEZ_9Z8pln2iZdRTC2kcbG61yVsvWxaPa2sI2jOxbia-Zr8z_ZK9ZbAEVG9cOUSWhCTt-hgxlRaPJmuob8EkntoUBNu6p-cP1lgawi-gOdcMzAb48Lbhlu7KQLS5oXaCBAj50B7xYC-iCE5/s1418/silverhilllapidary_66445653_719749998457235_5914457342379165157_n%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Rattlesnake Jasper" border="0" data-original-height="1418" data-original-width="1161" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9G9gFZox74o5EMffjk4sSS4425OEM8PU8lwuIu7uxULEZ_9Z8pln2iZdRTC2kcbG61yVsvWxaPa2sI2jOxbia-Zr8z_ZK9ZbAEVG9cOUSWhCTt-hgxlRaPJmuob8EkntoUBNu6p-cP1lgawi-gOdcMzAb48Lbhlu7KQLS5oXaCBAj50B7xYC-iCE5/w328-h400/silverhilllapidary_66445653_719749998457235_5914457342379165157_n%20(1).jpg" width="328" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Polished Red Howardite from Nevada. <br />Photo: SilverHill Lapidary/Jeffrey Hill</td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p>

Howardite: Rattlesnake Jasper

Red Howardite from Nevada. Photo: SilverHill Lapidary/Jeffrey Hill Howardite is an Opalised silicate with a distinctive interwoven and bande...

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Extra Hard Space Diamonds May Have Formed in an Ancient Cosmic Collision

