PSC 103 Rock Blog

 Right outside of the Baker building, I noticed that there were people doing construction outside a couple days a week. I noticed that a lot of the ground was dug up and left there until the next day of work. The breaking of the dirt does cause erosion.  With the destruction of the ground, there is a loss of vegetation as the land is cleared. The digging starts to loosen the soil, making it easier to produce runoff. Since this is happening near the entrance of the baker, there is not that much ground to soak up the water, which will eventually lead to surface runoff. It could get carried by rainwater and wind if not stabilized. 

Stratigraphy at Spooners Cove What caused the erosion is the movement of the tectonic plates at the San Andreas Fault. They push the horizontal rock upwards, creating these slanted outcroppings. Then, due to weathering, the texture became smooth, and water caused divots and valleys in the rocks.  The layers of the rock seem to be similar. This could hint that they are made out of the same type of rock. But there are many different layers that have different colors. This could also give off that maybe there are different rocks between the layers. These layers were created when sediment was eroded and pushed down by pressure, creating these horizontal layers.  I believe that it took millions of years for these layers to form. Since there are so many individual layers and variations.

 Fog on our field trip to Montana De Oro! During our field trip, we saw fog over the waters close by and in the distance. I believe that this would be considered coastal fog, as it is very common off the central coast. I also noticed that the fog was forming more towards the ground rather than high up. For the fog to form, there should be cool ocean air that moves inland. As this air passes over the warm land, the moisture is condensed, which often happens with a little bit more humidity forming this phenomenon. This fog can cover large areas. Being many miles horizontally and can reach up to hundreds of feet high, sometimes going above valleys and tall areas. Depending on the day, the fog could last for hours or even the whole day. If the Sun is out, it is more likely to last a short time as it will evaporate the water vapor, and it is easy for winds to push it out or away.  https://share.icloud.com/photos/09d5YQEcUy-XG9jklkBKGVOog A quick video of the fog over our first stop...

 Bishop Peak  Bishop Peak was formed when magma from the mantle below welled up and a layer of softer rock formed, then solidified about 20 million to 25 million years ago. Bishop is a volcanic plug and is the tallest morro in the city.  Bishop Peak does show characteristics of igneous rocks. When looking at the large rocks and the little ones along the hiking trails, you can see crystals inside the rocks, and it is also hard and dense. We could also identify that it is an igneous intrusive rock, because of its larger crystals that we can see in the rock.  Bishop Peak at Sunrise 5/23/25- 5:23

 Description: This photo was taken next to the Yakitutu lawn and next to Tsitkawayu (building A). From the picture, it looks to be a very pretty area with different plants, rocks, and flowers. As you can see, almost all of it is man-made and shows how humans laid everything else. However, within this area, there is also a drainage pipe and a drain that runs beneath all the greenery. The purpose of this area is to carry the rain water and leading it to the drain to avoid flooding. By r edirecting water , pipes help protect both natural land and human structures from being damaged by erosion. View from Building A

 I went up to the third floor of Baker, and the element Lithium caught my eye. The display was just so eye-catching and gorgeous. Lithium is typically used in the production of batteries due to its high energy density. It is also often commonly used in glass and ceramics  Lithium can be found in underground reservoirs of salty water and inside hard rock deposits. To extract lithium, Brine is pumped to the surface and left to evaporate for months to years. As the water evaporates, lithium and other salts are left behind and then processed. In open-pit or underground mines, the hard rock deposits are crushed and then heated with chemicals to extract lithium. Some concerns for these mining methods towards the environment is large amounts of water usage, land degradation, chemical pollution, and release of carbon emissions. Lithium extraction uses large quantities of water, which can deplete local water resources. While mining of the rock could lead to deforestation and habitat de...