As we all know, I’m a sucker for a good documentary, even those that aren’t related to geology.
However, this time around the subject couldn’t be more relevant; falling prices, conflicts in the Middle East, debates about sustainability and the implications of fracking all mean that oil is the hot topic du jour.
In a three-part series, professor Iain Stewart explores the history of our global addiction and reliance on oil, and how it has altered economics, politics and our environment in a timespan little over that of a human lifetime.
Here is yet another Icelandic photo, and probably of one of the more photographed expanses of cliff on the island (maybe in the world?) However, this one has me baffled!
Now, we can all see the columnar jointing in the basalt, and there is clearly a relationship between it and the large, dark section at the centre of the outcrop. The thing that stumps me is what the relationship could be between the basalt and the blob (I promise I can be more eloquent sometimes!
If anyone could help me out, I would be much obliged!
Carrying on with Friday’s theme of rooting through old photos, I thought I’d share a few from a family trip to the Scilly Isles way back in 2008.
Aerial view from the incoming helicopter
I mentioned in a previous post the great Cornubian Batholith, an enormous granite body that makes many appearances across the south-west of England. The granite was emplaced during the Late Permian, as part of the later stages of the Variscan Orogeny. As well as the many tors of Devon and Cornwall, one of these outcrops is the characteristic archipelago of the Scilly Isles, a scattering of islands clustered beyond Land’s End. Up until around 500 AD (a mere blink of an eye from a geologist’s perspective), the islands were one large outcrop, before rising sea levels split it into around fifty-five separate islands and islets.
Out of these fifty-five, only five of the islands are currently inhabited: St Mary’s, St Agnes, St Martin’s, Bryher and Tresco. At extreme low tides it is also possible to walk (or at least paddle!) between some of the islands, and the relatively recent sea level rise means that ancient field boundaries are also exposed by the receding water. From above, the Scilly Isles look like a tropical paradise, with their isolated white sand beaches. At times you could be forgiven for the mistake, as the westerly position of the archipelago means that they are exposed to the warming effects of the Gulf Stream. However, it is far more likely that it is due to the high quartz content of the eroding granite!
Now, these photos are from a looong time ago, so apologies for the rather dodgy nature, but I thought I’d provide a quick overview of my time in paradise!
Incoming swell at the appropriately named Hell Bay
Written In Rock 