Painted CliffsThis outcrop can be found with a walk along the coastline in Maria Island National Par

Painted CliffsThis outcrop can be found with a walk along the coastline in Maria Island National Park, which makes up the totality of Maria Island off the eastern coast of Tasmania. The rocks are Triassic-aged sandstones. The painted red and white color was created when ancient groundwater flowed through these sands and small amounts of iron precipitated in areas where oxygen was available. Since quartz, the mineral that makes up sandstones, is typically colorless, it only takes a slight bit of iron oxide to stain it an obvious red.Today this outcrop sits exposed to the ocean. See how the area closest to the ocean is weathering back more rapidly? That’s likely caused by sea spray. When a bit of ocean water splashes onto the rocks and evaporates, it deposits salt. That salt gets in-between sand grains and as it grows, it wedges the grains apart, eroding the wall.-JBBImage credit: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Painted_Cliffs.jpghttp://www.facebook.com/jjharrison89Read more: http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/?base=1490 -- source link

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