<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFt4-TkvTpjQAaWDo2aK428Cv6yWqmVhP1oFMudSkUMQZp72Ebg-4FUUCdU8VughKTC0Thbn8v388YkSdK5jN2ebGMRy-QH6vHKRLzeVo2nhFmAcrlQLz4Qqs7t77thEBsd2tjDYTIEDGD8I5GIAObIz87n8YnV0TstM7V2ehunP9XkVwgdGOwQEdl/s1220/Extra%20Hard%20Space%20Diamonds%20May%20Have%20Formed%20in%20an%20Ancient%20Cosmic%20Collision%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Extra Hard Space Diamonds May Have Formed in an Ancient Cosmic Collision" border="0" data-original-height="838" data-original-width="1220" height="440" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFt4-TkvTpjQAaWDo2aK428Cv6yWqmVhP1oFMudSkUMQZp72Ebg-4FUUCdU8VughKTC0Thbn8v388YkSdK5jN2ebGMRy-QH6vHKRLzeVo2nhFmAcrlQLz4Qqs7t77thEBsd2tjDYTIEDGD8I5GIAObIz87n8YnV0TstM7V2ehunP9XkVwgdGOwQEdl/w640-h440/Extra%20Hard%20Space%20Diamonds%20May%20Have%20Formed%20in%20an%20Ancient%20Cosmic%20Collision%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Folded Lonsdaleite, Purple, With Diamond in Green-yellow<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table> <br /></p><p>A “folded diamond” doesn’t sound entirely plausible. But that’s exactly what we’ve found inside a rare group of meteorites known as ureilites, which likely came from the mantle of a dwarf planet or very large asteroid that was destroyed 4.56 billion years ago in a giant collision.<br /></p><p>Diamond, with its tough-to-break carbon lattice of interlocking cubes, is traditionally considered the hardest material on Earth. Yet a rare form of diamond known as lonsdaleite—a crystal with carbon atoms arranged in flexing three-dimensional hexagons—may be even harder than its cubic cousin.<br /><br />To date, natural lonsdaleite has been found only in impact craters, where it has formed by the intense pressure of meteorites crashing to Earth. But now researchers say that they’ve identified lonsdaleite crystals that formed billions of years before the meteorites carrying them ever reached the planet. If the team’s theory of the crystals’ formation is correct, its findings could offer scientists a better way to manufacture the ultra hard substance on Earth.<br /><br />For a study published this month in the <i>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA</i>, the research team, primarily based in Australia, examined 18 different meteorite samples from a family known as “ureilites.” Because ureilites are relatively homogeneous in their chemical composition—which is uniquely rich in carbon—scientists theorize they originate from the same parent body.<br /><div style="margin: 0px auto; width: 100%;"> <script async="" src="//pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js"></script> <ins class="adsbygoogle" data-ad-client="ca-pub-1021498709184325" data-ad-format="fluid" data-ad-layout="in-article" data-ad-slot="6157425841" style="display: block; text-align: center;"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); </script> </div><br />“There was this dwarf planet just after the start of our solar system—so 4.5 billion years ago—and the planet got hit by an asteroid,” says Alan Salek, a graduate student in applied physics at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology in Australia and co-author of the new study. This cataclysmic impact tore the dwarf planet apart, sparking a chemical reaction that could have turned pieces of the planet’s graphite into lonsdaleite, he adds.<br /><br />Graphite is made up of flat layers of carbon atoms bonded together as hexagons. These stacked layers are weakly attracted to each other and relatively easy to pull apart. On Earth, high heat and pressure can rearrange these carbon atoms into a 3-D lattice of cubes, thereby creating the traditional kind of diamond. But a brief period of extremely intense pressure—such as that of a meteorite impact—can preserve graphite’s original hexagonal arrangement while its layers bond into the strong 3-D lattice of lonsdaleite.<br /><br />The researchers propose that rather than the rapid impact pressure known to produce tiny lonsdaleite crystals on Earth, these samples instead formed through a rapid release of pressure. They claim that a fluid mix of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and sulfur was heated and pressurized in the dwarf planet’s mantle until an asteroid impact smashed that mantle into pieces. Study co-author Andrew Tomkins, a geologist at Monash University in Australia, says that the rapidly depressurizing mix of chemicals could have interacted with the dwarf planet’s graphite to transform it into lonsdaleite.<br /><br />In this particular reaction, graphite crystals would have been essentially torn apart and rebuilt into lonsdaleite. “It’s called ‘coupled dissolution-reprecipitation’ because it’s kind of dissolving this thing and replacing it at the same time,” Tomkins says. This fluid-driven reaction took place in chunks of the dwarf planet as they went flying into space. And much like escape vessels from the planet Krypton, those chunks eventually carried their precious cargo all the way to Earth.<br /><br />The researchers landed on this lonsdaleite origin story through painstaking analysis of their 18 ureilite samples. Tomkins explains that the structure of these meteorites’ minerals indicates a rapid cooling process that points to a dramatic collision. Looking at particular radioactive signatures of the minerals, the researchers estimated a date for this collision—roughly 4.5 billion years ago. Plus, the samples contain interlocking layers of lonsdaleite, cubic diamond and graphite in a pattern that points to the fluid-driven transformation Tomkins’s team describes.<br /><br />Outside researchers note that this is only one potential explanation for the presence of lonsdaleite in these meteorites. “I think the formation method presented here is logical and may be one possible pathway to form this material, but I admit I am not 100 percent convinced,” says Jodie Bradby, who researches high-pressure physics at the Australian National University but was not involved in the study. “I hope this paper prompts more theoretical and modeling studies in this area,” she adds.<br /><br />Dominik Kraus, a high-energy-density physicist at the University of Rostock in Germany, who was also not involved in the study, feels similarly. “To me, it looks kind of like a Goldilocks scenario at the moment—everything has to be just right,” he says.<br /><br />To verify the formation method, Kraus says, researchers will need to replicate it: a key next step is “to mimic these conditions ... and see if we can really grow these hexagonal diamond crystals somewhat effectively on this regime.”<br /><br />Kraus and Bradby have both been involved in research projects that successfully created synthetic lonsdaleite by subjecting other forms of carbon to intense pressure, much like what occurs during a meteorite impact. And yet, like the lonsdaleite found in meteorite craters, these synthetic lonsdaleite crystals tend to be tiny—on the scale of nanometers. (That’s one billionth of a meter.)<br /><br />The specks of lonsdaleite that Salek and Tomkins’s research group identified were up to a micron in size—still extremely small but roughly 1,000 times larger than any lonsdaleite crystals previously known. This suggests that a fluid-driven transformation of graphite into lonsdaleite might produce bigger crystals than the impact method.<br /><br />If Salek and Tomkins’ team can re-create their theoretical transformation process in a lab, it wouldn’t just be a win for their theory but a win for materials science at large. Lonsdaleite has never been obtained in samples large enough to test its true hardness (or to evaluate its true color, which remains uncertain). But mathematical models of lonsdaleite’s structure indicate that the substance could be up to 58 percent harder than cubic diamond.<br /><br />“A material like this, that could practically be undamageable by anything on Earth, would be pretty handy to have,” Salek says. It could replace diamond on saw blades and drill bits, for instance, or function as tiny, extremely durable electronic components. Bradby adds that lonsdaleite could help cut regular diamonds with relative ease.<br /><br />Still, re-creating the exact conditions described in this paper will be a challenge. Researchers will have to produce extreme temperatures, elevated pressures and a precise mix of the chemicals that supposedly catalyzed the transformation of graphite into lonsdaleite. It’s doable, at least in theory. But even if such a process successfully produces the crystal, it’s unclear how difficult or expensive it would be to scale up to industrial-level output. </p><p><br /></p><p><u><i>The above story is based on <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/extra-hard-space-diamonds-may-have-formed-in-an-ancient-cosmic-collision/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Materials</a> provided by RMIT University. Original written by Daniel Leonard.</i></u><br /></p>

Extra Hard Space Diamonds May Have Formed in an Ancient Cosmic Collision

Folded Lonsdaleite, Purple, With Diamond in Green-yellow   A “folded diamond” doesn’t sound entirely plausible. But that’s exactly what we’v...

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