04/08/2026
The are back at training camp, and the NFL draft is right around the corner!!
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This calls for another Geology Rocks! Pittsburgh landscape lesson.
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Did yinz know that Zion National Park began forming over 270 million years ago??? The amazing canyon we see today went through a 4-stage process of sedimentation, lithification, uplift, and erosion. Originally, the area was a flat basin that lay near sea level, where ancient seas and vast deserts deposited massive amounts of sediment that, layer by layer, hardened to become what is now known as Navajo Sandstone. Over the course of tens of millions of years, the sandstone was gradually forced upward by tectonic forces that would inevitably form the Colorado Plateau. Within the last 5 million years, however, the uplift accelerated significantly, raising the plateau to its current height of over 10,000 feet. This rapid rise caused the Virgin River to act like a saw, cutting down through the sedimentary rock layers to form Zion's deep, steep, winding, and narrow-walled canyon that we have the opportunity to enjoy today.
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Don't get too comfy, though! Zion National Park is in a rapid state of geological change and will most likely look very different within the next several million years. This is because the Virgin River has not yet reached its "base level," meaning it will continue to cut downward at high speeds and has already down-cut 1,300 feet within the last 1 million years. Over time, erosion, landslides, and rockfalls will continue to cause the canyon walls to collapse outward, making the canyon wider and less steep; in addition, the Virgin River acts as an extremely efficient conveyor belt for the canyon and surrounding area, as it effectively carries away approximately 1 MILLION TONS of sediment ~every~single~year!
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THE MORE YOU KNOW!
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