Raven RidgeThis sedimentary stack on the Colorado-Utah border was uplifted and exposed by tectonic u

Raven RidgeThis sedimentary stack on the Colorado-Utah border was uplifted and exposed by tectonic uplift during the Laramide orogeny, which tilted them to their near vertical exposure. Uplift also exposed the rocks to higher rates of erosion as agents such as rainfall and glaciation increased with altitude. The sequence was deposited 10 million years after the death of the dinosaurs, between roughly 53 and 49 million years ago in the early Eocene. Many fossils of mammals such as ancestral horses and primates have been found in the area. One advantage of vertically tilted rocks is that it makes life easier for geologists, as it is easier to explore a larger time sequence with less walking (which when you’re lugging kit and kilos of rock samples makes a big difference). The sediments are lacustrine from ancient tropical lake Uinta, and include uplands of more resistant white to tan freshwater limestones intercalated with less resistant mudstones in the valleys. Lithology (the kinds of rock forming the surface) interacts with climate and tectonics to create the landscapes in which our history evolves. The break in the ridgeline is Mormon Gap, through which a road passes, and a historical crossing point during the great westward migrations of the 19th century.LozImage credit: NASA -- source link

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