Without some research and study, you probably would not recognize a completely unique rock formation because you would not have anything to compare it to. This pipe in Kodachrome Basin State Park in Utah is a member of a very small number of this type of rock formation that is not found anywhere else in the world. There are 67 of these formations inside the State Park and a few more outside the Park. What is most interesting about these particular formations is that there is no generally accepted theory about how they were formed. Here is a quote from the Geoscience Research Institute article entitled, "Classic Pipes and Dikes in Kodachrome Basin."
The mechanism for intrusion is problematic and may never be known. Hannum (1980) has suggested that the pipes came from cold springs. Hornbacher (1984) favors seismically induced sediment liquefaction and intrusion. The relatively smooth and striated wall pattern of some pipes (Figure 3) favors the latter interpretation. To add to the mystery, there seems to be little or no disturbance of bedding planes or indication of compressive strain in the sediments surrounding the pipes. This suggests that both the pipe material and the surrounding sediments were soft when the pipes formed.
You may want to read the entire article.
No comments:
Post a Comment