Marvelous Colour In The Collection

Some minerals can have a bright, brilliant colour- that blue azurite really catches my eye. 

More to catch the eye.

And more examples of minerals with gemstones.

There is an interactive panel here that uses a camera and controls and allows you to metamorphise your face. 

Perce Rock, Quebec is a famous Canadian landmark, an example of sedimentary rock. We'll return to this gallery after the theme day- but tomorrow's post by me is still on the Museum's grounds.

Of Gems And Minerals

 The three main rock types can and do transform into each other- but this is over a course of millions of years and via the forces of nature.

Minerals grow inside and out of rocks- an inorganic element with its own structure. Display cases feature some.

Gems are finely cut, polished, and finished minerals or rocks. Examples are found here, along with their base source.

I am partial to amethyst, as it's my birthstone.

I remember once being here with my parents and an aunt and uncle. My aunt, who's a real rock hound, spent a couple of hours in here.

Forces Of Magnitude

 There are several kinds of volcanoes. Mount St. Helen's is characteristic of a lava dome.

Etna is typical of a composite cone, or stratovolcano.

Flood basalts are the result of a massive eruption, in which basalt lava pours over a vast amount of land or ocean floor. The most recent one is in the Columbia River region of the western United States- some sixteen million years ago.

Shield volcanoes are characteristic of Hawaii.

Cinder cones are very common types of volcanoes characterized by a single vent.

Volcanoes wreck havoc- some examples are here.

The same applies to earthquakes, which are capable of killing more people.

Display panels look at what makes earthquakes happen- both major and minor fault lines.

Power Of The Earth

Display cases are common throughout this gallery, containing samples of rocks or minerals- in this case, ophiolites.

Diamonds are in a display case here, with panels nearby looking at their origins.

Here we have zeolites.

The forces of the earth begin to be explored, in the form of volcanoes, such as Surtsey in Iceland.

Several types of volcanic rock are on display- this is pillow lava.

Here we see a basalt column.

Pahoehoe and Aa come from shield volcanoes, and are Hawaiian terms.

Pumice and scoria are common of cinder cone volcanoes.

Here are volcanic bombs and Andesitic lava.

And lastly for today, here's more.