Earthquake damage: significant cracking and displacement in adobe wall of garage Geology, Hazards August 16, 2022 The Great ShakeOut The origins of The Great ShakeOut project lie, unsurprisingly, in Southern California, one of the more seismically active regions of the country. In 2008 a group of experts collaboratively modeled what might happen when a major earthquake hits the Southern California region. The detailed report, titled…
North Table Mountain stands between Golden and the wider Denver metro area in the background. Photo credit: Vince Matthews for the CGS. Geology, Publications May 11, 2022 Golden Rocks: The Geology and Mining History of Golden, Colorado We’ve received the go ahead to help distribute this marvelous (and FREE!) 100+ page digital publication from the talented and insightful Donna Anderson and Paul Haseman. Their passion for geology and for communicating the fascinating and often surprising facts about Golden and its geologic history show through every page…
Interstate-70 running through Glenwood Canyon is one of the most spectacular segments of the US Interstate system. Photo credit: Vince Matthews for the CGS. Geology March 16, 2022 The Glenwood Canyon Highway This recent RMPBS/Colorado Experience video traces the history of transportation through Colorado’s spectacular Glenwood Canyon. It focuses on the complex construction process of Interstate-70 that sought to harmonize with the geology and the landscape. Initially fraught with controversy and opposition, the Glenwood Canyon Highway is one…
A 3610 g slice of the Bear Creek meteorite being held for scale that was formerly in the Jurgen Nauber Meteorite Collection (JNMC) in Zurich General, Geology March 9, 2022 Tale of the Bear Creek Meteorite, Jefferson County, Colorado By Matthew Morgan, Deputy Director, Colorado Geological Survey and Gary Curtiss, Lakewood geologist and meteorite collector The prior discovery by George R. Morrison of the Bear Creek iron meteorite was confirmed on April 18, 1866 when Morrison and James L. Wilson returned to a location approximately 48 km (30…
Mining town, Eureka, San Juan County, Colorado, circa 1900. Photo credit: William Henry Jackson. CGS media archive. Geology, Minerals, Publications November 24, 2020 Re-introducing: Historic Metal Mining Districts As the reconstruction of our website continues, we recently redeployed a popular package of information that was compiled and made available by former CGS Senior Minerals Geologist, Mr. James Burnell, during the 2010s. Referencing a variety of sources, Burnell researched most of the major districts around the state. Each district…
Diamonds in the rough, note the regular octahedral forms and trigons (of positive and negative relief) formed by natural chemical etching. Photo credit: Wikimedia. Minerals February 19, 2018 What are diamonds? Diamonds are formed from pure carbon, one of the most abundant elements on planet Earth. Diamonds, even from ancient times, have been sought for their extraordinary hardness (they are the hardest substance known) and their brilliance, especially in the colorless transparent gemstone variety. Ironically the other form of pure carbon…
Boulder oil field, 1915. Photo credit: C. L. McClure and the Denver Public Library. General, Geology March 29, 1907 Concerns about the new survey Regarding the Colorado Geological Survey (an article appearing in the Mining Reporter, March 1907): We note that one of our contemporaries, in recently commenting on the University bill creating a State Geological Survey of Colorado — the bill reported favorably on by the joint Senate and House mining committee —…