Devils Tower is a geological wonder, 800 feet of an igneous phonolite porphyry jutting straight into the air. The tower itself is amazing enough, but even more interesting are the theories behind how this great spire was formed. One of the theories is that millions of years ago magma was bubbling under thousands of feet of dirt and rock then something forced that magma to start going upward. That magma hit a huge deposit of water and cooled and hardened. 
This caused a sudden stop in the flow of magma and caused the rest of it to eventually harden into what we know as Devils Tower. Some of you might be wondering about the pillars on the side. Those were also caused by the cooling rock. Every element except water will contract as it cools, so naturally as Devils Tower cooled it shrunk and developed stress points. These stress points began to connect and form cracks that eventually made the pillars that we see today. 
Next stop: Yellowstone
Hey Cole, it sound like a really fun trip. All of your stops seem incredible, and I would love to see them. Thanks for keeping us posted, and excited to hear more. Hope you're having fun, and I can't wait to see you.
ReplyDeleteI am starting to miss everyone a lot. So far it has been pretty fun, if a little cold at night. Is everything still good in Vermont? Is the fall foliage out yet?
DeleteCole, Do they believe that the tower was a lot wider many years ago, and then in eroded and all that's left is the more dense core? This reminds me of geological structures that I saw in Rumsiki, Cameroon. :) Thanks for posting!
ReplyDeleteThe dirt around the tower eroded away, but the rock is all the same. There have been pillars that have broken off over the years. Some parts are no bigger than a finger, others are as big as a bus.
Delete