PlanetGeo: The Geology Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Geoscience Careers #1 - Renewable Consulting with Andrew DeWitt Aug 31, 2023

Show notes

Today we have the great pleasure to interview a close friend of the podcast - Andrew Dewitt. Andrew has had a long career in the environmental consulting industry and provides insights into what it take to be a geoscientist working in this field and gives lots of excellent advice. This is a must-listen episode for any aspiring young geoscientist.

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Petrification Aug 24, 2023

Show notes

Today, we are talking about the process of making petrified wood. Basically, wood has to be quickly buried in a wet setting where the water is also saturated in certain minerals - usually silica. Also, there must be little oxygen present or oxidation reactions have to occur to use up all of the available oxygen. This prevents the wood from getting eaten by decomposers. We will also get into the geologic settings where this is likely to occur.
Finally, we talk a little about how we come up with ages of petrified wood and use this to kick off a series on Geochronology. Enjoy!

Creepy Soil Aug 17, 2023

Show notes

Today, we talk about all things soil creep. Have you ever been on a steep slope and seen bent or curved trees, slanted fence posts, slanted headstones or signs? Look closely and you can often see the surface has a rippled appearance. Soil Creep is a form of what we call Mass Wasting in Geology. Mud flows, avalanche, and rockfall are also examples of Mass Wasting. Creep just happens very, very slowly. Join us and learn how this fascinating process works!

Stream Drainage Patterns Aug 10, 2023

Show notes

Just as in so many aspects of the way the world works, geology determines the drainage patterns (or watershed) of rivers. Today, we discuss the major types of drainage patterns - they're not random and we also get into how the geology at the surface determines this shape. This is a continuation of our series on water.

Earth's Geological MRI Scan Aug 03, 2023

Show notes

Today, we cover something very interesting - a new initiative by the United States Geological Survey to map Earth's resources at a new level. Geology is newly relevant to society and. some people argue we are entering a new 'golden age' of geology - how exciting!

Rockhounding 101 Jul 27, 2023

Show notes

Today, we cover one of our favorite past times - RockHounding! It's a totally fun, engaging activity that gets you outside and learning about nature. And, who knows, you might find something spectacular along the way!

How To Identify Rocks Jul 20, 2023

Show notes

In this episode we start a looong conversation about how to identify rocks. We begin by outlining a few simple rules to go by, and how to start to think about identifying rocks when you find them out in the world!

Yellowstone's "Rock" Music Jul 13, 2023

Show notes

Listen to Yellowstone's rock music here!
Today we talk about the fun exercise of turning seismic activity recorded live from Yellowstone National Park, turning it into musical notes, and playing it for a live audience! As usual, we get into the geology behind the story!

The Geology of Uranium Jul 06, 2023

Show notes

Today, we talk about Uranium!
Uranium is a really interesting element and today we talk about how it's used, a bit about nuclear reactors, then dive into the geology. Uranium has two major oxidation states, 4+ and 6+ and the chemical differences between these really drive how Uranium deposits form!

Yellowstone's Other Volcanoes Jun 29, 2023

Show notes

In PlanetGeo today, we discuss one aspect of Yellowstone National Park Geology that goes under-appreciated - the Absaroka Volcanics. They are a geological curiosity, but a massive one at that - the volume of volcanic rocks produced by the Absaroka volcanoes dwarfs the Yellowstone hotspot.