Geology and Earth Science News and Information

Rock & Mineral Kits The best way to learn about rocks and minerals is with specimens!

Coquina - A porous limestone composed almost entirely of fossil debris.

Meteorites - Rocks that were once parts of planets or large asteroids.

Topo Maps - The DeLorme Atlas is an entire state of topo maps in one convenient book.

Frac Sand - A specialty sand used to maintain porosity in hydraulic fracturing.

Variscite is a yellowish green to bluish green mineral. It is similar to turquoise and cut as a gem.

The Many Uses of Gold - Unique properties make gold one of the most useful metals.

Diamonds - Learn about the properties of diamond, its many uses, and diamond discoveries.

Storm Surge can be the most damaging and deadly aspect of a hurricane.

What is the San Andreas Fault? Map, photos and description of the fault.

Utica Shale is a major source of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids in PA, OH and WV.

Hardness Picks - Test for hardness with precise and easy-to-use hardness picks.

How Are Hurricanes Named? There is a plan for naming tropical storms.

Largest Earthquake ever recorded - Magnitude 9.5. Chile, 1960.

Wall Maps - Wall maps of the world, continents, states and the USA.

California Earthquake Maps - A collection of isoseismal maps for earthquakes in California.

Mined in America - Small mines in the United States produce a diversity of beautiful gemstones.

Geology Tools Rock hammers, field bags, hand lenses, maps, hardness picks, gold pans.

Homeowners Insurance might not cover earthquake, hurricane and other geohazard damage.

Free Google Earth software allows you to browse seamless world satellite images. Free.

Fool*s Gold is a name used for pyrite when its brassy color fools people looking for gold.

Ruby and Sapphire are the 2nd and 3rd most popular colored stones in the United States.

Solar System Volcanoes - Earth is not the only location of volcanic activity.

Rock Tumblers - All about rock tumblers and rock tumbling. Read before you buy a tumbler.

Range of Bear Species - Where you might encounter different types of bears.

Tallest Mountain - Everest has rivals in tallness, altitude and distance to the center of Earth.

Minerals - Descriptions, photos, articles, properties and uses for common minerals.

Know the Rules before removing rocks, fossils or minerals from public or private property.

What is a Geyser? Photos and information about geysers in many parts of the world.

Geology Books - A variety of books for reference, field trips, reading and more.

Geology Dictionary - contains thousands of geological terms with their definitions.

Sunstone - A gem feldspar with aventurescence caused by light reflecting from platy inclusions.

Geodes look like ordinary rocks on the outside but can be spectacular inside!

Mineraloids are amorphous naturally-occurring inorganic solids that lack crystallinity.

The Rock Used to Make Beer - Geologists are beer experts and should know about this rock.

The East Africa Rift System - The extensive fault system that is tearing Africa apart.

Rock-Forming Minerals - most of Earth*s crust is made-up of a small number of minerals.

What is a Maar? The second most common volcanic landscape feature on Earth.

What is LNG? The use of LNG as an energy source is growing rapidly. Learn more about LNG.

June 6, 1912 - The most powerful volcanic eruption of the 20th century occurred in Alaska.

Obsidian - the volcanic rock that cools so quickly that it becomes a natural glass.

Emerald is the most popular green gemstone in the United States and most of the world.

Hand Lens A 10-power folding magnifier in a metal case. A frequently used lab and field tool.

Rhodochrosite - a manganese mineral used as an ore, a pink gem and an ornamental stone.

Granite - The intrusive igneous rock that underlies continents and countertops.

Bear Attacks - Knowing how to react to a bear encounter or attack could save your life.

US Diamond Mines - Did you know that diamonds have been mined in the United States?

Gemstones - Colorful images and articles about diamonds and colored stones.

Corundum is the third hardest mineral. It is also the mineral of ruby and sapphire.

Crater of Diamonds - The only diamond mine in the world where you can be the miner.

Portable UV Lamp - Short and long wave UV for fluorescent mineral viewing.

Hematite - The most important ore of iron. A source of mineral pigment since prehistory.

Expansive Soil causes more damage than floods, hurricanes & tornadoes combined.

Diamond Misconception - Many people think that diamonds form from coal. Not True!

Ethiopian Opal - The new opal heavyweight that might give Australia a run.

Sliding Rocks Mystery - What causes these rocks to slide across a playa in Death Valley?

100+ Gems - Photos of over 100 beautiful gems ranging from the popular to the obscure.

Helium is a byproduct of the natural gas industry. Its most important use is in MRI.

Names Used for Great Britain, British Isles, United Kingdom, and Ireland. What they mean.

The Next Hawaiian Island could be growing in the Pacific Ocean right now. Its name is Lo'ihi.

What is Geology? The study of Earth materials, structures, processes and life over time.

Tourmaline - an extremely colorful mineral and gem material.

Shale - The rock that has quickly transformed the oil and gas industry.

Tallest Tsunami - A wave with a run-up height of 1720 feet occurred in Lituya Bay, Alaska.

Turquoise - A bluish-green gem material that has been used for over 6000 years.

Quartzite is metamorphic rock formed when sandstone is subjected to heat and pressure.

Methane Hydrate deposits contain more fuel value than all other fossil fuels combined.

Diamond Production leaders include: Botswana, Russia, Angola and Canada.

World*s Largest Diamonds Records for the largest rough, faceted and carbonado diamond.

