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To see a world in a grain of sand and a heaven in a wildflower, hold infinity in the palm of your hand and eternity in an hour. William Blake. Are you an Arenophile? Or, a Psammologist? Perhaps this presentation and workshop will convince you to become one!.
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To see a world in a grain of sandand a heaven in a wildflower,hold infinity in the palm of your handand eternity in an hour.William Blake Are you an Arenophile? Or, a Psammologist? Perhaps this presentation and workshop will convince you to become one!
This site takes you directly to a sand sample from its vast collection with a simple click Somerset, Bermuda No. Territory, Australia Kenai, Alaska http://www.arenophile.com/collection/index.html
“Virtual” Sand websites allow you to travel the world... grain by grain!
No microscope handy? Virtual sand sites usually provide you with a close-up http://www.microscope-microscope.org/applications/sand/microscopic-sand.htm Lake Powell (Utah) The mighty rivers like the Colorado wear away the rocks as water passes on it's way to the sea. Tiny bits of decomposed rock are carried along in the water. When water reaches a lake, it slows down and some of the sand particles are deposited to make beaches. First, the size of the grains is always important. Put a metric ruler under your microscope to get an idea of their size. The shape of the material is also important. Is it smooth or rough? Third, can you identify the material that makes up the sand? Is it made from minerals like quartz, feldspar or mica or is it made from tiny bits of broken shells?
Take a closer look… Lake Powell Sand Some samples are best observed on a white background and others on a black background. Try both to see which is best. Here is the same sample, magnified more on a black background. Sand is a by-product of weathering. The particles in sand are usually very small bits of something very large upstream, like a huge mountain. But not all sand is deposited from rivers. On some beaches, wave action on coral underwater deposits tiny bits of coral on the beach. From a distance, the color of the sand is related to the composition of the individual particles. Lots of quartz will produce a shiny white beach. Lots of feldspar will make a more orange colored beach. Common black minerals in sand are mica and hornblend.
Horse Shoe Bay, Bermuda Notice the pink coloration of this sand collected in the Caribbean. The largest of the grains are 4 mm. How much of this sand do you think is composed of the remains of marine life?
Hana, Maui, Hawaii At the end of a long road, on the eastern end of Maui, one can find the Red Sand Beach of Hana. The sand is actually a mixture of red and black grains which are clearly volcanic in nature and contain many gas holes called vesicles.
Sahara Desert, Saqqara, Egypt The Sahara is the world's largest desert and has fairly fine, light brown sand. The site that this sand was collected from is also home to the Step Pyramid of Saqqara, the world's oldest free-standing stone structure built in 2650 B.C.
Green Sand Beach, Hawaii The composition of this sand makes it extremely unique. It is from the Green Sand Beach on the big island, Hawaii. As you look at the grains in detail, you might want to compare it to another green sand, of similar composition but much finer grain size, from the Toilet Bowl on Oahu. The average grain size of this sand is about 2mm, qualifying this as very course sand.
Toilet Bowl, Oahu, Hawaii Hawaiian green sand is incredibly beautiful on the beach, and probably more so enlarged under the microscope. When looking at this sand under higher magnification, be sure and look carefully at the shape of the grains. Compare this sand at high power to the sand from Green Sand Beach - they are chemically similar but texturally different.
Wahaula Heiau Beach, Hawaii Wahaula Heiau is just down the hill from Kilauea Crater on Hawaii's east side. It is, therefore, not surprising that the beach sand here is derived from lava flows. The grains are black, angular and glassy and most of them are a volcanic glass called obsidian. It is formed when lava cools very quickly and there isn't enough time for minerals to crystallize.
Upper Sacobia River, Mt. Pinatubo, Philippines Mt. Pinatubo erupted in 1991; this sample was collected a year later from a river near the volcano. The grains are actually made up of ash from the volcano, which was first deposited by the eruption, and then later transported to the river. This eruption was so powerful that it influenced weather patterns across the globe.
San Nicolas, Channel Islands, California San Nicolas is the furthest Channel Island from the coast of California. It is a beautiful collection of mostly marine animal remains. The purplish "sticks" in the picture above are actually sea urchin spines. The highest magnification image shows some sand grains in the beginning stages of lithification, the process by which unconsolidated sediments become sedimentary rock. Sediments typically are transported and re-deposited, and then buried and compacted by overlying sediments. Cementation causes the sediments to harden, or lithify, into rock.
Great Salt Lake, Utah Though this sand may look dull, grey and boring, at higher magnification it becomes quite beautiful. A drop of dilute hydrochloric acid placed on these sand grains causes them to fizz vigorously.
Gun Beach, Guam Notice the pink coloration of this sand, collected many years ago from the Pacific island of Guam. By zooming in, we can see what these sand grains are actually made of. Most grains above are in the 1 to 2 mm size range.
Added bonus – pictures from your collection site Green Sand (Olivine) Papakolea, Hawaii Volcanic Black Sand Beach (Obsidian) Kaimu, Hawaii Bruneau Dunes State Park, ID
Soooo….. Next time you get arounda large quantity of sand such as at the beach or even in the playground under the swing set… take a closer look! Sand dunes, Death Valley As you will see, not all sand is the same. So perhaps you have become interested to start a sand collection of your own?
Start your own collection! Cheapest souvenir you’ll ever “shop” for” Easiest souvenir for your friends to being back to you! Before putting your sand in the container, in a few cases it is better to wash it. The best way to wash the sand is the following: Dry the sand: Once washed the sand, drying it is necessary. For a correct dry, it is necessary stretch the sand with a ladle on a quite resistant cardboard sheet (photography of the sand spread out on the cardboard) and let it dry in a natural way to the air and the sun. Not using ovens to microwaves or other not natural systems which could change the colors of the ores which compose sandblasts it.
Or, start your collection with this kit….or trade on the web SAND DISCOVERY KIT Is available through The International Sand Collectors Society & The Geology Department, Pasadena City College www.sandcollectors.org/ISCSHomeIndexx.html
Great websites From Pasadena city college: VIRTUAL SAND COLLECTION www.paccd.cc.ca.us/instadmn/physcidv/geol_dp/dndougla/SAND/ BEACH SAND collection http://www.sandcollection.tk/ www.jaster.20m.com/ Sands of the World ! www.ed.uri.edu/homepage/projects/ocean/Sand4.htm www.monte.wednet.edu/SANDBLAST/sandblast.html www.asapnet.net/suebob/sand.html#sandpics
