Delightful diatomThis is the species Arachnoidiscus atlanticus. These 3 photos are all of the exact

Delightful diatomThis is the species Arachnoidiscus atlanticus. These 3 photos are all of the exact same specimen; the focus on the microscope has been moved up and down, giving views of different “slices” of the silica skeleton.Diatoms leave important records in sedimentary rocks. Their shells don’t dissolve easily, so when a diatom dies, its shell will sink to the bottom of the ocean or lake, supplying silica to that sediment.If an area’s sediment is dominated by diatom shells, it can produce single layers dominated by silica. These shells can then be recrystallized into marine chert layers, commonly found in sediments worldwide. Alternatively, in areas where diatoms are mixed with other sediments, the diatom shells can supply silica that cements the sediments together.If their shells stay in tact in sediments, they can also be used as indicators of environment and of time. Specific diatom morphologies exist only in certain environments or in rocks of certain ages, so they can be used by geoscientists as tools to enable larger geologic interpretations.-JBBImage credit: California Academy of Scienceshttps://www.flickr.com/photos/casgeology/6768114343More:http://westerndiatoms.colorado.edu/about/what_are_diatoms -- source link

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