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Grand Canyon

On the right is the first stratigraphic section of the Grand Canyon, from Powell’s 1875 report, showing what would later be termed the Great Unconformity. A is the metamorphic basement—the oldest rocks that have been contorted. B is the Precambrian Grand Canyon Supergroup, which is composed of tilted sedimentary rocks that lack fossil assemblages. C indicates flat-lying Paleozoic rocks, which contain fossils marking the explosion of life. Two unconformities can be seen at x and y, with the former marking the Great Unconformity. The image on the left is a recent photograph of the Grand Canyon from Walhalla Plateau, with the red line showing the Great Unconformity. Blue lines trace the tilted layers below the famed surface, and yellow lines trace the flat-lying sedimentary rocks on top.
Posted inNews

The Great Unconformity or Great Unconformities?

by Alka Tripathy-Lang 23 December 202231 January 2023

Some scientists think the Great Unconformity was caused by Snowball Earth’s glaciations. Recent work suggests these phenomena might not be related.

Posted inNews

Rastreando Los Misteriosos Manantiales Del Gran Cañón

Mary Caperton Morton, Science Writer by Mary Caperton Morton 20 March 202012 November 2021

Mejorar los modelos ayudará a proteger una fuente crucial de agua potable para ambos bordes del Parque Nacional del Gran Cañón.

A pipeline stretches across a flowing river in a small canyon.
Posted inNews

Tracking the Grand Canyon’s Mysterious Springs

Mary Caperton Morton, Science Writer by Mary Caperton Morton 24 February 202012 November 2021

Improved modeling will help protect a crucial drinking water source for both rims of Grand Canyon National Park.

A raft’s eye view of rapids on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon
Posted inFeatures

Will Earth’s Grandest Canyon Keep Getting Grander?

Mary Caperton Morton, Science Writer by Mary Caperton Morton 19 November 20193 November 2021

Living in Geologic Time: Rafting through the past, present, and future of the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon.

Posted inResearch Spotlights

Using Sound Waves to Study Grand Canyon Sediment

by E. Betz 13 July 20152 February 2022

New technology could help scientists understand how experimental floods from Glen Canyon Dam restore sandbars downstream.

Posted inFeatures

Building Sandbars in the Grand Canyon

by P. E. Grams, J. C. Schmidt, S. A. Wright, D. J. Topping, T. S. Melis and D. M. Rubin 3 June 201530 March 2023

Annual controlled floods from one of America's largest dams are rebuilding the sandbars of the iconic Colorado River.

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