Salt Domes - Salt structures that are often associated with oil and natural gas accumulations.

Sand is a diverse material. This gallery includes photos of sand from around the world.

Rock Art - People have been marking on rocks for thousands of years.

Olivine - Abundant in Earth*s mantle. A constituent of meteorites. The gem peridot.

Extraterrestrial Gems - A number of materials from space are used as attractive gems.

Eagle Ford Shale - One of the most prolific oil and gas producers in the United States.

Herkimer Diamonds Doubly-terminated quartz crystals used as specimens and gems.

World Record Lightning - this lake has more lightning than any other place in the world.

Garnet is best known as a red gemstone. It occurs in any color and has many industrial uses.

Lightning Strikes Map by NASA shows the worldwide distribution of lightning activity.

Coal Through a Microscope - Coal is more than a black rock. It is THE most interesting rock.

Peridotite is a chromite host rock, a source of diamonds and a possible carbon dioxide sink.

What Is Earth Science? The study of Earth and its neighbors in space. Learn more!

Volcanic Explosivity - Rating volcanic eruptions based upon the volume of tephra ejected.

Debris Flows are moving masses of loose mud, sand, soil, rock and water.

Ticks are a problem for geologists in some areas. Learn to recognize and avoid them.

Gold Pans and Panning Kits - classifiers, snuffer bottles. Learn how to pan for Gold.

Tanzanite was unknown until a few decades ago but it has erupted into wide popularity.

Volcanoes - Articles about volcanoes, volcanic hazards and eruptions past and present.

Gem Silica is a blue chalcedony colored by copper. It is the rarest and most valuable chalcedony.

Cave of the Hands is a cave where ancient people painted hands about 9000 years ago.

Horizontal Drilling has opened new resources and significantly improved productivity.

Pictures of Opal - A collection of different types of opal from all around the world and Mars too!

Waterproof Paper - Don't take chances with your field notes and maps. Use waterproof paper.

Fluorescent Minerals and rocks glow with spectacular colors under ultraviolet light.

Ant Hill Garnets - tiny gems that ants haul to the surface and discard on their anthill. Honest!

Largest Volcano - That title is shared by Tamu Massif, Mauna Kea and Ojos del Salado.

Moldavite is a gem material born about 15 million years ago when a pair of asteroids struck Europe.

Rocks - Galleries of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rock photos with descriptions.

Blue Flames and the largest highly acidic lake in the world at Kawah Ijen Volcano.

Field Courses - Over 80 field courses for undergraduate geology students.

Petrified Wood is a fossil that forms when silica replaces and infills the cavities of wood.

Facts About Copper - Information about copper uses, production, resources and more.

The Acid Test - Geologists use dilute hydrochloric acid to identify carbonate minerals.

Abandoned Mine Accidents kill several people every year. Education can prevent deaths.

What Is The Moho? The Mohorovicic Discontinuity is the mantle/crust boundary.

Chalcopyrite - The most important ore of copper for over five thousand years.

Colored Diamonds are diamonds with a noticeable body color. They can sell for over $1M/carat.

Green Diamonds - one of rarest and most valuable diamond colors.

Fire Opal is a transparent to translucent opal with a yellow, orange or red background color.

Mohs Hardness Scale is a set of reference minerals used for classroom hardness testing.

Labradorite is a feldspar mineral that sometimes exhibits an iridescent play-of-color.

Arctic Ocean Seafloor Map - The ridges, basins, shelves and rifts defining the Arctic seafloor.

Teacher Resources - K-12 resources for teaching about earth science.

Molybdenite is the primary ore of molybdenum which is used in superalloys and as a lubricant.

The Uses of Marble are numerous and diverse. You will be surprised by how it is used.

Rare Earths - Special materials used in electronics, defense, medical & many other products.

The Unsung Mineral Hero - and the commodity upon which almost everything is built.

Azurite - Used as an ore of copper, a pigment, ornamental stone and gem material.

Kyanite is a metamorphic mineral used to make porcelain, abrasive products and gems.

Talc is a soft mineral used in cosmetics, paper, paint, ceramics and many other products.

Lapis Lazuli - a metamorphic rock and the most popular blue opaque gemstone in history.

Mount Vesuvius - geology, history, maps, facts and more about the Vesuvius eruptions.

Soapstone is a metamorphic rock with properties that make it suitable for a variety of projects.

Hydraulic Fracturing increases well yield by fracturing the reservoir rock with fluid injection.

Zircon is the primary ore of zirconium and a gemstone that is available in many colors.

Rhyolite An extrusive igneous rock with a high silica content, produced from granitic magma.

How did the Hawaiian Islands Form? The power of a moving plate over a stationary hot spot.

Oil Fields from Space - Night views of Earth show the distribution of oil field activity.

Ilmenite - The primary ore of titanium and source of most titanium dioxide.

Chalk is a variety of limestone formed from fine-grained marine sediment known as ooze.

Types of Volcanic Eruptions - A description of the most common eruption types.

Mount Etna - The most active volcano in Europe continues an eruption that started in 2001.

Largest Hurricanes Are they determined by wind speed, value of damage, most deaths?

Landslides A USGS fact sheet about landslides and events that trigger them.

Mount Cleveland is an active volcano in the Aleutian Islands and a threat to air traffic.

Plate Tectonics - Articles and maps about plate tectonics and the interior of Earth.