This week I went through my unfiled papers drawer in my office and dug deep and found, yes, more geology postcards! After going through the west of the USA, we'll have to head east again for CT and VT. Anyway...Welcome to Postcard Friendship Friday, hosted by Marie at the French Fractrice.
This is an oversized postcard (6 by 8 inches) published by the New Mexico Bureau of Mines and Mineral Resources, 801 Leroy Place, Socorro, NM. I have scanned it at a higher resolution than usual so there should be detail visible if you double-click on the image.
The back has a good summation of the general geologic history and so I will quote it here, with my comments in [ and ] brackets.
"The rocks of New Mexico reveal a long and complex of deposition, volcanic eruptions, structural deformation [due to plate tectonics as described in earlier posts], and climatic extremes -- from intensely folded Precambrian cores of mountain ranges more than 600 million years old to black basalts that flowed across the landscape as recently as 900 AD. White sand dunes today move slowly across the world's largest gypsum [a calcium sulfate mineral] desert, where waves of water once broke upon the shores of vanished lakes. New Mexico's extensive mineral and energy resources are a result of this colorful history -- petroleum and natural gas, coal, copper, uranium, gold, silver, molydenum [used for specialty steel] , lead, zinc, barite [a source of barium], fluorite [mined for fluorine, used in industry], gypsum [mined for drywall, aka sheetrock], perlite [see Wikipedia entry] , potash [used in fertilizer], and sand and gravel."
A Virtual Geologic Tour of New Mexico from the Bureau.
Major cities shown on the map are Farmington, Santa Fe (the capital), Albuquerque, Socorro, Las Cruces, and of course, Roswell.
Viridian
9 comments:
I never saw Geology Postcards before, I don't think we have them here (Ireland). I would be interested in one that showed my area, well it would certainly be different from the usual landscapes!
I am (in)patiently waiting for Oregon, but Nevada was so wonderful, that it distracted me. But wait, we can't head back east yet! Say it isn't so.
I just double clicked my heart out! You're right. That detail gives the geology learning experience another wonderful dimension!
What fascinating postcards you post! I love these detailed pieces of art!
Happy Thanksgiving, and Happy PFF!
I love your geology cards ... the color is wonderful -- like modern art -- and I learn something! I lived in NM for 23 years ... thanks!
I am also loving these geology cards and have never seen anything like them. What a treat! Happy PFF!
Thanks for the geology info on New Mexico, Veridian! :)
I have a friend who lives in new Mexico! I know slightly more about the state than others as a result, but none of the geology - until now.
This is a differnt kind of postcard than I normally find...I like it!
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